Schistosomiasis is a helminthic infection and one of the neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). It is caused by blood flukes of the genus Schistosoma. It is an important public health problem, particularly in poverty-stricken areas, especially those within the tropics and subtropics. It is estimated th...at at least 236 million people worldwide are infected, 90% of them in sub-Saharan Africa, and that this disease causes approximately 300,000 deaths annually. The clinical manifestations are varied and affect practically all organs. There are substantial differences in the clinical presentation, depending on the phase and clinical form of schistosomiasis in which it occurs. Schistosomiasis can remain undiagnosed for a long period of time, with secondary clinical lesion. Here, we review the clinical profile of schistosomiasis. This information may aid in the development of more efficacious treatments and improved disease prognosis.
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Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major public health challenge, which is recognized as high priority area by the Government of India. The increasing consumption of antibiotics is one of the key drivers of antimicrobial resistance seen in bugs of public health importance. Irrational prescription o...f broad-spectrum antibiotics, poor regulations around sale of antibiotics, self-medication, lack of education and awareness regarding responsible use of antibiotics have been identified as some of the key factors driving antimicrobial resistance in our country. The ‘National Health Policy’ (2017), addresses antimicrobial resistance as one of the key issues and prioritises development of guidelines regarding antibiotic use, limiting the over-the-counter use of antibiotics, restricting the use of antibiotics as growth promoters in livestock, and pharmaco-vigilance including prescription audit inclusive of antibiotic usage in the hospital and community.
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Challenged by the health emergency, Primary Health Care (PHC) professionals remodeled their work processes and realized that many of the innovations implemented in an emergency manner to respond to the pandemic of COVID are here to stay. The initiative APS Forte no SUS - no combate à pandemia de CO...VID-19 gathered experiences from all over the country, executed by engaged health workers who, despite the difficulties imposed by the new disease, fight daily to improve the offer and care in health in the Unified Health System (SUS). With the help of digital technologies, teams and professionals of the Family Health Strategy overcome daily one of the main challenges of APS in this pandemic: ensuring access to health services. Digital tools gain strength in the agenda for strengthening the SUS, so well represented in this initiative.
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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is now one of the top three causes of death worldwide and 90% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
More than 3 million people died of COPD in 2012 accounting for 6% of all deaths globally. COPD represents an important public... health challenge that is both preventable and treatable. COPD is a major cause of chronic morbidity and mortality throughout the world; many people suffer from this disease for years and die prematurely from it or its complications. Globally, the COPD burden is projected to increase incoming decades because of continued exposure to COPD risk factors and aging of thepopulation.
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Objective: To conduct a landscape assessment of public knowledge of cardiovascular disease risk factors and acute myocardial infarction symptoms, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and automated external defibrillator (AED) awareness and training in three underserved communities in Brazil.
Metho...ds: A cross-sectional, population-based survey of non-institutionalised adults age 30 or greater was conducted in three municipalities in Eastern Brazil. Data were analysed as survey-weighted percentages of the sampled populations.
Results: 3035 surveys were completed. Overall, one-third of respondents was unable to identify at least one cardiovascular disease risk factor and 25% unable to identify at least one myocardial infarction symptom. A minority of respondents had received training in CPR or were able to identify an AED. Low levels of education and low socioeconomic status were consistent predictors of lower knowledge levels of cardiovascular disease risk factors, acute coronary syndrome symptoms and CPR and AED use.
Conclusions: In three municipalities in Eastern Brazil, overall public knowledge of cardiovascular disease risk factors and symptoms, as well as knowledge of appropriate CPR and AED use was low. Our findings indicate the need for interventions to improve public knowledge and response to acute cardiovascular events in Brazil as a first step towards improving health outcomes in this population. Significant heterogeneity in knowledge seen across sites and socioeconomic strata indicates a need to appropriately target such interventions.
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These 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 pa...tients, 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.
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New data indicates declining confidence in childhood vaccines of up to 44 percentage points in some countries during the COVID-19 pandemic
New UNICEF report shows 67 million children missed out on one or more vaccinations over three years due to service disruption caused by strained health system...s and diversion of scarce resources, conflict and fragility, and decreased confidence.
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There is increasing interest in understanding the role of air pollution as one of the greatest threats to human health worldwide. Nine of 10 individuals breathe air with polluted compounds that have a great impact on lung tissue. The nature of the relationship is complex, and new or updated data are... constantly being reported in the literature. The goal of our review was to summarize the most important air pollutants and their impact on the main respiratory diseases (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, lung cancer, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, respiratory infections, bronchiectasis, tuberculosis) to reduce both short- and the long-term exposure consequences. We considered the most important air pollutants, including sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, ozone, particulate matter and biomass smoke, and observed their impact on pulmonary pathologies. We focused on respiratory pathologies, because air pollution potentiates the increase in respiratory diseases, and the evidence that air pollutants have a detrimental effect is growing. It is imperative to constantly improve policy initiatives on air quality in both high- and low-income countries.
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Leishmaniasis is still considered to be a global health problem, which spreads in most countries in the world. Leishmania is an intracellular obligate protistan parasite that causes different clinical symptoms in infected humans and other animals. There are clinically different types of the disease ...including: visceral, cutaneous or muco-cutaneous leishmaniasis. Approximately, two million new infections occurring annually; 0.7 to 1.2 million cases are recorded with cutaneous leishmaniasis and 200,000–400,000 cases return for visceral leishmaniasis. However, Cutaneous leishmaniasis considers one of uncontrolled wobbling endemic diseases, especially in Iraq, which occurs at the skin to cause a dermal lesion. Usually, the lesion is spontaneously healed to leave a colorless depressed scar and permanent immunity.
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Nurses are critical to deliver on the promise of “leaving no one behind” and the global effort to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They make a central contribution to national and global targets related to a range of health priorities, including universal health coverage, mental... health and noncommunicable diseases, emergency preparedness and
response, patient safety, and the delivery of integrated, people-centred care.
No global health agenda can be realized without concerted and sustained efforts to maximize the contributions of the nursing workforce and their roles within interprofessional health teams. To do so requires policy interventions that enable them to have maximum impact and effectiveness by optimizing nurses’ scope and leadership, alongside accelerated investment
in their education, skills and jobs. Such investments will also contribute to the SDG targets related to education, gender, decent work and inclusive economic growth.
This State of the world’s nursing 2020 report, developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in partnership with the International Council of Nurses and the global Nursing Now campaign, and with the support of governments and wider partners, provides a compelling case on the value of the nursing workforce globally.
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Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are major global public health concerns that cause nearly three-quarters of the burden of mortality worldwide. Cardiovascular diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes alone account for over eight out of ten NCD deaths. To alleviate this huge burde...n, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) aimed to reduce premature mortality from non-communicable diseases by one-third.
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Ethiopia has seen high economic growth over the last decade, but remains a poor country with a high burden of disease. It has made considerable health gains in recent years, mainly by having health policies that focus on extending primary healthcare, using health extension workers. It... has made good use of existing resources,but has a low health expenditure (of around US$21 per capita, and totalling 4per centof GDP). It has a federal system with devolved healthcare financing, whereby block grants are allocated to sectors at regional and woreda(district) level. The challenge now,with the epidemiological transition (and a sense that the ‘low-hanging fruits’have already been gathered in relation to public health), is how Ethiopia, still poor, continuesto invest in health improvements?Human resources for health (HRH) are a critical pillar within any health system –the health staff combine inputs to provide the services, thus affecting how all other resources are used, and they make frontline (and back-office) decisions thatare importantdeterminants of servicequality,effectiveness and equity. HRH is usually the most resource-intensive element within the health system –commonly absorbing 50–70per centof public expenditure onhealth, although the proportions are very varied by individual countries and across regions. As they are commonly part of the public administration, reforms to HRH are also part of a complex political economy in most countries.Assessing value for money (VfM) in relation to HRH is correspondingly complex;across the value chain, manyfactors influence the conversion of inputs into outputs and outcomes (see Figure 1).A more detailed description of the HRH value chain can be found in Annex1.
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Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminths (STH) infections are major public health problems. We aimed to study the 6-mo impact of mass drug administration with praziquantel and albendazole on urinary schistosomiasis and STH.We examined children (aged 2–15 y) from one hamlet, who provided urin...e and faeces samples at baseline (n=197), 1 mo (n=102) and 6 mo (n=92); 67 completed the protocol.At baseline, 47/67 (70.1%) children presented Schistosoma haematobium (75.8% in the baseline total sample) and 12/67 (17.9%) with STH (30.5% in the initial sample, p=0.010). Among the children, 47.3% had heavy Schistosoma haematobium infection. The most frequent STH was Trichuris trichiura in 9.0%. We also found Hymenolepis nana (13.2%) and Plasmodium falciparum (9.1%) infections and anaemia (82.1%). One mo after chemotherapy there was a significant (p=0.013) reduction of Schistosoma haematobium prevalence (23.5%) and a high egg reduction rate (86.9%). Considering the sample of 67 children, the mean egg concentration was 498 at baseline, 65 at 1 mo and 252 at 6 mo (p<0.05). We also observed a reduction in STH infections, 50% in Ascaris lumbricoides, 33.3% in T. trichiura and 50% in hookworms. At 6 mo, the prevalence of Schistosoma haematobium (76.1%) was similar to the baseline and the STH reduction was not significant.Longitudinal studies have reported many losses in these settings, but we were able to show that mass drug administration for control of schistosomiasis and STH present low effectiveness, that reinfections occur rapidly and that stand alone anthelmintic therapy is not a sustainable choice.
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Heart failure (HF) is a global public health concern with disproportionate socioeconomic, morbidity and mortality burden on low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This review summarises contemporary data on the demographic and clinical characteristics, aetiologies, treatment, economic burden and ...outcomes of HF in LMICs. Patients with HF in LMICs are younger than those from high-income countries (HICs) and present at advanced stages of the disease. Hypertension, ischaemic heart disease (IHD), cardiomyopathy (CMO), and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) are the leading causes of HF in LMICs. The contribution of infectious diseases to HF remains prominent in many LMICs. Most health facilities in LMICs lack adequate diagnostic tools for HF, and the use of evidence-based medical and device therapies is suboptimal. Further, HF in LMICs is associated with prolonged hospital stay and high in-hospital and one-year mortality. Finally, HF has profound economic impact on individual patients who, mostly, have no health insurance, and on societies where patients are young, comprising those who have the greatest potential to contribute to economic productivity.
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Parasites & Vectors volume 15, Article number: 389 (2022)
Dengue is one of the common arboviral infections and is a public health problem in South East Asia. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the prevalence and distribution of dengue in SAARC (South Asian Associ...ation for Regional Cooperation) countries.
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User GuideThe toolkit is composed of three sections: Hospital and Health System Resources - includes a readiness assessment tool, the starting point in developing or enhancing a successful Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP). The tool, a checklist developed by the CDC, should be shared with se...nior management, a senior leader for quality, purchasing directors, clinic managers, nurse managers, key physician leaders, risk managers, pharmacy leaders, infection preventionists and hospital epidemiologists, laboratory staff and information technology staff. For ease of use, it is divided into two sections, one for those just beginning a program, the other for those who wish to enhance an existing program. Clinician Resources - includes webinars, clinical evidence supporting appropriate use of antibiotics, implementation guides and related articles.Patient Resources - includes frequently asked questions, pamphlets and handouts on how patients can best engage in their care and resources on appropriate use of antibiotics.
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The spread of antimicrobial-resistant microorganisms poses anincreasing threat to affordable modern health care. In the Netherlands, efforts to control the dispersal of known and novel antimicrobial-resistant organisms have been mostly implemented at the hospital level. However, recent studies have ...recommended shifting the focus of control strategies fromsingle hospitals toward larger healthcare networks. These networks consist of clusters of hospitals that are connected viashared patients. Several studies have shown that patients transferred from one hospital to another can spread antimicrobial-resistant pathogens across the healthcare network
infection control & hospital epidemiology july 2016, vol. 37, no. 7
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The arrival and rapid spread of the mosquito-borne viral disease Chikungunya across the Americas is one of the most significant public health developments of recent years, preceding and mirroring the subsequent spread of Zika. Globalization in trade and travel can lead to the importation of these vi...ruses, but climatic conditions strongly affect the efficiency of transmission in local settings. In order to direct preparedness for future outbreaks, it is necessary to anticipate global regions that could become suitable for Chikungunya transmission. Here, we present global correlative niche models for autochthonous Chikungunya transmission. These models were used as the basis for projections under the representative concentration pathway (RCP) 4.5 and 8.5 climate change scenarios. In a further step, hazard maps, which account for population densities, were produced. The baseline models successfully delineate current areas of active Chikungunya transmission. Projections under the RCP 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios suggest the likelihood of expansion of transmission-suitable areas in many parts of the world, including China, sub-Saharan Africa, South America, the United States and continental Europe. The models presented here can be used to inform public health preparedness planning in a highly interconnected world.
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Medical Peace Work is an emerging field of expertise in health work, violence prevention, and peace-building. These interactive cases will introduce you to some of the key concepts, opportunities and dilemmas in the peace health field. This case is about encountering victims of torture in a GP’s ...surgery. It follows the story of a young woman from Uganda who is a victim of torture. This is one of seven Medical Peace Work courses.
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The global epidemic of type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) presents significant challenges to world health both in terms of financial costs as well as morbidity. Thus, considerable research has been focussed on the prevention or delay of the onset of T2DM.
Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) is one of the ...most costly and burdensome of chronic diseases and is a global epidemic. Estimates by the International Diabetes Federation indicate that 387 million people have diabetes, and that this figure is expected to rise to 592 million by 2035 with an additional 175 million cases currently undiagnosed.
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