insert_link Health / Medical New TB skin test could offer cheaper and easier way to detect the disease By Yvette Naudé, University of Pretoria Detecting tuberculosis early could play a significant role in eradicating the world’s most deadly infectious disease. The World Health Organization says 1.5 million people die from this devastating disease each year. People infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the TB bacteria that attack the lungs, often do not know that they have it until their symptoms become severe. Two out of every […] todayMarch 28, 2024 21
insert_link Namibia Namibia committed to keeping leprosy in check: Shangula Health and Social Services Minister said the Namibian government is committed to ensuring that all treatment success rates for leprosy remain high to prevent reinfection and community transmission. Shangula in a speech to commemorate World Leprosy Day at Katima Mulilo on Monday said his ministry has developed tools to ensure that leprosy survivors are periodically re-assessed and that those diagnosed with the disease have been put on treatment. In the […] todayJanuary 30, 2024 17
insert_link Africa Neglected tropical diseases persist in the world’s poorest places: four reads about hurdles and progress By Nadine Dreyer, via The Conversation It’s sobering to reflect that “neglected tropical diseases” are referred to as “neglected” because they persist in the poorest, most marginalised communities even after being wiped out in more developed parts of the world. A variety of pathogens, including viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and toxins, cause neglected tropical diseases, which include dengue, chikungunya, leprosy, lymphatic filariasis and yaws. They inflict tremendous suffering because […] todayJanuary 30, 2024 10
insert_link Health / Medical How Fringe Anti-Science Views Infiltrated Mainstream Politics — And What It Means in 2024 People protest against covid-19 vaccine mandates outside of Los Angeles Unified School District's offices on May 10, 2022. (DAVID CRANE/MEDIANEWS GROUP/LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS VIA GETTY IMAGES) By Amy Maxmen via KFF Health News Rates of routine childhood vaccination hit a 10-year low in 2023. That, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, puts about 250,000 kindergartners at risk for measles, which often leads to hospitalization and can cause death. In recent […] todayJanuary 29, 2024 11
insert_link World Gaza Is Cleaning Up Its Piles of Garbage From the War, Including Human Waste A new Unicef cash-assistance program is helping Gazans remove piles of garbage accrued during the war, including human feces. The goal is to stop the spread of infectious diseases in the enclave as millions of civilians are forced into flimsy shelters or to live in the streets. By Dawn Clancy via PassBlue Bombs, bullets and the suffocating weight of bodies trapped under slabs of fallen concrete where houses once stood […] todayJanuary 24, 2024 10
insert_link Africa Cholera outbreak spreads across 12 African countries The World Health Organisation Africa Region says the cholera outbreak has spread to 12 countries on the continent. As of Thursday, ten-thousand-887 cases and 432 deaths were reported across nine of the country’s ten provinces. WHO Africa emergency health officer, Patrick Otim, says the Lusaka district is the epicenter of the outbreak. todayJanuary 22, 2024 16
insert_link Health / Medical Climate change risks triggering a spike in infectious disease outbreaks: three reasons why By Wolfgang Preiser, Stellenbosch University; Cheryl Baxter, Stellenbosch University; Houriiyah Tegally, Stellenbosch University; Monika Moir, Stellenbosch University, and Tulio de Oliveira, University of KwaZulu-Natal Climate change is our planet’s most immediate existential threat, and will likely only worsen for the foreseeable future. Among its numerous adverse effects on human health, there is strong evidence linking climate change to infectious disease outbreaks. A recent analysis revealed that of 375 infectious diseases […] todayDecember 13, 2023 9
Paying it forward: Kenyan coastal doctor Bashrahil Mohammed Mafudh has made it his life’s work to care for the most vulnerable in his community, at no cost.
