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23 October 2011
A rare case of polio vaccination paralysis in a congenital immune deficient child in South Africa
A young child in Gauteng, with a very rare and severe congenital immune system problem, has been confirmed by the NICD division of the NHLS to have developed a case of paralysis as an extremely rare complication of polio vaccination. This complication has been shown to occur in only 23 cases worldwide since the introduction of oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) in the previous century.
For more info click on the Department of Health website: http://www.doh.gov.za/show.php?id=3139
17 October 2011
Outbreak Of Newly Emerged, Highly Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria In Hospitalised Patients In Gauteng Province
A cluster of patients with colonisation and/or infection with highly-resistant bacteria producing the enzyme NDM-1 were recently identified in a Gauteng Province hospital. Most of the patients had underlying conditions that would place them at greater risk of acquiring these organisms and had been hospitalised for an extended period. Two of the patients have died; both had advanced disease due to underlying chronic illness and it is likely that these co-morbidities played a major role in their demise.
NDM-1 is an enzyme that makes bacteria resistant to a broad range of beta-lactam antibiotics. These include the antibiotics of the carbepenem group, which are a mainstay of the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections and are usually reserved for severe infections. The beta-lactam group of antibiotics includes such well-known antibiotics as the penicillins and cephalosporins.
…….. Read more on the NICD website: http://www.nicd.ac.za/?page=alerts&id=5&rid=110
Rabies is a fatal disease in humans and animals and there is no treatment. Once humans develop symptoms of rabies, death is inevitable. Human rabies can be prevented in almost 100% of cases if correct post-exposure preventative treatment is given timeously following exposure to suspected rabid animals.
Please see the NICD website: http://www.nicd.ac.za/?page=alerts&id=5&rid=105 , for more info.
URGENT MEDICINE RECALL – Tenchlor Tablets 30′s
Aspen Pharmacare are recalling the following batch of Tenchlor Tablets 30′s; Batch Number 7212411, Expiry Date 04/2013. This is a Class II Type B recall.
A container of Tenchlor Tablets (30′s) has been found to contain one Lamivudine 150mg tablet in amongst the Tenchlor tablets. It is possible that more containers of Batch 7212411 are similarly affected.
For further product information or medical queries, please call the Aspen Medical Information line: 0800 118 088.
Aspen Pharmacare urge you to return all packs to your local wholesaler or distribution centre for credit. You can contact Tollfree 0800 122 912 for information on the returns process.
Aspen Pharmacare would like to thank you for your co-operation in this matter and apologise for any inconvenience that this may create.
(Date: Tuesday, September 13, 2011)
New antidepressant – Valdoxan® now available
Servier Laboratories is pleased to announce the introduction of Valdoxane® 25 mg. Valdoxane® has an innovative pharmacological profile. It is both a melatonergic receptor agonist and a 5HT2c receptor antagonist. It has no significant affinity for the wide variety of other receptors. Its antidepressant effect results from the resynchronisation of the circadian rhythms that are disturbed in depressed patients.
Amendments to Yellow Fever Requirements
The Department of Health has notified SASTM that a Yellow Fever vaccination certificate or a valid waiver certificate will be required from all travellers coming from Zambia with effect 1 October 2011.
Travellers will have to present the Yellow Fever vaccine certificate upon return from countries with a risk of yellow fever transmission. This includes travellers transiting air ports in a country with yellow fever transmission, regardless of the time spent at the airport.
Travellers who do not comply with these requirements may be refused entry or quarantined for a period not exceeding six days.
Travellers with a valid waiver document will be allowed entry and will be requested to report fever or any other symptoms to the authorities for further investigation.
The following countries are regarded as countries with a risk of yellow fever transmission:
| Angola Argentina Benin Bolivia Brazil Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Central African Republic Chad Colombia Congo |
Côte d’Ivoire Democratic Republic of the Congo Ecuador Equatorial Guinea Ethiopia French Guyana Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana |
Kenya Liberia Mali Mauritania Niger Nigeria Panama Paraguay Peru Rwanda Sao Tome and Principe |
Senegal Sierra Leone Somalia Sudan Suriname Togo Trinidad and Tobago Uganda United Republic of Tanzania Venezuela Zambia (From 1 October 2011) |