Weekly releases (1997–2007) - Volume 10, Issue 27, 07 July 2005

Another case of probable variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) has been identified in Ireland. If the recent probable case is indigenous, this will be Ireland’s second.

There was an unexpected increase in the number of confirmed rubella cases notified in the autonomous region of Madrid during the first weeks of 2005.

The current level of pandemic alert, in effect since January 2004, remains unchanged at pandemic alert phase 3: ‘human infections with a new sub-type but no human-to-human spread or at most, rare instances of spread to a close contact’

Recommendations for annual testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in men who have sex with men (MSM) have been produced by the Norwegian Folkehelseinstituttet in cooperation with Gay and Lesbian Health Norway and Olafiaklinikken in Oslo