Weekly releases (1997–2007) - Volume 12, Issue 46, 15 November 2007

Here, we report the isolation of C. difficile PCR ribotype 027 from a patient suffering from pseudomembranous colitis in Germany in March 2007. The strain was identified during a retrospective PCR ribotyping survey of stored isolates.

In late September 2007, the local health authorities in Trier, Rhineland-Palatine, in south-western Germany, were informed of four cases with a severe course of Clostridium difficile-associated disease (CDAD) on several wards in a local hospital.

In October 2007, a school health service in Antwerp reported eight suspected cases of measles in two Jewish schools in the city. The diagnosis of measles was confirmed on saliva and nasopharyngeal samples for five cases.

The United Kingdom (UK) has announced that it will introduce a Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination programme for all 12- to 13-year-old girls starting in 2008, and will implement a catch-up campaign for girls up to 18 years old.

The incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease and invasive meningococcal disease has been shown to vary at least ten-fold between European countries.

In 2004, the human population in the Santa Luzia division of the city of Funchal, Madeira, complained of aggressive mosquito biting that leftlarge skin papules.