Threat to Cefixime Treatment for Gonorrhea

Emerging Infectious Diseases • www.cdc.gov/eid • Vol. 13, No. 8, August 2007 1275 increase SLE incidence in Louisiana, and if it did increase incidence in Mississippi, the increase was minimal. In both 2003 and 2004, Louisiana’s median reporting time to ArboNET was ≈30 days. In 2005, the median reporting time prehurricane was 36 days and posthurricane was 69 days. Louisiana state offi cials believed that this reporting lag was largely due to impaired transport and collection of biologic samples and relocation of diagnostic facilities immediately following the hurricane. In contrast, in 2003 and 2004, Mississippi’s median reporting time to ArboNET was 21 days and 36 days, respectively. In 2005, the median reporting time prehurricane was 23 days and posthurricane was 14 days. Mississippi state offi cials believed that the improved reporting time was due to the additional help and longer hours worked by health department offi cials following the hurricane. Although Hurricane Katrina disrupted WNV surveillance in Louisiana, it did not appear to increase the incidence of WNND and SLE in either Louisiana or Mississippi. In coastal areas, the hurricane destroyed housing and impeded vector control, thus possibly increasing the risk of mosquito-borne infections (1,2). However, hurricane-force winds and heavy fl ooding might have actually decreased the risk of WNV and SLE transmission by dispersing or killing birds and mosquitoes, and destroying their habitat. Many people were promptly evacuated to less affected areas, where, on the basis of previous years’ data showing seasonality of WNV transmission, the risk of infection was probably decreasing. Natural disasters do not usually cause an immediate increase in arboviral diseases (1,2). However, if hurricanes strike early in transmission season, there could be a late increase in risk after vector and host populations are re-established. In addition, risk could increase when people are relocated to areas where transmission is intense. Jennifer A. Lehman,* Alison F. Hinckley,* Krista L. Kniss,* Roger S. Nasci,* Theresa L. Smith,* Grant L. Campbell,* and Edward B. Hayes* *Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA