Table 2.

Selected International Epidemic-Assistance Investigations and Response Efforts Conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Epidemic Intelligence Service Officers, 1946–1975

Year	Location (Reference No.)	Category	Etiology	No. of Cases, Deaths, Case-Fatality and Attack Rates, if Available	Risk Factors	Public Health Actions	Collaborators
1963	Barbados (22)	VPD	Poliomyelitis	68 cases of paralytic poliomyelitis; attack rate: 29.3/100,000 persons; 4 deaths; case-fatality rate: 5.9%	Children aged 0–5 years (52 cases)	Two mass vaccination campaigns (oral vaccine); epidemic ended 6 days after the second campaign	WHO, Barbados General Hospital, Barbados Medical Services
1967	New Zealanda	Cancer	Leukemia	6 leukemia cases over 15 years (1952–1966); 5 cases among children = acute leukemia; 1 case in an adult = chronic granulocytic leukemia	Close proximity of cases, community elementary school, and access to a vineyard	Further studies needed to examine this potential cancer cluster	New Zealand Department of Health
1971	Bermuda (23)	VPD	Rubella	260 cases	Age group most affected: 15–24 years; infection associated with school classroom, ill contacts including family, work, and social settings	Island-wide rubella vaccination campaign; >80% of elementary and nursery school children reached (aged 2–12 years)	Bermuda Ministry of Health
1973	Sierra Leone (24)	Zoonotic	Lassa fever	63 suspect cases (10 confirmed) identified over a 2-year period admitted to 2 hospitals	Associated with hospital setting	Use of personal protective equipment (gown, gloves, and masks) to prevent nosocomial transmission of Lassa fever in hospitals	Sierra Leone Ministry of Health

Abbreviations: VPD, vaccine-preventable disease; WHO, World Health Organization.

^aCDC, unpublished data.