MMWR News Synopsis for June 11, 2015

 

Health Effects of Gas Explosions and Other Petroleum Product Release Incidents — Seven States, 2010–2012

CDC Media Relations
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Understanding the characteristics of acute petroleum product releases can aid the public and utility workers in the development of preventive strategies and reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with such releases. Large mass-casualty gas explosions and catastrophic oil spills are widely reported and receive considerable regulatory attention. Smaller, less catastrophic releases are less likely to receive publicity, although study of these incidents might help focus and prioritize prevention efforts.   Data from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s acute chemical release surveillance system: the National Toxic Substance Incidents Program (NTSIP) was used to explore the causes and health impacts associated with smaller-scale petroleum product releases. NTSIP found that from 2010–2012 a total of 1,369 petroleum-product-release incidents were reported from seven states, resulting in 512 injured persons and 36 deaths. Approximately 10 percent of petroleum product releases resulted from inadvertent damage to utility lines.

Progress Toward Measles Elimination — South-East Asia Region, 2003–2013

CDC Media Relations
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To achieve measles elimination in the South-East Asia Region, additional efforts are needed in countries with <95 percent 2-dose routine measles-containing vaccine (MCV) coverage, particularly in India and Indonesia. Such efforts should include strengthening routine immunization services, conducting periodic high-quality supplementary immunization activities (SIAs), strengthening measles case-based surveillance and laboratory diagnosis for measles, and using the measles elimination platform to integrate rubella and congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) control efforts. In 2013, after rigorous prior consultations, the 66th session of the Regional Committee of the World Health Organization (WHO) South-East Asia Region (SEAR) adopted the goal of measles elimination and CRS control by 2020. This report updates previous reports and summarizes progress toward measles elimination in SEAR during 2003–2013. Coverage with the first dose of a measles-containing vaccine (MCV1) increased from 67 percent to 78 percent and an estimated 286 million children (93 percent of the target) were vaccinated in SIAs. Measles incidence decreased 73 percent, from 59 to 16 cases per million population and estimated measles deaths decreased 63 percent.

Serogroup B Meningococcal Disease Outbreak and Carriage Evaluation at a College — Rhode Island, 2015

CDC Media Relations
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During a serogroup B meningococcal disease outbreak at a college in Rhode Island, 25 percent of students were found to have asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriage of Neisseria meningitidis, though none were carrying the outbreak strain. In response to a serogroup B meningococcal disease outbreak at a college in Rhode Island, targeted antibiotic chemoprophylaxis of close contacts and a mass vaccination campaign with a recently-licensed serogroup B meningococcal (MenB) vaccine were implemented. No further cases have been identified. Additionally, an evaluation of asymptomatic nasopharyngeal carriage of Neisseria meningitidis, the bacteria that causes meningococcal disease, found that 25 percent of the 717 student participants carried N. meningitidis, 4 percent specifically carried serogroup B, and none carried the outbreak strain. This baseline carriage prevalence is higher than previous U.S. estimates of 1 percent to 8 percent among the general population, but is comparable to prevalences observed in United Kingdom university students. Two additional carriage evaluations will assess MenB vaccination impact on carriage over time in this college population.

Use of Serogroup B Meningococcal Vaccines in Persons Aged ≥10 Years at Increased Risk for Serogroup B Meningococcal Disease: Recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, 2015

CDC Media Relations
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Certain persons aged ≥10 years at increased risk for meningococcal disease should receive serogroup B meningococcal vaccine. There are two serogroup B meningococcal (MenB) vaccines licensed in the United States, and approved for use in persons aged 10–25 years. The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommends use of MenB vaccines among certain groups of people aged ≥10 years at increased risk for meningococcal disease. This includes persons with persistent complement component deficiencies; persons with anatomic or functional asplenia; microbiologists routinely exposed to isolates of Neisseria meningitidis; and persons identified to be at increased risk because of a serogroup B meningococcal disease outbreak. Recommendations for broader use of MenB vaccines in adolescents and college students will be considered separately by ACIP in the future.

Notes from the Field

• Increase in Reported Adverse Health Effects Related to Synthetic Cannabinoids — United States, January–May 2015

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U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES