insert_link Africa Uganda record increase in Covi-19 cases Uganda's Health Ministry has issued a warning following a recent surge in COVID-19 cases and deaths. The government has re-introduced preventive measures in some of the worst affected areas, adding the disease remains a threat. Isabel Nakirya reports. today7 February, 2024
insert_link Africa Cholera vaccine push underway in southern Africa The World Health Organization has warned that cholera cases are increasing globally, and there’s been an unprecedented spike in Africa. Dr. Fiona Braka from WHO’s regional office in Brazzaville, Congo, said that eastern and southern Africa have been badly affected. In just the first four weeks of the year, 10 African countries reported more than 26,000 cases and 700 deaths. today7 February, 2024
insert_link Health / Medical Stigma kills people with alcohol addiction sirtravelalot/Shutterstock Ashwin Dhanda, University of Plymouth One of my patients, Emma (not her real name), recently told me that she didn’t seek help for her alcohol problem because she was ashamed. She said that she didn’t want to waste anyone’s time on a self-inflicted problem. She lived with it for years, hiding bottles of alcohol so her partner wouldn’t find out. Only when she turned yellow and vomited blood did […] today6 February, 2024
insert_link Health / Medical Thirty years of rural health research: South Africa’s Agincourt studies offer unique insights By Stephen Tollman, University of the Witwatersrand and Kathleen Kahn, University of the Witwatersrand In 1992 a group of academics from the University of the Witwatersrand introduced a health and socio-demographic surveillance system in remote, rural South Africa to track and understand health and wellbeing in these environments. This initiative built on pioneering work by a Wits team to establish a health systems development unit in a […] today6 February, 2024
insert_link Health / Medical Climate change behind Africa’s cholera increase The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has tied the worst outbreak of cholera in three years to climate change, saying adverse weather is raising the risk of this disease faster than in the rest of the world. That’s as floods in the Democratic Republic of Congo — and across southern Africa — stretch already fragile health systems. The increase in cases comes even as Africa is the region […] today1 February, 2024
insert_link Health / Medical Measles is on the rise around the world – we can’t let vaccination rates falter fotohay/Shutterstock Jaya Dantas, Curtin University In recent weeks a series of measles alerts have been issued around Australia, including in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, after the identification of a small number of cases in travellers returning from overseas. Meanwhile, places such as the United States and the United Kingdom have been contending with larger measles outbreaks. In fact, the World Health Organization reported a 45-fold increase in measles […] today31 January, 2024
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 […] today30 January, 2024
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 […] today30 January, 2024
insert_link Africa Kenya’s healthcare workers abuse a third of teen mums from informal settlements – study By Anthony Idowu Ajayi, African Population and Health Research Center and Caroline W. Kabiru, African Population and Health Research Center Adolescent pregnancy is a global public health concern: in 2022, about 13% of girls and young women gave birth before the age of 18. Compared with women in their early 20s, adolescents are more susceptible to maternal deaths. Pregnancy-related complications are among the leading causes of death […] today30 January, 2024
