. | . |
DR Congo declares end to deadly measles epidemic by Staff Writers Kinshasa (AFP) Aug 25, 2020 The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on Tuesday declared the end of a 25-month outbreak of measles that claimed the lives of more than 7,000 children aged under five. The outbreak was countered by vaccination on a massive scale, in which millions of children and infants were immunised. "For the past month, we are able to say that this epidemic has been eliminated from across our territory," Health Minister Eteni Longondo told a press conference. "We can say that measles (in the DRC) no longer exists." Measles is a highly contagious viral disease that attacks mainly children. The most serious complications include blindness, brain swelling, diarrhoea, and severe respiratory infections. Once common, the disease has been rolled back around the world thanks to a cheap and effective vaccine, but low rates of immunisation among a community can cause infection to spread quickly. "The measles epidemic was unfolding at low level but was the deadliest. It carried off more than 7,000 of our children," Longondo said. Routine vaccinations will continue in order to prevent the virus from bouncing back, he added. The first cases of measles in the latest outbreak were recorded in June 2018. As of January this year, the WHO had recorded more than 335,000 suspected cases of the disease, of which 6,362 were fatal. By way of comparison, the DRC -- a vast country the size of continental western Europe -- has recorded 9,891 cases of coronavirus, of which 251 were fatal. An outbreak of Ebola in the east of the country, which was declared over on June 25 after nearly two years, killed 2,287 people. The announcement in Kinshasa came ahead of an expected declaration Tuesday by the UN's World Health Organization (WHO) that wild poliovirus has been eradicated from Africa. Health teams have been fighting to wipe out polio's last vestiges on the continent, in northeastern Nigeria, where jihadists said vaccination was a conspiracy to sterilise young Muslims.
Spain calls in army to fight virus pandemic The central government will make 2,000 soldiers who are trained in tracking available to the regions, which are responsible for health care, to assist in tracking cases and stem a rise in infections, he told a news conference. "We could even increase this figure as required through the urgent training which we have planned," Sanchez said. Many experts have blamed a lack of virus trackers for a surge in COVID-19 infections in several Spanish regions such as Madrid and Catalonia. Sanchez urged Spaniards to use a smartphone app designed by the government called RadarCovid which can identify people who have crossed paths with a contagious patient and alert them so they can get tested or be quarantined. He also announced that regional authorities could ask the central government to apply a state of emergency, which would allow it to limit people's movements, on part or all of its territory. The central government declared a nationwide state of emergency in mid-March which allowed it to impose one of the world's strictest lockdowns, with people allowed outside only to buy food or medicine, seek medical care, briefly walk their dog or go to work if it was impossible to do their jobs from home. It was only fully lifted on June 21. While the rise in infections in Spain is "worrying", it is "far from the situation in mid-March", Sanchez said. "We can't let the pandemic to once again take control of our lives... we must take control and halt this second curve." Infections have risen sharply since Spain lifted the lockdown, but deaths have been much lower than during the epidemic's peak. The country has more than 400,000 confirmed cases of the respiratory disease, the highest in western Europe, and one of the fastest growth rates on the continent. Nearly 29,000 people have died, one of the world's highest tolls.
Global health emergencies: A rarely used call to action Geneva (AFP) Jan 22, 2020 The World Health Organisation (WHO) is holding emergency talks Thursday in Geneva to decide whether a deadly virus outbreak in China constitutes a "public health emergency of international concern". The designation is rare and only used for the gravest outbreaks which are considered "serious, sudden, unusual or unexpected". The classification would imply that the disease, which has killed nine people so far, risks spreading further internationally and requires an international response. The ... read more
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |