WHO

Ebola cases may hit 1.4 mn mark by January 2015, warns CDC

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reportedly predicted that the number of Ebola cases in Liberia and Sierra Leone could rise to between 550,000 and 1.4 million by January if there are no “additional interventions or changes in community behavior.”

Liberia Ebola

The prediction was made in a report released by the CDC on Tuesday and is based on a new forecasting tool developed by the organization. The estimated range is wide because experts suspect that the current count is highly under-reported, reported  The CDC said that it was possible to control the epidemic and end it eventually if 70% of Ebola-infected people are properly cared for in medical facilities.

However, in a press conference on Tuesday, CDC Director Tom Frieden, warned that this model was based on older data from August and the numbers were not projections, but “scenarios.” It also did not take into account the medical help coming from the United States and other countries. However, he added that the model does suggest that the current surge of help can curb the epidemic and is “exactly what’s needed” to end it.

According to a World Health Organization estimate, the official death toll in West Africa has risen to more than 2,800 in six months, with 5,800 Ebola cases confirmed as of Monday. The report came a day after the WHO warned that that the number of people infected with the Ebola virus could reach 20,000 by the beginning of November if efforts to contain the outbreak are not accelerated.

Source: ierra leone times

Ebola threat to world peace and security, launches mission to combat disease

In an unprecedented action, an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council has declared the Ebola virus disease “a threat to international peace and security” while Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced the formation of an emergency mission to fight the deadly disease.

Ebola threat to world peace and security, launches mission to combat disease

The Council, which usually deals with international conflicts, took on the disease ravaging three countries in West Africa, and approved a resolution Thursday sponsored by 131 countries “determining that the unprecedented extent of the Ebola outbreak in Africa constitute a threat to international peace and security”. Underlining the international concern over the disease with no vaccine available and cures rare, it was the largest number of sponsors ever for a resolution in the Security Council.

The Council president, US Ambassador Samantha Power, said this was the Council’s first emergency meeting on a public health issue.

Ban announced at the Council meeting the formation of the new organisation to take on the disease on a battle-footing.

“To be known as the United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response, or UNMEER,” he said, it “will have five priorities: stopping the outbreak, treating the infected, ensuring essential services, preserving stability and preventing further outbreaks.”

He appealed for international aid for the effort, not only from governments, but also busineses. The UN has estimated that it would need $1 billion over the next six months to deal with the crisis.

Ban also called for ending travel and trade restrictions on three affected countries — Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leon — as these could affect medical personnel going there and delivery of supplies. The Council resolution took up the issue, expressing concern about major airlines and shipping companies introducing travel restrictions to the affected countries.

World Health Organisation head Margaret Chan told the Council that reports Ebola has affected more than 5,500 people and killed over 2,500 killed are “vast underestimates”.

“None of us experienced in containing outbreaks has ever seen, in our lifetimes, an emergency on this scale, with this degree of suffering and with this magnitude of cascading consequences,” she said.

Earlier, at a press briefing, a reporter asked the secretary-general’s spokesman about a potential threat of terrorists using Ebola. The spokesman said it was a matter of concern. “It can also impact the political stability of a country and lack of political stability can breed other problems. So, this is why, I think, the secretary-general
is focused on getting the UN system to work together in the most efficient way possible to stop the virus from spreading and to support national governments.

Source: yahoo news

Liberia must wait weeks or months for new Ebola centers, says WHO

The Ebola response in Liberia, the country worst hit by the outbreak, will focus on community-level care units since new treatment centers are unlikely to be ready for weeks or months, World Health Organization Assistant Director General Bruce Aylward said on Tuesday.

“The absolute first priority is to establish enough capacity to rapidly isolate the cases so that they are not infecting others. We need Ebola treatment centers to do that, very very quickly, but they take time to build, as you’ve seen,” he said.

“It takes weeks, if not months, to get these facilities up and running. We have firm commitments for more than 500 additional beds in Liberia and we think we will hear announcements that will take that even further over the coming weeks.” The WHO still has a goal to “bend the curve” in total Ebola case numbers across West Africa within three months, but some areas may be free of the disease sooner, he said.

“You definitely want to get Nigeria and Senegal obviously done quickly,” Aylward said. “In some capitals – Freetown, Conakry – we should be able to get those free in the near term. Guinea should be able to get most of the country free in the very near term as well.” In Sierra Leone and Liberia the disease is more entrenched over bigger geographic areas and the Liberian capital Monrovia was a “particular challenge”, he said.

The number of cases has shrunk to one single confirmed Ebola patient in Senegal, after two suspected cases were ruled out, and remained steady at 21 cases in Nigeria, he said. “I cannot say Senegal is safe. Remember, if a country has Ebola, the incubation period is about 21 days. I like to see at least two incubation periods without any cases to be absolutely sure. So that would take us way out into October. Never declare victory over this virus.”

Guinea, where the outbreak originated last December, has had 936 cases, Sierra Leone 1,602 and Liberia 2,407, he said

Source: fox news

Myth or fact: Is Hibiscus the new drug to cure diabetes naturally?

Diabetes has become a common disease these days just like any other whacky flu, cough and cold. Life is certainly not easy for a diabetic as one has to maintain a healthy lifestyle throughout, since there is no cure for the disease.

Is Hibiscus the new drug to cure diabetes naturally

Offering a new hope to diabetics, researchers at Assam’s Tezpur University and West Bengal’s Visva-Bharati University have derived that natural extracts from a particular species of the hibiscus plant can help in curing diabetes.

Researchers collected samples of hibiscus leaves from North-East region and conducted tests on diabetic rats. The results showed that a phytochemical (plant-derived compound) from the leaves of Sthalpadma or land-lotus (scientifically known as Hibiscus mutabilis and commonly called Confederate rose) restore insulin levels better.

Samir Bhattacharya, emeritus professor, School of Life Sciences (Zoology Department) at Visva-Bharati in Shantiniketan was quoted saying to a news agency: “We found that ferulic acid (FRL), belonging to the polyphenols, extracted from leaves of the plant, has the potential to be a better therapeutic agent for diabetes”.

According to the World Health Organisation, there are about 346 million people worldwide with diabetes, with more than 80% of deaths occurring in developing countries. India has nearly 63 million diabetic patients, with the situation becoming grimmer mainly because of the sedentary lifestyle prevailing across key metros and big cities aggravating the situation. According to a study conducted by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the number of Indians suffering from this malicious disease is expected to cross the 100 million mark by 2030.

Source: India vision

Equipment needed to contain Ebola in Senegal; WHO calls case ‘top priority’

The effort to contain Ebola in Senegal is “a top priority emergency,” the World Health Organization said Sunday, as the government continued tracing everyone who came in contact with a Guinean student who has tested positive for the deadly disease in the capital, Dakar.

Equipment needed to contain Ebola in Senegal; WHO calls case 'top priority'

Senegal faces an “urgent need” for support and supplies including hygiene kits and personal protective equipment for health workers, the WHO said in a statement Sunday.
“These needs will be met with the fastest possible speed,” the WHO said.

The U.N. health agency provided new information on the movements of the 21-year-old student in the city before he was diagnosed with Ebola.
Senegal confirmed that the student had tested positive for Ebola on Friday, making the country the fifth in West Africa to be affected by an outbreak that has killed more than 1,500 people.

The student showed up at a hospital in Dakar on Aug. 26 but did not reveal that he had been in contact with other Ebola victims, said Health Minister Awa Marie Coll Seck.
The next day, an epidemiological surveillance team in neighbouring Guinea alerted Senegalese authorities that it had lost track of a person it was monitoring three weeks earlier, and that the person may have crossed into Senegal.

The student was tracked to the hospital in Dakar that same day and was immediately quarantined, and a test confirmed he had Ebola, Seck said.
In Sunday’s statement, the WHO said the student arrived in Dakar by road on Aug. 20 and was staying with relatives “in the outskirts of the city.”

It said that on Aug. 23, he went to a medical facility seeking treatment for fever, diarrhea and vomiting, all symptoms of Ebola. He was treated for malaria, however, and continued to stay with his relatives before turning up at the Dakar hospital on Aug. 26.

“Though the investigation is in its early stages, he is not presently known to have travelled elsewhere,” said the WHO, which received its information from Senegal’s health ministry.

The presence of Ebola in Senegal, a tourist and transport hub, could complicate efforts to bring the outbreak under control. The country has already closed its land border with Guinea, where the outbreak originated, and barred air and sea travel from Sierra Leone and Liberia in an attempt to keep the disease out.

In Dakar on Sunday, at least one pharmacy was limiting purchases of hand sanitizer to one small bottle per person because of rising demand — underscoring fears that the number of cases in the city could soon multiply.

Senegalese authorities have isolated the house where the Guinean student was staying as well as the medical facility where he sought treatment prior to visiting the Dakar hospital.

There is no cure or licensed treatment for Ebola, so health workers can only provide supportive care to patients such as keeping them hydrated.
The Guinean student “is doing very well,” a doctor monitoring his case in Dakar said Sunday.

“This morning when I called the hospital, the doctor told me that the patient had no complaints and that his fever had disappeared,” said Dr. Gallaye Ka in an interview with the private radio station RFM.

Health care workers are especially vulnerable to infection. The WHO says 240 health workers have contracted the disease during the current outbreak and more than half of those have died.

In Sierra Leone on Sunday, officials said they had avoided a strike threatened by workers at an Ebola treatment centre in the east of the country, the region hardest hit by the outbreak.

Protective equipment is being sent to the health workers and a “monthly incentive allowance” will be paid on Monday, health ministry spokesman Sidie Yahya Tunis told

On Friday, Sierra Leone President Ernest Bai Koroma replaced Health Minister Miatta Kargbo with Abu Bakarr Fofanah, a move his office described as necessary to more efficiently combat the outbreak. Kargbo was recalled to work in the president’s office.

SOurce: ctv news

Pakistan running out of polio campaign funds

Pakistan’s health ministry has said that if new funds are not arranged for the delayed anti-polio campaign, it is likely to halt after two months, Dawn online reported on Thursday. An health official said that the ministry was running out of funds.

Pakistan running out of polio campaign funds

The Economic Coordination Council (ECC) was supposed to approve funds for the campaign in the second week of August, but it has not been allocated owing to a political crisis.

The Islamic Development Bank, Japan and other organisations were to provide a loan of $326 million, with the interest on the amount to be paid by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the official said.

“If the funds are not arranged in the next two months, the ministry would be left with no option but to halt the countrywide polio campaign,” the official added. In Nov, the World Health Organisation (WHO) will review the temporary travel restrictions it imposed on Pakistan in May, on the recommendation of the International Health Regulations, which made it mandatory for every person intending to travel abroad to produce a polio vaccination certificate at the airport.

For now, it is obligatory on the government to vaccinate each person going out of the country, the official said. A total of 115 polio cases has been registered in Pakistan this year. According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), only 39 polio cases were registered last year. Of the 115 cases registered this year, 84 are from federally administered tribal areas, 19 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 10 from Sindh and one each from Punjab and Balochistan provinces.

Source: One India News

Gambia on high alert for Ebola outbreak

Gambia’s ministry of health and social welfare said on Thursday that it is on high alert for a possible Ebola outbreak in the country and are taking preventive measures to tackle the disease.

Gambia, Ebola outbreak, Ebola alert, WHO

Modou Njai, director of health promotion and education at the ministry, said that so far there has been no confirmed case of the Ebola virus disease in Gambia, Xinhua reported.
“Currently there are public health officials stationed at all the border entry points, including at the airport and seaport and we are also increasing our surveillance teams countrywide to ensure that those going in and out are properly checked for Ebola virus,” Njai said.

According to Njia, 210 technical advisory committee members, 350 Red Cross volunteers, 75 local government authorities, 75 cluster monitors, 25 health journalists have been sensitised, including 36 representatives of youth groups who has been sent to various settlements in the country to sensitise people about the disease.

The preventive measures taken by the Gambia’s public health officials include reading passengers’ temperature and asking about their travel history. The public health officials are also in touch with regional health management teams posted in various regions, Njia added.

Gambia’s regional management teams coordinate and supervise surveillance teams posted to various locations in the country.

According to the World Health Organisation, the death toll due to the Ebola virus continues to rise in West Africa and currently stands at 1,350.

Source: IBN Live

Combining vaccines boosts polio immunity: Study

Polio has been wiped out of many countries thanks to massive use of oral vaccine. But new research suggests trying a one-two punch where the disease is still a threat: Giving a single vaccine shot to children who’ve already gotten the drops boosted their immunity.

Combining vaccines boosts polio immunity

World Health Organization officials say the combination strategy could help finally eradicate polio.

Which vaccine works best has long been debated. They each have different strengths. Wealthy countries today use only injected polio vaccine, but the oral version is used in developing countries because it is cheaper, easier to administer and better at stopping virus transmission.

Thursday’s study tested nearly 1,000 children in India who had previously received several oral vaccinations and found giving a shot was a better booster dose than more oral drops.

SourcE: US news

Suspected Ebola case found in Myanmar

Myanmar has discovered a suspected case of the deadly Ebola virus disease, the information ministry said Wednesday.

Suspected Ebola case found in Myanmar

A 22-year-old man, who worked in Guinea and Liberia in West Africa, was found during a screening of passengers at the Yangon International Airport Tuesday, Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying on its website.

The man, who arrived from Bangkok and had a fever, was immediately sent to an isolated ward on the outskirts of the capital city for further confirmation whether he is really infected with the deadly disease, it added.

Myanmar is taking preventive measures against the spread of Ebola in the wake of the discovery of such disease in four West African countries. Detection of the virus is being done at airports and ports by using modern equipment and training courses and infection control programmes are being carried out at the country’s heathcare facilities.

According to its earlier statement, the health ministry is cooperating with its counterparts from other countries, UN agencies, local international non-governmental organisations and civil societies for related preventive measures.

Source: One india news

Tips to prevent water-borne diseases

Water borne diseases are cause for the deaths of millions of people every year. Consuming water that contains pathogenic microorganisms causes water borne diseases. In most developing countries, water borne diseases are the main cause of childhood death, especially with diarrhea.

Tips to prevent water-borne diseases

How Water Borne Disease Transmitted?
Most of the people get infected when the contaminated material enters their mouth. Other possible modes of transmission include:

  • Dirty contaminated hands, clothes, cooking vessels, mugs, etc.
  • Uncovered food and drinking water
  • Contaminated water
  • The practice of defecating in the open
  • Via flies

Ways to Avoid These Diseases
In order to prevent infectious water borne diseases, it is important to take necessary precautions. The quality of water should be improved at the source itself. In certain areas, the quality of water supply might be of question. In such cases, it is necessary to disinfect the water before use. Water that is used for all purposes like drinking, cooking, and brushing of teeth should be disinfected properly. The common household ways to avoid water borne diseases by disinfection include:

  • Vigorously boiling water for one minute can kill most microorganisms.
  • Common household items such as chlorine bleach, tincture of iodine, and iodine tablets can be used to disinfect water.

Another important measure that should be taken to avoid the spreading of pathological microorganisms is the interruption of routes of transmission such as protecting food from flies, chlorination of water, and maintaining proper sanitation, etc. It is vital to change ensure proper hygiene in order to avoid waterborne diseases.

  • Drink only filtered/bottled water.
  • Wash hands properly before eating.
  • Wash the containers daily.
  • Eat cooked, warm foods.
  • Keep your fingernails short and clean.
  • Use of proper toilets for defecation.
  • Wash food before cooking and cook food at high temperature so as to kill harmful bacteria.
  • Avoid flies by disposing animal and organic wastes properly.
  • Ensure to take proper care in disposing of infant and toddler feces.
  • Avoid consuming foods, fruit juices, and milkshakes from roadside vendors.
  • Always keep foods and beverages closed.
  • Avoid drinking water at parks and other such recreational places. It is best to buy bottled water or carry your own water.
  • Another common place where one can put oneself at risk of contracting water borne illnesses is hospitals as they can be breeding grounds of pathogenic microorganism. Always sanitize your hands and bath after visiting a hospital.
  • Rivers and creeks can be breeding grounds for bacteria; avoid swimming in such waters.
  • Washing hands is the most important method of prevention of waterborne diseases. One should wash hands before preparing food and before eating. Likewise, it is necessary to wash hands after using the toilet, changing diapers, after using handkerchief, after changing clothes or beddings soiled with feces, after caring people with water borne illness, and after playing with pets and animals.

Travelers are most likely to contract water borne illnesses, and here are certain tips that can help to lessen the chances of getting ill.

  • Ensure to drink only bottled water. Check for any sign of tampering.
  • Avoid ice cubes as these are a major source of contaminated water.
  • Avoid eating uncooked food.

To prevent the spreading of waterborne illnesses, people suffering from waterborne illness should be confined to themselves from work until symptoms have subsided.

Source: home remedies for you