To understand the mental health treatment gap in the Region of the Americas by examining the prevalence of mental health disorders, use of mental health services, and the global burden of disease.
Lancet Planet Health 2022;6: e760–68
The emergence of COVID-19 has drawn the attention of health researchers sharply back to the role that food systems can play in generating human disease burden. But emerging pandemic threats are just one dimension of the complex relationship between agriculture... and infectious disease, which is evolving rapidly, particularly in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) that are undergoing rapid food system transformation. This changing relationship is examined through four current disease issues.
more
hese are two parallel guidelines, one for small hospitals and another one for large hospitals. In view of heavy burden of malaria and prevalence of drug resistant falciparum malaria in the South-East Asia Region, the guidelines were developed for use by medical personnel who treat severe malaria pat...ients, referred from lower-level health facilities. The guidelines were developed by the WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia and the WHO Collaborating Centre for the Clinical Management of Malaria, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Thailand. The guidelines are based on a review of current evidence, existing WHO guidelines and experience in the management of malaria in the Region
more
This publication provides directions for a logical, evidence informed approach to selecting, developing, implementing and monitoring population-based interventions within the context of the double-burden of malnutrition in South-East Asia. The focus of this guide is on processed or ultra-processed p...re-packaged foods.
more
Leptospirosis is a bacterial zoonotic disease of worldwide importance, though relatively neglected in many African countries including sub Saharan Africa that is among areas with high burden of this disease. The disease is often mistaken for other febrile illnesses such as dengue, malaria, rickettsi...oses and enteric fever. Leptospirosis is an occupational disease likely to affect people working in environments prone to infestation with rodents which are the primary reservoir hosts of this disease. Some of the populations at risk include: sugarcane plantation workers, wetland farmers, fishermen and abattoir workers. In this study we investigated the prevalence of antibodies against Leptospira among sugarcane plantation and factory workers, fishing communities as well as among rodents and shrews in domestic and peridomestic environments within the study areas.
more
Background: COVID-19 is a global public health crisis that affects all sectors; studying the impact of this pandemic on the delivery of cardiology services in Africa is crucial as COVID-19-related cardiovascular complications may worsen the CVD burden in this already highly affected and resource-lim...ited continent
Methods: This was a cross-sectional e-survey study conducted amongst cardiologists in African countries. The primary outcome was the change in service delivery in African cardiology units during the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. The secondary outcomes were the satisfaction of cardiologists with regards to the workload and factors associated with this satisfaction.
Results: There was a significant reduction in working time and the number of patients consulted by week during this pandemic (p<0.001). In general, there was a decrease in the overall activities in cardiovascular care delivery. The majority of cardiology services (76.5%) and consulting programs (85%) were adjusted to the pandemic. Only half of the participants were satisfied with their workload. Reconfiguration of the consultation schedule was associated with a reduced satisfaction of participants (p=0.02).
Conclusions: COVID-19 is associated with an overall reduction in cardiology services rendered in Africa. Since the cardiovascular burdens continue to increase in this part of the World and the risk of cardiovascular complications linked to SARS COV2 remains unchanged cardiology, departments in Africa should anticipate a significant surge of cardiology services demanded by patients after the COVID-19 pandemic.
more
Asthma is the most common non-communicable disease in children and remains one of the most common throughout the life course. The great majority of the burden of this disease is seen in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), which have disproportionately high asthma-related mortality relati...ve to asthma prevalence. This is particularly true for many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Although inhaled asthma treatments (particularly those containing inhaled corticosteroids) markedly reduce asthma morbidity and mortality, a substantial proportion of the children, adolescents, and adults with asthma in LMICs do not get to benefit from these, due to poor availability and affordability. In this review, we consider the reality faced by clinicians managing asthma in the primary and secondary care in sub-Saharan Africa and suggest how we might go about making diagnosis and treatment decisions in a range of resource-constrained scenarios. We also provide recommendations for research and policy, to help bridge the gap between current practice in sub-Saharan Africa and Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) recommended diagnostic processes and treatment for children, adolescents, and adults with asthma.
more
Effective malaria prevention is threatened by widespread and increasing vector insecticide resistance. Failure to mitigate this threat will likely result in an increased burden of disease, with significant cost implications. This new framework provides support for the development of a national insec...ticide resistance monitoring and management plan as part of a national malaria strategic plan.
more
Bronchial asthma is the most frequent chronic respiratory disease in both adults and children. The prevalence and burden of asthma vary considerably between different regions of the world. Information on asthma in Africa is fragmentary and relatively old.
Antibiotic stewardship refers to coordinated efforts and activities that seek to measure and improve use of antibiotics. Implementation of ASPs has demonstrated positive public health and clinical impacts including reducing costs, lengths of hospital stays, and the burden of antibiotic resistance wh...ile maintaining or improving patient outcomes. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the Core Elements of Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship Programs in 2014, which outlines essential components for ASPs in hospitals and provides practical guidance for implementing a robust ASPin an acute care facility. Variations to the Core Elements have been developed to deal with the particular challenges in small, rural or critical access hospitals in the United States and in outpatient facilities and nursing homes.
more
Vitamin A deficiency is a risk factor for blindness and for mortality from measles and diarrhoea in children aged 6–59 months. We aimed to estimate trends in the prevalence of vitamin A defi ciency between 1991 and 2013 and its mortality burden in low-income and middle-income countries.
The strategic priorities of the CCS 2014–2018 are:
(1) Strengthening the health system.
(2) Enhancing the achievement of communicable disease control targets.
(3) Controlling the growth of the noncommunicable disease burden.
(4) Promoting health throughout the life course.
...
(5) Strengthening capacity for emergency risk management and surveillance systems for various health threats.
more
India is experiencing rapid demographic and epidemiological transitions with NCDs causing significant disability, morbidity and mortality both in urban and rural populations and across all socioeconomic strata. According to the ICMR State Level Disease Burden Initiative, in 2016, NCDs accounted to a...n estimated 6.0 million deaths, constituting 62% of the total mortality of that year.
more
In Vietnam, most of the examination and treatment facilities are facing with of spread of bacteria resistant to many antibiotics. The level and speed of drug resistance are increasing, at alarming level. The burden of drug resistance is increasing due to the increasing cost of treatment, prolonged t...reatment,. That will affect patients’ health, community and social development. In the future, many
nations will be able to face the possibility of having no effective drugs to treat infectious diseases if they do not make appropriate interventions.
more
2.4 billion reasons to end the global climate and inequality crisis. An estimated 774 million children across the world – or one third of the world’s child population - are living with the dual impacts of poverty and high climate .The country with the highest percentage of children impacted by t...his double burden is South Sudan (87%), followed by the Central African Republic (85%) and Mozambique (80%).risk,
more
Indoor air pollution is one of the world's largest environmental problems – particularly for the poorest in the world, who often do not have access to clean fuels for cooking.The Global Burden of Disease is a major global study on the causes and risk factors for death and disease. The study estima...tes of the annual number of deaths attributed to a wide range of risk factors are shown here. This chart is shown for the global total but can be explored for any country or region using the "change country or region" toggle.
more
In this quality improvement study, data from the Creditor Reporting System were used to estimate flows of total DAAH and per-adolescent DAAH and to assess its distribution by donors, regions, and countries and the leading causes of burden of disease (ie,
disability-adjusted life-years) in 132 devel...oping countries between January 1, 2003, and December 31, 2015. Through use of a key word search and various funding allocation methods, 2 sets of estimates were produced: adolescent-targeted DAAH that included disbursements to projects with a primary adolescent health target and adolescent-inclusive DAAH that included disbursements to
projects with either a primary or partial adolescent health target, as well as projects that could benefit adolescent health but did not include age-related key words.
more
Human rabies remains a significant public health problem in Africa with outbreaks reported in most countries. In Nigeria–the most populous country in Africa–rabies causes a significant public health burden partly due to perennial obstacles to implementing a national prevention and control progra...m.
more
To provide a foundation for the strategic policy and programme development needed to ensure the sustainable implementation of effective interventions for reducing the global burden of PPH
The World Health Organization (WHO) fact sheet on ambient (outdoor) air quality and health highlights the significant health risks posed by outdoor air pollution. It reports that in 2019, ambient air pollution was responsible for approximately 4.2 million premature deaths globally, primarily due to ...exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which leads to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, as well as cancers. The fact sheet emphasizes that 99% of the global population lived in areas exceeding WHO air quality guidelines in 2019, with low- and middle-income countries bearing the highest burden. To mitigate these health impacts, WHO advocates for policies and investments that promote cleaner transportation, energy-efficient housing, improved waste management, and access to clean household energy.
more