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FRCPath Medical Microbiology exam guidance
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Microregistrar Infection NewsletterMicroregistrar Infection Newsletter · Saturday 17 October 2026
ECDC week 42: DRC Ebola reaches 9,277 cases, and clade I mpox rose to 342 EU/EEA cases in September.
ECDC’s Communicable Disease Threats Report for week 42 (published 16 Oct, covering 10–16 Oct) puts the DRC Bundibugyo outbreak at 9,277 / 4,478 (data to 14 Oct). It rates the risk as low for EU/EEA residents travelling to affected areas and very low for people living in the EU/EEA. It also reports 342 clade I mpox cases in 17 EU/EEA countries in September, and diphtheria outbreaks in nine African countries; travellers should be up to date with vaccination. Separately, Kenya has confirmed a third Ebola case, found early in quarantine. There’s nothing new from UKHSA.
1New journal item, from 1 journal0New on Microregistrar Moodle1/9Watched pages with something new24Source links in this issue9,277DRC confirmed Ebola cases (ECDC, data to 14 Oct)3Coverage gaps we could not closeCounted from today’s digest. The one new journal item is the Journal of Infection nanopore 16S paper. JAC listed two new items, but they didn’t pass our relevance filter, so we don’t count them or the JAC page. Links are unique content links across the issue, not counting our two website links. Gaps come from the Coverage gaps list; reports that simply aren’t due yet aren’t counted. Today’s digest has no sources checklist, so there’s no checks card.
Also today
The other headlines from today’s issue. Each one links through to the full summary. UK flu/COVID-19, measles and Salmonella figures are unchanged; week 43 flu/COVID is due on 22 Oct.
Ebola · Kenya · newKenya confirms a third case
A 65-year-old relative, in quarantine since 6 Oct, was confirmed on 16 Oct. Kenya now has 3 confirmed cases and 1 death, with no evidence of community transmission (WHO AFRO and Kenya’s health ministry).
WHO · DON · MERSMERS-CoV in Saudi Arabia: 8 cases, 1 death
1 Jan–5 Oct 2026, no secondary cases found. WHO’s risk assessment is unchanged (moderate).
CDC · US measlesUS measles up to 4,410
As of 15 Oct, up from 4,080 a week earlier; 42 outbreaks, 2 deaths.
J Infect · watchedNanopore 16S pathogen detection
A clinical accuracy and operational evaluation of a nanopore 16S diagnostic workflow, relevant to culture-negative and rapid-ID pathways.
Title-level only.
Watch · DRC · North UbangiPossible eighth province
Media reports of 2 cases in North Ubangi.
Not confirmed: these aren’t in the official seven-province DRC tally.
Watch · Irkutsk · ECDCNo high-threat pathogen in contacts
ECDC’s CDTR says contacts were tested and no high-threat pathogen was found.
Still not confirmed: the cause of death remains pneumonia of unknown aetiology, and ECDC says there’s still not enough information for a firm EU risk conclusion.
What we could not confirm
CDC’s Ebola page refused our access, so the DRC and Kenya counts come from ECDC, WHO AFRO and Kenya’s health ministry. The North Ubangi cases are media-only, and we couldn’t retrieve DRC SitRep 152 or later. On Irkutsk, the cause of death is still unknown. The nanopore paper’s abstract wasn’t available.
Microregistrar Moodle update
No new Moodle updates since 14 Oct 2026. The latest entry is still the REMAP-CAP trial review.
The full list is in the Microregistrar moodlecloud sheet ›
Watched pages
We check nine pages every morning for anything new, compared with what we saw last time (checked 17 Oct 2026 ~08:12 BST; all 9 were reachable). Only the Journal of Infection has something new for you. JAC listed two items that didn’t pass our relevance filter, and the other seven were quiet, including RCPath exams.
Health Protection Report (UKHSA)
No changeNo new reports (still volume 20 issue 9, 24 Sep).
UK SMI News (RCPath)
No changeNo new items.
RCPath Examinations
No changeNo new exam news.
Green Book
No changeNo new or updated chapters.
UKHSA organisation page (GOV.UK)
No changeNo new items; week 42 flu/COVID-19, measles, Salmonella week 41 and Outbreaks under monitoring week 41 are still the latest.
NICE published guidance
No changeNo new infection or antimicrobial items.
Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
FilteredTwo new items (16 Oct) didn’t pass our relevance filter: a preliminary sitagliptin urease/meropenem potentiation study, and a case report on benzylpenicillin levels during VV-ECMO.
Journal of Infection
NEW16 Oct: Clinical Accuracy and Operational Evaluation of a Novel Nanopore Based 16S Diagnostic Pathogen Detection Workflow. Summarised in the Journals tab. Article ›
The South African pneumococcal AMR paper re-listed on ScienceDirect was already covered on 16 Oct.
Journal of Hospital Infection
No changeNo new items.
Agencies & guidance
ECDC’s week 42 threats report is today’s main official item. UK surveillance is unchanged, and Kenya has a third Ebola case, found in quarantine.
Guidance changes
Guidance · no change No new guidance changes
No new UK SMI, Green Book, NICE infection/AMR or EUCAST changes; EUCAST breakpoints remain v16.1. Still open: the UKAP consultation on healthcare workers living with HIV who perform exposure-prone procedures (closes 8 Nov 2026). MHRA DSI/2026/014 is still current: where clinically appropriate, give echinocandins ≥6 h after a new PAN CRRT filter is started or changed.
ECDC
ECDC · CDTR · week 42 · new Communicable Disease Threats Report, 10–16 Oct (published 16 Oct)
- Ebola (Bundibugyo): DRC 9,277 / 4,478 (data to 14 Oct), +133 / +68 since data to 12 Oct. The PDF notes Kenya’s second case (14 Oct); the third case (16 Oct) came after the cut-off. Media report 2 cases in North Ubangi (a possible 8th province). Risk is low for EU/EEA residents travelling to affected areas and very low for people living in the EU/EEA.
- Pneumonia of unknown aetiology, Russia (Irkutsk follow-up): a laboratory employee. Contacts were tested and no high-threat pathogen was found, and Russian authorities report no biosafety or biosecurity incident. The cause of death is recorded as pneumonia of unknown aetiology, and ECDC says the information is still insufficient for a firm EU risk conclusion.
- EU/EEA respiratory viruses (week 41): consultation rates low or at baseline but rising seasonally; median primary-care positivity SARS-CoV-2 4.3%, influenza 3.4%; RSV very low.
- Mpox (September): 342 clade I cases in 17 EU/EEA countries, continuing the summer rise; 3 clade II cases (decreasing). Mostly in MSM networks, and generally mild.
- Diphtheria, Africa: outbreaks in nine countries in 2026, highest in Nigeria and Chad. Risk to the EU/EEA general population is very low where primary vaccination coverage is high; travellers should be up to date.
- Also: chikungunya (France 163, Italy 1 local), dengue (Italy 70, France 6), CCHF in Spain (4, none new this week), and West Nile virus season notes (1,926 locally acquired cases in 19 countries; Belgium’s first human cases).
ECDC · Ebola page · updated 16 Oct 16:11 Same DRC figures as the CDTR
9,277 / 4,478; 924 in isolation; 2,486 recovered; contact follow-up 78.0%. Eurosurveillance is still on Vol 31 Issue 41 (15 Oct).
UKHSA / England
UKHSA · flu/COVID-19 · unchanged Week 42 still the latest
Data to 5–11 Oct: flu hospital lab positivity 6.0%, COVID-19 8.8%, RSV 1.0%. Week 43 is scheduled for 22 Oct 2026 at 14:00.
UKHSA · measles · unchanged England: 1,030 cases
1 Jan–12 Oct 2026. The next monthly update is due on 12 Nov.
UKHSA · Salmonella · unchanged S. Enteritidis t5.9411: 439 cases
Data to week 41 (13 Oct).
UKHSA · outbreaks under monitoring Still week 41
Week ending 11 Oct; no week 42 release yet. No new HPR, Vaccine Update or norovirus issues.
MHRA · unchanged No new infection-relevant alert
DSI/2026/014 (echinocandins with PAN-membrane CRRT filters) is unchanged since 13 Oct. A new Nova Biomedical StatStrip ketone-strip quality-control notice isn’t infection-relevant.
Global — Ebola (Bundibugyo)
Kenya · third case · new Kenya: 3 confirmed cases, 1 death (16 Oct)
WHO AFRO lists confirmations on 6 Oct (the imported case, who died on the night of 5 Oct), 14 Oct (a 39-year-old relative in quarantine) and 16 Oct (a 65-year-old woman, a relative in quarantine since 6 Oct). Of 130 listed contacts, 127 were in quarantine by 16 Oct, with daily checks for 21 days. The health ministry reports no evidence of community transmission, though more cases among quarantined contacts are possible. The second patient is stable on supportive care. There’s no licensed vaccine or treatment for Bundibugyo; care is supportive only.
DRC · ECDC figures DRC: 9,277 confirmed, 4,478 deaths (data to 14 Oct)
That’s +133 cases and +68 deaths since the 12 Oct figures (9,144 / 4,410).
Not confirmed: media reports of 2 cases in North Ubangi aren’t in the official seven-province tally. We still couldn’t retrieve DRC INSP SitRep 152 or later.
WHO
WHO · DON · MERS-CoV · new MERS-CoV, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
The page carries content dated 15 Oct 2026. 8 laboratory-confirmed cases and 1 death, 1 Jan–5 Oct 2026, from six locations. All were symptomatic and none were health workers. Contact tracing found no secondary cases, and two cases reported contact with camels. Global total since 2012: 2,643 cases / 965 deaths. WHO’s regional and global risk assessment is unchanged (moderate). Relevant when assessing returning Hajj/Umrah pilgrims with respiratory illness.
Watch · Irkutsk · ECDC follow-up No high-threat pathogen found in contacts
The MERS DON is the only newer item; Irkutsk (DON620, 10 Oct) is the previous one. ECDC’s CDTR adds that contacts tested negative for high-threat pathogens.
Still not confirmed: the cause remains pneumonia of unknown aetiology.
CDC / US
CDC · measles · updated 4,410 US cases (as of 15 Oct)
Page refreshed 16 Oct: 4,392 in 47 jurisdictions plus 18 among international visitors; 42 outbreaks, 96% outbreak-associated, 2 deaths. Up from 4,080 as of 8 Oct.
CDC · FluView · new FluView week 40 (ending 10 Oct)
Of 300 public health lab positives, 292 were influenza A and 8 B; of 251 A viruses subtyped, 96.4% were A(H1N1)pdm09. FluSurv-NET hospitalisation rate 0.7/100,000 (an estimated 1.2 after adjusting for delays).
CDC · quiet HAN, MMWR, EID and travel notices
No new health advisory; the latest infection HAN is still rabies PEP (CDCHAN-00533, 10 Sep). MMWR is still the 15 Oct Vol 75 No 40 issue (DTaP effectiveness in Alaska, dengue in the US Virgin Islands, C. bantiana), with no Early Release dated 16–17 Oct. No new EID early releases beyond those covered on 15–16 Oct. We didn’t re-check the travel notices in full today.
Journals
A quiet day: one new paper on our watched Journal of Infection page. No new NEJM, Lancet Infect Dis, JAMA/JAMA Network Open, CID, CMI, ICHE, ARIC or Eurosurveillance items of note since yesterday, and a PubMed scan for 16–17 Oct found no clear new practice-changing infection paper.
Journal of Infection — new on our watched page
J Infect · diagnostics · watched Clinical accuracy and operational evaluation of a novel nanopore-based 16S diagnostic pathogen-detection workflow
Takeaway: relevant to culture-negative and rapid-ID pathways, and to FRCPath lab practice.
Title-level only; abstract not available from the publisher page.
On X
Two searches of agency accounts plus Kenya/Ebola keywords (from 15–16 Oct).
@MOH_Kenya, 16 Oct: third Bundibugyo Ebola case confirmed; the patient was already in quarantine; no evidence of community transmission. Post ›
@WHO and @DrTedros, 16 Oct: Kenya’s third case was found among contacts of the first patient while already in quarantine, which is early detection through contact tracing. WHO post › · Dr Tedros post ›
@CIDRAP, 16 Oct: the third Kenya case and reports of spread into an 8th DRC province. Post ›
@UKHSA, 16 Oct: routine flu vaccine advice (a sniffle is fine; postpone with a fever, or with a blocked nose for the nasal spray). Not practice-changing. Post ›
What we could not confirm
We want you to know exactly where today’s issue has limits, so here are the 3 gaps we couldn’t close and what went wrong.
Source Issue CDC The Ebola situation page refused our access, so we took DRC and Kenya counts from ECDC (updated 16 Oct) and WHO AFRO / Kenya’s health ministry. The HAN archive and some MMWR pages also refused access, though search and indexes show no new HAN. Travel notices weren’t re-checked in full. DRC bulletins We couldn’t retrieve INSP SitRep 152 or later. The North Ubangi “8th province” reports are media-only until officially confirmed. Journals Journal of Infection and JAC article pages blocked us, so the nanopore paper is title and link only. The Lancet Infect Dis Online First listing refused our access; a PubMed scan for 16–17 Oct found no clear new practice-changing item. Sources
Today’s digest doesn’t include a sources checklist, so we can’t show ticked and open checks this time. These are the sources it draws on, as described in the issue.
- Watched pages (9 pages, all reachable, checked 17 Oct ~08:12 BST)
- Microregistrar Moodle sheet (no new items)
- ECDC: CDTR week 42 and PDF, Ebola page, Eurosurveillance
- UKHSA GOV.UK: week 42 flu/COVID-19 report, measles, Salmonella, Outbreaks under monitoring
- MHRA drug and device alerts
- WHO Disease Outbreak News; WHO AFRO and Al Jazeera on Kenya
- CDC: measles, FluView, MMWR, HAN, EID (Ebola page not reachable)
- Journal sweep plus watched journal feeds; PubMed scan
- X: two searches of agency accounts and Kenya/Ebola keywords
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