Kentucky's week-long brand of flu now called 'widespread'

What started out early is now full-blown. The Kentucky Department for Public Health informed federal health authorities this week that data it has received from local health departments, hospitals, clinics and private doctors indicates that flu is now "widespread" in the state.

Darla Carter of The Courier-Journal reports that Louisville officials have confirmed nine cases and 127 positive rapid tests since the first week of November. For the status to be "widespread," the state explained it had received numerous reports from throughout the commonwealth. What is being reported is not a 24-hour bug, but a 7-10 day virus.  Health officials are vigorously encouraging flu vaccinations. (Read more)

Southern Kentucky circuit judge was probably the first to die in Tenn. from fungal meningitis outbreak stemming from tainted steroids

Judge Eddie C. Lovelace

The first person to die in Tennessee from the nine-state meningitis outbreak liked to bad steroids was most likely Kentucky Circuit Judge Eddie C. Lovelace of Albany, 78, who died at Vanderbilt University Medical Center Sept. 17. John Dreyzehner, Tennessee's commissioner of health, said Friday that the number of Tennesseans affected by the meningitis outbreak has now risen to 29. The number of deaths is unchanged at three. The search for more affected patients will continue "for some time," he said. Investigators haven't found evidence that the clinics or clinicians in Tennessee did anything to cause the outbreak, which has been reported in other states.

In July and August, Lovelace received three rounds of the pain-relieving steroid injections suspected of causing the outbreak of the rare disease, Joyce Lovelace, his wife of 55 years, told Adam Tamburin of The Tennessean. Representatives of the Saint Thomas Hospital Outpatient Neurosurgery Center, where he received the injections, are reported to have called Joyce Lovelace twice after his death to discuss his condition. They did not mention the outbreak, she said, nor have they confirmed that that was his cause of death.

Vanderbilt spokespeople have confirmed to the newspaper that "the first reported casualty of the outbreak was a 78-year-old man who died there on Sept. 17." Doctors told his family that his unexpected death was likely caused by a stroke, which is common among critically ill meningitis patients. His symptoms -- slurred speech, trouble walking and numbness -- are consistent with symptoms of fungal meningitis.

Lovelace had been a circuit court judge for two decades, and commonwealth's attorney and county attorney before that. “He always wanted to be known as a judge who knew the law, and he certainly was.” Joyce Lovelace said. “His career was not over. He had years yet to work.” (Read more) Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear may fill Lovelace's nonpartisan vacancy with state Sen. David Williams of Burkesville, who has been president of the Senate since Republicans took formal control of the chamber in 2000.

UPDATE, Oct. 6: The New York Times reports that nine states have reported meningitis cases connected to the steroids made by a Massachusetts company, which shipped the steroids to 14 other states. "Some doctors and clinics have turned away from major drug manufacturers and have taken their business to so-called compounding pharmacies, like New England Compounding, which mix up batches of drugs on their own, often for much lower prices than major manufacturers charge — and with little of the federal oversight of drug safety and quality that is routine for the big companies." (Read more) New England Compounding has recalled the steroids, The Tennessean reports.

State health department says 381 cases of whooping cough puts disease at epidemic levels

The state Department of Public Health says whooping cough is now at epidemic levels. Department officials told Amanda Stephenson of WTVQ-TV in Lexington that 381 cases of the virus have been confirmed so far in 2012.  The Lexington-Fayette County Health Department is reporting 50 cases so far this year. That's double the 26 cases they'd seen in the previous five years. Estill County health officials have seen a quadrupling of cases since July. (Read more)

Mary Meehan of the Lexington Herald-Leader reports that Three Rivers District Health Department in Owenton, which serves Owen, Carroll, Gallatin and Pendleton counties, will offer shots at fall festivals in the district to stave off the spread of the disease. After 86 cases were confirmed in the area, the Northern Kentucky Health Department, which serves Boone, Campbell, Grant and Kenton counties, is offering vaccines for $4.

The Fayette County department isn't planning special clinics at this time, so people who are worried about the illness should contact their family physicians. Some pharmacies, such as Walgreens, are offering the shots in their stores. There is an adequate supply of vaccine for children and adults, said Beth Fisher, a spokesperson for the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

For more information on pertussis, and its symptoms, go to the CDC website.

State Fair taking precautions to prevent spread of swine flu

With cases of swine flu popping up in adjoining states to the north, officials are taking precautions to prevent the disease from spreading at the Kentucky State Fair's Swine Pavilion. The fair starts Thursday. (Photo by Kristin Sherrard, Carrollton News-Democrat: Turner Slaton of Madisonville wins the reserve light crossbred champion ribbon at the Kentucky State Fair in 2009.)

University of Louisville epidemiologist Forrest Arnold has advice for fairgoers:

• “Stay out of the face of a sick pig.” The flu is transmitted most often via the eyes, nose or mouth, so keeping your face out of a pig’s face is advised.
• “Wash your hands frequently.” Always a good recommendation to prevent illness, washing your hands is especially important after you have been around pigs.
• “Be sure your children limit exposure to pigs’ faces and wash their hands immediately after viewing them.” Children especially enjoy the livestock shows at the state fair, so it is important that they follow precautions as well.
• “Be aware if you are at a greater risk.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn people at high risk of contracting any flu, such as those 65 or older, pregnant or with chronic conditions such as asthma or diabetes, to avoid contact with pigs entirely.
• “Continue to enjoy eating pork and pork products.” Swine flu is not transmitted by eating pork that has been cooked to a temperature of at least 170 degrees.

The state veterinarian's staff will be inspecting all swine — between 650 and 675 pigs — and looking for signs of flu, which includes coughing, sneezing and labored breathing. Animals showing symptoms will be evaluated and tested for the disease. Exhibitors coming from out of state must show a certificate of veterinary inspection with 72 hours of arrival, The Courier-Journal reports.

"We are certainly prepared for the slightest sign of any outbreak, and of course, the public will be notified immediately should anything occur," said Harold Workman, president of the Kentucky State Fair Board.

This year has seen 158 reported cases of swine flu, 130 of which were in 19 counties in Indiana. There have been 30 cases in Ohio and one each in Indiana and Hawaii. The disease is spread by pigs coughing or sneezing in the proximity of humans. Symptoms in humans, which can last from three to eight days, include coughing, fever, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, nausea and diarrhea. (Read more)

Many more serious cases of West Nile virus reported this year, but only one in Kentucky

Though only one Kentuckian has been affected, more serious cases of people infected by the West Nile virus have been reported this year than any since 2004. Through July, 241 cases were reported in 22 states. The virus has caused four deaths. Nearly 150 cases have been in Texas, particularly in the Dallas area, reports Mike Stobbe for The Associated Press.

Of the 241 cases, 144 were considered serious, meaning the virus spread to the brain and nervous system, causing, among other ailments, encephalitis. Last year, less than 700 cases were reported.
Health officials blame the combination of a mild winter, early spring and hot summer, prime conditions for mosquitoes to breed. "Unless the weather changes dramatically, we'll see more cases (in 2012) than we have in the last couple of years," said Roger Nasci of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

About 1 in 5 people who are infected with the virus get sick. One in 150 get severe symptoms, including neck stiffness, disorientation, coma and paralysis, Stobbe reports. (Read more)

Lyme disease in Ky. probably more common than reported

Nearly anyone who has spent considerable time in the woods this summer has later discovered they carried a visitor back with them — one the size of a freckle who latches on for dear life. Ticks are not uncommon in Kentucky, though Lyme disease, which is spread through the bite of a black-legged deer tick, is not commonly seen in the state.

But those numbers are likely under-reported, Keiara Carr reports for The Courier-Journal, in part because "Current medical guidelines say the disease is so rare in Kentucky that doctors should look for alternative causes for symptoms that might suggest Lyme disease."

Only five cases were reported in Kentucky in each of the past two years and there was just one case in 2009. But it's likely cases went under-reported because doctors don't give the blood test that diagnoses Lyme. They just don't feel it's necessary given the rarity of the disease in the area, Carr reports.

But Mike Gatton of Louisville knows all too well that it's possible. He got bitten by a tick while mowing his lawn two years ago. He developed a rash on his leg but when he went to the doctor he was tested for a variety of diseases, including West Nile, multiple sclerosis and Lou Gehrig disease, but not Lyme. "I was feeling more and more fatigued. I was having severe headaches. I was really concerned," he said.

When he got another tick bite a year ago and had the same reaction he had to the first bite, he put the tick in a vial and brought it to his doctor, who still dismissed the possibility of Lyme. He is now being treated with antibiotics he takes intravenously.

Symptoms of Lyme disease include fever, headache and fatigue. Sometimes, a rash that looks like a bull's eye around the tick bite can develop. Usually, people get better with large doses of antibiotics. If left untreated, "the infection can be painful and debilitating, causing arthritis or spreading to the heart and nervous system," Carr reports.

Guidelines by the Infectious Disease Society of America "to help doctors decide if a patient is eligible for treatment say the patient should have received the tick bite in an 'endemic area," Carr reports, which makes sense according to Paul Mead, a consulting physician for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "For example, a physician in Africa evaluating a child for fever should have malaria at the top of his list; a physician in Kentucky should not," he said. (Read more)

Whooping cough on the rise in Kentucky and nationwide

A resurgence of whooping cough in Kentucky and the nation has officials urging the public to get vaccinated. The state has already had 171 reported cases this year, making it "on track to beat our record from just two years ago," said Dr. Kraig Humbaugh, state epidemiologist with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced recently there have been 18,000 cases nationwide so far in 2012, double the number of confirmed cases at the same time last year. "At that pace, the number for the entire year will be the highest since 1959, when 40,000 illnesses were reported," Mary Meehan reports for the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Washington and Oregon have been hit hardest. In Kentucky, Madison County has 24 cases. Estill County has 20, while the Northern Kentucky Health Department, which serves Boone, Campbell, Grant and Kenton counties, has reported 61 cases. In Lexington, there have been 15.

Whooping cough is spread by respiratory droplets transmitted person to person through close contact. It is sometimes characterized by a cough that ends with a high-pitched "whoop" sound during the next intake of breath. Immunization against the disease is required for school-age children, but many adults may not have gotten the vaccine or might need to get a booster shot. Officials urge them to do so. (Read more)