The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) is an evidence-based treaty that reaffirms the right of all people to the highest standard of health and was developed in response to the globalization of the tobacco epidemic. Member States of the WHO South-East Asia Region have made... attempts to implement the demand and supply reduction strategies for tobacco control as recommended by the treaty. While recognizing the need to accelerate implementation of the WHO FCTC in the Region, this document has been developed to support the Member States in implementing the treaty using a ‘PRACTICAL’ Approach which pertains to identified demand and supply reduction strategies under the treaty.
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La transmisión de T. cruzi de un donante con la enfermedad de Chagas a un receptor de trasplante es poco frecuente y es resultado de la aplicación de un tratamiento quirúrgido. En este documento se proponen diez pautas para manejar y prevenir la transmisión de la enfermedad de Chagas por traspla...nte de órganos.
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Tools and practical guidance for achieving high uptake
Durante muchos años, la enfermedad de Chagas ha sido una entidad olvidada en nuestro medio, pese a que Colombia posee las condiciones apropiadas para que esta infección se desarrolle y se perpetúe en el tiempo.
Esto se refleja en el poco conocimiento de la enfermedad y en la existencia de muchos... individuos que sufren una pérdida significativa de su calidad y esperanza de vida, así como en costos importantes para el sistema de salud.
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Education and information about Chagas Disease, Triatomine bugs, Kissing Bugs, fact sheets, information for special groups, prevention and control, epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment for Health Professionals.
The Information, education and communication (IEC) activities, with the development of contextualized activities for various actors and scenarios about preventative measures and surveillance tools, are essential to increase awareness, reduce biomedical and psychosocial barriers to accessing diagnosi...s and care; keep the maximum number of actors involved; and reach the affected population, including family, friends and society in general.
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In areas of Mexico, Central America, and South America, where the Trypanosoma cruzi parasite is present in triatomine bugs, improved housing and spraying insecticide inside housing to eliminate the bugs has significantly decreased the spread of Chagas disease. Screening of blood donations for Chagas... is another important public health tool to help prevent spreading the disease through blood transfusions. Early detection and treatment of new cases, including mother-to-baby (congenital) cases, will also help reduce the burden of disease.
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Chagas disease is a tropical parasitic infection transmitted by crawling, blood-sucking insects (kissing bugs). You may have flu-like symptoms or none at all. But the disease can lead to life-threatening complications. With prompt treatment, most people with Chagas disease, also known as American tr...ypanosomiasis, recover fully.
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Today is World Chagas Disease Day. This year’s theme is Finding and reporting every case to defeat Chagas disease.
Despite progress, the global case detection rate for Chagas disease is low (estimated to be around 10%), posing a substantial barrier to accessing treatment and care and in prevent...ing transmission.
Often termed as a “silent and silenced disease”, many people with Trypanosoma cruzi infection (the parasite that causes the disease) develop no symptoms or unspecific mild symptoms. Moreover, many countries with cases lack systems to track the number of affected people and active transmission routes.
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The highly complex and largely neglected Chagas disease (CD) has become a global health problem due to population movements between Latin America and non-endemic countries, as well as non-vectorial transmission routes. Data on CD testing and treatment from routine patient care in Germany of almost t...wo decades was collected and analysed.
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This perspective draws on the record of ancient pathogengenomes and microbiomes illuminating patterns of infectious disease over the course of the Holocene in order toaddress the following question. How did major changes inliving circumstances involving the transition to and intensification of farmi...ng alter pathogens and their distributions? Answers to this question via ancient DNA researchprovide a rapidly expanding picture of pathogen evolution and in concert with archaeological and historical data, give a temporal and behavioral context for heath in the past that is relevant for challenges facing the world today, including the rise of novel pathogens.
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El desarrollo, desde 1991, de las Iniciativas Subregionales de Control de la Enfermedad de Chagas, y los avances de conocimiento en materia de diagnóstico y manejo de la infección/enfermedad de Chagas, llevan a la necesidad ética, y operativamente imperiosa, de estructurar el diagnóstico, atenci...ón y tratamiento de esta afección.
Una situación particularmente delicada, preocupante y alarmante, se constituye por la escasa einequitativa disponibilidad de los limitados recursos terapéuticos, actualmente disponibles, para el tratamiento etiológico de Chagas, en la mayor parte de los países endémicos de América.
En esta situación, se propone el desarrollo de la Consulta técnica regional OPS/MSF sobre organización y estructura de la atención médica del enfermo e infectado por Trypanosoma cruzi (enfermedad de Chagas), con los objetivos de:
- definir el alcance y estructura de la atención médica al paciente, tanto en diagnóstico, manejo como tratamiento;
- desarrollar modelos alternativos y optativos de atención, asimilables a las estructurassanitarias de los países;
- delinear la atención del chagásico, según su momento biológico-patológico evolutivo,dentro de los niveles de complejidad de la atención médica;
- establecer consideraciones sobre la atención pediátrica, materno-infantil, transfusional y mayor complejidad;
- definir las necesidades y alcances del diagnóstico de la enfermedad;
- establecer los alcances y facilidades que, dentro de los sistemas de atención, deben poseer estos pacientes;
- definir el panorama total de disponibilidad y accesibilidad de los pacientes al tratamiento etiológico de esta dolencia;
- proyectar conceptos y concepciones marco sobre el costo, impacto y efectividad del
desarrollo de este componente de morbilidad y atención en enfermedad de Chagas; y
- establecer las necesidades de investigación operativa y de gestión para avanzar en el
desarrollo de la atención médica a este grupo de pacientes.
Esta consulta, desarrollada en la ciudad de Montevideo, el 13 y 14 de octubre de 2005, pretende marcar la elaboración de una guía conceptual para comentarla y diseminarla en el año 2006, desde las cinco Iniciativas Intergubernamentales Subregionales de Control de Enfermedad de Chagas.
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The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic exacerbated pre-existing inequalities in the treatment and care of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). This report examines the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on access to NCD medicines, and the policies and strategies implemented by countries and health sys...tems to anticipate and mitigate stresses across NCD medicine supply chains. The full range of upstream and downstream impacts are investigated, including: manufacturing; procurement, importation and last mile delivery; patient-level effects through affordability and availability; and the effects on NCD medicine availability by category of disease. The report culminates in recommended actions and interventions for key stakeholders in the NCD pharmaceutical supply chain, including governments, regulatory authorities, manufacturers and the private sector; as well as directions for future research for improving access and supply chain access resilience.
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Through the USAID-funded Organized Network of Services for Everyone’s Health (ONSE) Activity, MSH is assisting Malawi’s National Malaria Control Program to provide high-quality malaria services at the facility and community levels in 10 districts, covering nearly a third of the country.
Our ...team in Malawi share recent results on strengthening malaria services through Outreach Training and Supportive Supervision (OTSS).
Designed to provide ongoing support to clinicians, data, and laboratory staff, OTSS combines a standardized checklist with targeted mentorship and supportive supervision to identify areas for improvement and strengthen clinical and diagnostic services in health facilities.
This webinar shares lessons learned on how the application of OTSS, as part of broader quality assurance systems, impacts staff performance and improves the provision and quality of malaria services.
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The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) was established in 2017, after the west Africa Ebola virus disease outbreak. Upon creation, the
role of Africa CDC was to mandate strengthening of the capacity of public health institutions in Africa to prevent, detect, and respond ...to disease threats, based on science, policy, and data-driven interventions and programmes, as envisaged by the Abuja Declaration. The inaugural strategic plan was focused on building health systems for emergency preparedness and response. However, from its inception, the organisation recognised the concomitant need to comprehensively strengthen systems to prevent and manage noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and injuries, and to face the neglected issue of mental health disorders. The division dedicated to these issues was conceptualised, but operationalisation was deferred to a future date.
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Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is a condition which generally has no symptoms and if left untreated, can lead to heart attacks, heart failure, stroke, kidney failure and blindness. Risk factors include older age, overweight or obesity, lack of physical activity, high salt/sodium intake, and h...igh alcohol intake.
Hypertension affects around 1 in 6 adults in the Americas and is the main risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, which are the leading cause of death in the region, responsible for around 2 million lives lost each year.
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The report aims to capture lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and to highlight the opportunity for more ambitious global action: expanding sustainable access to vaccines for all towards the Immunization Agenda 2030 and pandemic prevention, preparedness and response efforts. The report is organized i...n two sections: the first section provides WHO insights on global vaccine market dynamics, drawing from data provided by Member States, which are, in turn, analysed and displayed in the second section.
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The Regional Action Framework for Noncommunicable Disease Prevention and Control provides a unified vision of objectives and recommended actions to combat the noncommunicable disease (NCD) epidemic in the Western Pacific Region. Implementation should be supported by cross-sectoral coordination..., sustainable financing, evidence-based policy, and community engagement, tailored to each Member State’s unique context. In doing so, Member States are encouraged to transform a disease treatment-centered “sick system” into a “health system” in which a population’s health and well-being enable socioeconomic development.
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