United States: The frequency of dysentery infections reaching intolerable levels in Oregon caused 40 new cases in Portland in just January. 

According to Oregon Live, 158 people in Multnomah County developed the illness in 2024, and all of them remained within state borders, indicating they contracted it within the US. 

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Out of the total 40 confirmed cases, health officials disclosed to the news outlet their belief that homeless individuals accounted for many uncounted dysentery cases throughout the city. 

According to Dr. Amanda Risser, a senior medical director for the health care and housing services agency Central City Concern, “Any situation where [you are] unable to wash your hands regularly will put you at risk for [the bacteria which causes dysentery] shigella, and I think unsheltered homelessness certainly contributes to people just really not having places to do that,” people.com reported. 

The number of dysentery cases reported in Multnomah County has been progressively rising since 2012, according to KOIN, which describes 2023 as the year when outbreaks in the region peaked. 

The annual cases surged in 2023 as the count increased from 43 the previous year to 96 in 2023. 

Rising menace in the state 

The bacterial infection attained statewide fame because it appeared in the 1980s video game Oregon Trail, which told players they “died from dysentery” while the illness can lead to dehydration symptoms. 

The serious illness shigellosis “spreads easily” yet beyond its humor, is a condition that displays symptoms including frequent diarrhea that can be bloody along with fever and stomach pain, according to the US Centers for Disease Control, people.com reported. 

Furthermore, similar to norovirus, “Shigella germs are in poop, so anything that gets contaminated by poop can potentially spread the germs,” the CDC mentioned. 

The reported spread of dysentery might stem from inadequate bathroom access, according to OL, which documents a total of only 116 restrooms throughout the city, although many facilities become unavailable during high temperatures or nighttime hours because of frozen pipe risk. 

The statistic shows that more than 11,000 locals experience homelessness based on a June 2024 Multnomah County report. 

The Multnomah County strains of dysentery currently show resistance against antibiotic treatments, according to reports by OL. 

United States: A responsible study demonstrates that a pioneering experimental stem cell method enables the repair of sight-stealing corneal injuries. 

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Damage to the cornea will result in permanent effects when the disease or injury interrupts the cell regeneration process of this transparent eye layer. 

Researchers described their stem cell technique in the March 4 publication of Nature Communications, which enables patients to obtain cells from their healthy eye for rebuilding damaged corneas. 

Research indicates that the methodology demonstrates both safety and workability through patient assessments spanning 18 months in 14 treated patients. 

The medical procedure is called cultivated autologous limbal epithelial cells, which doctors abbreviate as CALEC. 

What are the experts stating? 

According to the lead investigator, Dr. Ula Jurkunas, associate director of the Cornea Service at Mass Eye and Ear in Boston, “Our first trial in four patients showed that CALEC was safe and the treatment was possible,” US News reported. 

“Now we have this new data supporting that CALEC is more than 90% effective at restoring the cornea’s surface, which makes a meaningful difference in individuals with cornea damage that was considered untreatable,” she continued. 

Research notes explain how the limbus at the cornea perimeter contains numerous stem cells referred to as limbal epithelial cells. 

Weight-bearing stem cells construct the cornea at all times, which results in its smooth and clear state. 

A cornea injury will deplete the essential cells located in the limbus region of the eyes. 

The permanent damage to eye surface tissue becomes known as limbal stem cell deficiency. 

This eye damage makes organ replacement surgery irrelevant since doctors require donor tissue for the procedure, according to researchers’ statements. 

Researchers explain that CALEC requires stem cell extraction from healthy eyes followed by tissue graft manufacturing through a new method extending to two to three weeks. 

Through surgery, the specialist transfers the graft to an eye containing damaged cornea tissue to enable natural cornea regeneration. 

Research data revealed that CALEC promoted complete cornea restoration in fifty percent of study participants during their first three months, and success rates reached eighty percent after eighteen months. 

The complete recovery success rates for CALEC reached 90 percent based on researchers’ assessment, including patients who experienced partial treatment success. 

“We feel this research warrants additional trials that can help lead towards [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] approval,” Jurkunas added. 

United States: The county health department data shows that Multnomah County has had its largest number of Shigella infections during wintertime since 2012 for two consecutive years, where the January count reached multiple-year high levels. 

Know about Shigella 

The bacterial agent Shigella leads to a human illness that manifests as severe diarrhea alongside fever and fatigue because, historically, physicians referred to it as dysentery. 

The transfer of infected fecal bacteria from one person to the mouth of another person defines the transmission of Shigella based on county health officials. 

From November 2023 to January 2024, Multnomah County documented 72 Shigella infections, excluding those cases where patients contracted the disease overseas, kgw.com reported. 

During this period, 105 cases of Shigella were reported, with a specific total of 40 confirmed infections happening in January. 

Since 2012, the number of Shigella cases in Multnomah County has been growing, and the county recently recorded antibiotic-resistant strains among its local infections. 

Reasons for its spread 

The homeless population experienced most of the outbreaks because their limited access to sanitation services facilitates the transmission of diseases, as the majority of transmission-related infections happened in Old Town. 

The culprit bacteria originate in food outbreaks, but transmission mostly occurs between people through direct sexual contact and by touching unclean objects, which leads to mouth contamination. 

Mild to life-threatening illnesses exist, but individuals usually acquire fatal infections upon contracting Shigella dysenteriae only when it spreads from countries with deficient sanitation systems, kgw.com reported. 

Within Oregon, two main strains of Shigella bacteria exist: Shigella flexneri and Shigella sonnei, which produce lower severity of illness among infected individuals. 

More than 80 percent of cases in Multnomah County were contracted locally instead of any international connection involved, according to the city health reports.