HPR volume 14 issue 4: news (25 and 26 February)
Updated 23 December 2020
© Crown copyright 2020
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-protection-report-volume-14-2020/hpr-volume-14-issue-4-news-25-and-26-february
Coronavirus (COVID-19) information on GOV.UK: second update
An overview of the UK Government’s public health response to the coronavirus epidemic originating in Wuhan City, China, includes listings of Chief Medical Officer for England and ministerial statements, press releases and newly published guidance. It also contains advice for travellers from affected areas and details of immigration provisions made by the UK Home Office for individuals affected by travel restrictions associated with the epidemic.
The joint Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Public Health England (PHE) Information for the Public webpage (updated daily at 2pm) includes information on UK cases and details of the progress of contact tracing in all suspected and confirmed cases in England that has continued throughout February 2020.
As of 24 February 2020, 6,536 people had been tested in the UK; 6,527 were confirmed negative and 9 positive. These figures do not include the 4 confirmed cases, recently arrived in the UK (from the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan).
Countries and specified areas with implications for returning travellers
From 25 February 2020, the number of locations and countries from which visitors to the UK, and returning UK-resident travellers, should self-isolate was significantly extended.
Visitors and returning travellers to the UK from the following areas or countries (“Category 1 countries or areas”) should immediately self-isolate, even if asymptomatic, and call NHS 111 to inform of recent travel to:
- Wuhan or Hubei province (China)
- Iran
- Daegu or Cheongdo (Republic of Korea)
- any Italian town under containment measures
Visitors and returning travellers from the following 13 areas or countries (“Category 2 countries or areas”) do not need to undertake any special measures so long as they do not develop symptoms; if they do, they should self-isolate and call NHS 111. These locations include:
- Cambodia
- China
- northern Italy (other than areas specified in Category 1)
- Japan
- Laos
- Macau
- Malaysia
- Myanmar
- Republic of Korea (other than areas specified in Category 1)
- Singapore
- Taiwan
- Thailand
- Vietnam
Sectoral guidance on GOV.UK
Information for UK clinicians and microbiologists is available. Guidance for primary care settings, healthcare providers and other health professionals – including on sampling and for diagnostic laboratories – is available.
Interim guidance for primary care includes principles of infection control and actions to be taken when an unwell patient presents with a recent history of travel to an affected country; investigation and initial clinical management of possible cases; environmental cleaning following a possible case and patient transfers.
Other guidance includes information:
- for all healthcare providers on infection, prevention and control – to be used in conjunction with local policies
- for healthcare providers who have staff with relevant travel, healthcare or household contact history
- on self-isolation for patients undergoing testing
- for professionals advising the general public
- for first responders
- for ambulance trusts
- for sampling and for diagnostic laboratories, including a 5-minute video on packaging diagnostic samples containing Hazard Group 3 (HG3) pathogens
Tailored advice for particular non-healthcare settings is available.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has published a set of questions and answers about effective and ineffective methods of personal protection from infection.
Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli infections in England and Wales in 2018
PHE’s annual report for 2018 on Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC), published on 2 February 2020, presents surveillance data on STEC infections in 2018 in England and Wales.
STEC are a relatively rare cause of gastrointestinal infections, but are a significant public health concern due to the potential to cause severe disease. Severe bloody diarrhoea is experienced by almost two-thirds of cases and about a third of cases are hospitalised for infection. Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS), a severe multisystem clinical condition, can occur in up to 20% of cases, most often in children, and can be fatal. In the UK, HUS is the leading cause of renal failure in children.
Historically, STEC surveillance in the UK has been limited to serogroup O157 due to culture methods, which can only detect O157. There are more than 200 other serogroups that can cause illness (non-O157 STEC). In recent years, an increasing number of frontline laboratories have started using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays, which can detect non-O157 STEC as well. However, PCR is not used universally for detection of non-O157 STEC and the true incidence remains unknown.
The annual report presents data on both STEC O157 infections and STEC non-O157 infections in 2018. In total, 1,553 infections in England and Wales were confirmed through the reference laboratory. The incidence of STEC O157 has continued to be reported at lower levels following a 25% decline in incidence since 2014. However, due to the ongoing roll-out of PCR for diagnostics in frontline laboratories, detection of non-O157 infections has continued to increase, with 612 confirmed infections in 2018. This compares to 384 cases in 2017. The most commonly reported non-O157 STEC serogroup was O26, known to be associated with severe disease. Four outbreaks comprising 55 cases were investigated in 2018.
Infection reports in this issue of HPR
Laboratory confirmed cases of measles, rubella and mumps (England): October to December 2019
Laboratory confirmed cases of invasive meningococcal infection (England): October to December 2019