Encounters with plague: tracing and preventing illness
In Madagascar, where a severe plague epidemic has unfolded since August 2017, the number of new infections is finally in decline. WHO is supporting health authorities to respond to the outbreak, from setting up specialized plague treatment units in health centres, to distributing medicines across the country. A particularly effective action has involved training teams to find people who have been in contact with a pneumonic plague patient – a system known as "contact tracing" – to help ensure these contacts are protected from falling sick themselves. Rakoto,* a 17-year-old man from Antananarivo, began feeling sick one...
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 30, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, African Region [region], Feature [doctype], Madagascar [country] Source Type: news
From soft drink taxes to detecting people at risk, the United Arab Emirates is promoting health by beating noncommunicable diseases
His dizzy spells came often, as did feelings of tiredness and passing of urine. For 10 years, Salem Hamad Al Mehairi knew something was wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it. But the mystery was solved with just one visit to his local primary health centre in Dubai, which had been upgraded, in line with WHO recommendations, to routinely screen all patients for noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), like cardiovascular and lung diseases, some cancers and type 2 diabetes. (Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 29, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: communicable disease [subject], infectious diseases, noncommunicable disease [subject], chronic diseases, Eastern Mediterranean Region [region], Feature [doctype], United Arab Emirates [country] Source Type: news
Diphtheria
is an infection caused by the bacterium Corynebacterium Diphtheriae. Signs and symptoms usually start 2 – 5 days after exposure and range from mild to severe. Symptoms often come on gradually, beginning with a sore throat and fever. In severe cases, the bacteria produces a poison (toxin) that causes a thick grey or white patch at the back of throat. This can block the airway making it hard to b reathe or swallow and also create a barking cough. The neck may swell in part due to enlarged lymph nodes. The poison may also get into the blood stream causing complications that may include inflammation and dam...
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 27, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: diphtheria [subject], corynebacterium diphtheria, Q & A [doctype] Source Type: news
Making health services a safe place for women: Uganda steps up to support women subjected to violence
Violence against women is a global public health problem. In Uganda, more than half of all women have experienced violence at least once in their life, most likely from an intimate partner, leaving them feeling unsafe in the place they should feel the safest – their home. “Violence against women is everywhere in Uganda,” says Dr Olive Sentumbwe, National Professional Officer, WHO Uganda. “Women from all parts of society experience repeated abuse, which takes a toll on their physical and mental health.” (Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 24, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: violence against women [subject], gender-based violence, rape, domestic violence, violence [subject], violence prevention, African Region [region], Uganda [country] Source Type: news
Antibiotic resistance – tackling a danger of a different kind in the Syrian Arab Republic
Hanaya Raad is a Syrian pharmacist who has dedicated herself to spreading awareness on antibiotic resistance in her home country. A topic not covered in her out-dated university curriculum, Ms Raad first heard about antibiotic resistance after she graduated when it was mentioned in a practical course for pharmacists. On hearing about this mounting threat, Ms Raad and two of her fellow graduates Sarah Safadi and Nour Allahham took it upon themselves to take action. After digging further into the topic and educating themselves on the best course of action for pharmacists, Ms Raad and her colleagues approached the Syrian Pha...
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 20, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: antimicrobial resistance [subject], Eastern Mediterranean Region [region], Feature [doctype], Syrian Arab Republic [country] Source Type: news
Treating diabetes takes more than insulin: Senegal mobile phone project promoting public health
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 14, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: diabetes [subject], diabetes mellitus, hyperglycaemia, glucose intolerance, diabetes [subject], diabetes mellitus, hyperglycaemia, glucose intolerance, ehealth [subject], medical informatics, African Region [region], Feature [doctype], Senegal [country] Source Type: news
Climate change and its impact on health on small island developing states
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 12, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: climate change [subject], climate change [subject], global warming, global environmental change, climate, Feature [doctype] Source Type: news
Creative campaigns spread awareness on antibiotic resistance
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 10, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: antimicrobial resistance [subject], European Region [region], Feature [doctype] Source Type: news
Facing the threat of antibiotic-resistance: Israel ’s success to prevent and control the spread of carbapenem-resistant bacteria
Facing the threat of antibiotic-resistance: Israel ’s success to prevent and control the spread of carbapenem-resistant bacteria (Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 10, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: antimicrobial resistance [subject], European Region [region], Feature [doctype], Israel [country] Source Type: news
Namibia ’s ban on antibiotics in healthy animals drives meat exports
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 7, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: antimicrobial resistance [subject], African Region [region], Feature [doctype], Namibia [country] Source Type: news
Madagascar plague: mitigating the risk of regional spread
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - November 2, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, African Region [region], Feature [doctype], Madagascar [country] Source Type: news
Personal Stories from TB Survivors - My Journey fighting TB
(Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - October 26, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: tuberculosis [subject], tb, tuberculosis [subject], tb, Feature [doctype] Source Type: news
Unsung heroes on World Polio Day
World Polio Day, 24 October, is an opportunity to recognize the work of committed WHO staff members like Mohammedi, along with the more than 20 000 other unsung heroes working to eradicate polio around the world. (Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - October 24, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, African Region [region], Photo gallery [doctype] Source Type: news
Plague
What is plague? Plague is an infectious disease found in some small mammals and their fleas. People can contract plague if they are in bitten by infected fleas, and develop the bubonic form of plague. Sometimes bubonic plague progresses to pneumonic plague, when the bacteria reaches the lungs. Person-to-person transmission is possible through the inhalation of infected respiratory droplets of a person who has pneumonic plague. Common antibiotics are efficient to cure plague, if they are delivered very early, because the course of the disease is usually rapid. (Source: WHO Feature Stories)
Source: WHO Feature Stories - October 23, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: plague [subject], bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, Q & A [doctype] Source Type: news
Timpiyan, Kenya - Zoonotic TB survivor
My name is Timpiyan and I am a zoonotic tuberculosis (TB) survivor. I come from the Kajiado County in Kenya, and I am originally from a Maasai tribe. Since 2016 I have been a member of the World Health Organization (WHO) Civil Society Task Force on TB. In 2011, I realized that something was wrong with my health when I started losing weight while my stomach was constantly swollen. I had a whole body scan at the hospital in Nairobi and the doctors told me that they saw a big mass in my upper abdomen which had to be removed. It turned out it was pus, and when I woke up after a 7-hour surgery, the doctors told me that I had T...
Source: WHO Feature Stories - October 12, 2017 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Tags: tuberculosis [subject], tb, tuberculosis [subject], tb, African Region [region], Feature [doctype], Kenya [country] Source Type: news
