Virus on a boat – a belated graphic
Remember when we all died from the pandemic that started on a cruise ship, caused by a passenger acquiring and spreading Orthohantavirus andesense? Me neither. That’s because we didn’t. And Read More …
Author: Ian M Mackay, PhD (EIC)
There are a lot of people sick….again…in winter….
Yep. It’s a time of year in many parts of the world when viruses that love a warm human airway, kick it up a notch – influenza, respiratory syncytial virus Read More …
A/H5N1 strain of avian influenza A virus (“bird flu”) confirmed in two dead birds in Australia
Australia’s Minister for Agriculture has notified Australians that overnight laboratory testing confirmed the presence of A/H5N1 in one sick bird and an H5 virus in another, both found in the same region of Read More …
Well, the day had to come. “Bird flu” flies into Australia on a feathered wing.
Lock up the chooks! According to Australia’s national broadcaster, Western Australia (WA) is the site for the first importation to the Australian mainland – via a bird – of an Read More …
Looks like Flu has reset in Australia
The COVID-19 pandemic introduced a brand-new respiratory virus, SARS-CoV-2. With that introduction, as suspected, lots of things were thrown into disarray. One of those was the circulation of other respiratory Read More …
The ridiculously oversimplified claim that PCR can “detect one single molecule”
There’s so much more to these four words than is attributed to them, so I thought I’d better write that down instead of leaving it in my head. Here’s hoping Read More …
Just 0.7% of of universally screened asymptomatic patients produced unrepeatable PCR tests
A recent paper entitled “Diagnostic Value and Outcomes of Systematic SARS-CoV-2 Screening in Asymptomatic Patients” highlights the need for innovative contextual actions in response to positive PCR results during exceptional Read More …
A little virus that still can: poliovirus and poliomyelitis
A few things about poliomyelitis (‘polio’) and poliovirus, the enterovirus that causes this disease. What is Polio? Polio is the name used to describe a paralytic disease. It is caused Read More …
Age and COVID-19: What’s with all the young kids?
Inspired by an online conversation and the hard work of others, I set off to examine age groupings among Australians confirmed as COVID-19 cases, based on testing using a quality-laboratory Read More …
Asymptomatic, acute and persistent COVID-19 symptom changes over the course of three infections
Data from a UK healthcare worker cohort published in 2024 examined how signs and symptoms of COVID-19 changed after 1, 2, or 3 SARS-CoV-2 lab-confirmed infections. Those with no symptoms Read More …
How are asymptomatic COVID-19 cases tracking?
In the first year of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, data were assembled that defined how the virus spread among us, who, at the time, had never been infected. But the world’s Read More …
Another way to look at flu season size
Peak height, number of cases, deaths, severity – these are all terms that are used to give you an idea of how big a flu season has been. Here’s another Read More …
Whooping cough in 2024 was huge in Australia, but is declining in 2025 and 2026
The risks of declining childhood vaccination include a resurgence of dangerous infectious diseases driven by airborne pathogens such as Bordetella pertussis, the bacterium that causes whooping cough (also called pertussis). A Read More …
Pathology lab PCR is not research lab PCR
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) use in the pathology lab differs from research-based PCR in two fundamental ways, namely quality and clinical expertise. These are essential to producing a clinical diagnosis supported by Read More …
Is there more flu in Australia and New Zealand than normal for Christmas? Hell Yes!
Happy FluMas, ya filthy animals! With a new flu variant – subclade K – dominant, Australia and New Zealand are seeing a very unusual bout of seasonal influenza (flu) as Read More …