scholarly journals The Relationship between the Global Burden of Influenza from 2017-2019 and COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan David Baral ◽  
Katherine B. Rucinski ◽  
Jean Olivier Twahirwa Rwema ◽  
Amrita Rao ◽  
Neia Prata Menezes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
World Health ◽  
Annual Number ◽  
Respiratory Pathogens ◽  
Modes Of Transmission ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Potential Impact ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractBackgroundSARS-CoV-2 and Influenza are lipid-enveloped viruses with differential morbidity and mortality but shared modes of transmission. We assessed whether historical patterns of regional influenza burden are reflected in the observed heterogeneity in COVID-19 cases across and within regions of the world.MethodsWeekly surveillance data reported in FluNet from January 2017–December 2019 for influenza and World Health Organization for COVID-19 (to May 31, 2020) across the seven World Bank regions were used to assess the total and annual number of influenza and COVID-19 cases per country, within and across all regions, to generate comparative descending ranks from highest to lowest burden of disease.ResultsAcross and within regions, rankings of influenza and COVID-19 were relatively consistent. Europe and Central Asia and North America ranked first and second for COVID-19 and second and first for influenza, respectively. East Asia and the Pacific traditionally ranked higher for influenza but to date, has been less affected by COVID-19. Between regions, Sub-Saharan Africa ranked amongst the least affected by both influenza and COVID-19.ConclusionConsistency in distribution of the burden of COVID-19 and influenza suggest shared individual, structural, and environmental determinants of transmission. Regions with discrepancies between influenza and COVID-19 burden may provide further insight into the potential impact of non-pharmacologic interventions and intersections with environmental conditions. Ultimately, forecasting trends and informing interventions for novel respiratory pathogens like COVID-19 should leverage patterns in the relative burden of past respiratory pathogens and the relative impact of non-pharmacologic intervention strategies as prior information.FundingNone

scholarly journals The Relationship Between the Global Burden of Influenza From 2017 to 2019 and COVID-19: Descriptive Epidemiological Assessment (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan David Baral ◽  
Katherine Blair Rucinski ◽  
Jean Olivier Twahirwa Rwema ◽  
Amrita Rao ◽  
Neia Prata Menezes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Respiratory Infections ◽  
Temporal Trends ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
World Health ◽  
Respiratory Pathogens ◽  
Modes Of Transmission ◽  
The World ◽  
Influenza Activity ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Health Organization

BACKGROUND SARS-CoV-2 and influenza are lipid-enveloped viruses with differential morbidity and mortality but shared modes of transmission. OBJECTIVE With a descriptive epidemiological framing, we assessed whether recent historical patterns of regional influenza burden are reflected in the observed heterogeneity in COVID-19 cases across regions of the world. METHODS Weekly surveillance data reported by the World Health Organization from January 2017 to December 2019 for influenza and from January 1, 2020 through October 31, 2020, for COVID-19 were used to assess seasonal and temporal trends for influenza and COVID-19 cases across the seven World Bank regions. RESULTS In regions with more pronounced influenza seasonality, COVID-19 epidemics have largely followed trends similar to those seen for influenza from 2017 to 2019. COVID-19 epidemics in countries across Europe, Central Asia, and North America have been marked by a first peak during the spring, followed by significant reductions in COVID-19 cases in the summer months and a second wave in the fall. In Latin America and the Caribbean, COVID-19 epidemics in several countries peaked in the summer, corresponding to months with the highest influenza activity in the region. Countries from regions with less pronounced influenza activity, including South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, showed more heterogeneity in COVID-19 epidemics seen to date. However, similarities in COVID-19 and influenza trends were evident within select countries irrespective of region. CONCLUSIONS Ecological consistency in COVID-19 trends seen to date with influenza trends suggests the potential for shared individual, structural, and environmental determinants of transmission. Using a descriptive epidemiological framework to assess shared regional trends for rapidly emerging respiratory pathogens with better studied respiratory infections may provide further insights into the differential impacts of nonpharmacologic interventions and intersections with environmental conditions. Ultimately, forecasting trends and informing interventions for novel respiratory pathogens like COVID-19 should leverage epidemiologic patterns in the relative burden of past respiratory pathogens as prior information.

scholarly journals Human African Trypanosomiasis: Ethnomedical and Biomedical Relationships

2000 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Justin Brown
Keyword(s):  
Human African Trypanosomiasis ◽  
Explanatory Models ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
World Health ◽  
African Trypanosomiasis ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Biomedical Practitioners ◽  
Models Of Disease ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Relationship

Human African Trypanosomiasis (HAT) threatens more than 55 million people in sub-Saharan Africa. The focus of this paper is the relationship that exists between ethnomedical and biomedical practitioners regarding treatment of HAT. The relationship has been one of conflict. Biomedical practitioners have attempted to remove ethnomedicine from African society. This practice has been unsuccessful, especially in rural regions. Ethnomedical practitioners have adopted some aspects of biomedicine, but inadequate application and resources limit their efficacy. The biomedical community, including the World Health Organization, has not recognized the resource potential within ethnomedicine. An examination of the areas of conflict reveals differences in the explanatory models of disease causation and treatment methods. There has been some progress toward a cooperative model of healthcare, but most biomedical practitioners disregard ethnomedical techniques as primitive and ineffective. The conclusion of this paper presents a bleak future for the prevention and treatment of HAT in Africa. This future may be avoided with an increased level of cooperation and understanding between the two systems.

Pregnancy intention and gestational age at first antenatal care visit in Lesotho

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Paul Mkandawire ◽  
Joseph Kangmennaang ◽  
Chad Walker ◽  
Roger Antabe ◽  
Kilian Atuoye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Antenatal Care ◽  
Gestational Age ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Universal Coverage ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
World Health ◽  
Antenatal Visit ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Health Organization

Background/aims With coverage of antenatal care in sub-Saharan Africa approaching a universal level, attention is now turning to maximising the life-saving potential of antenatal care. This study assessed the gestational age at which pregnant mothers make their first antenatal visit in the context of high antenatal coverage in Lesotho. Methods For the purposes of this study, secondary data from the Demographic and Health Survey of 2014 was analysed. These data were collected in 2014, via an interviewer administered questionnaire. Survival analysis was applied to the data, using Stata SE 15 to compute time ratios that estimate time to first antenatal visit in Lesotho. Results Despite near universal coverage, only 24% of mothers start antenatal care before 12 weeks of gestation, as recommended by the World Health Organization. In addition, mothers with unwanted pregnancies are most likely to delay antenatal care until later in gestation, followed by mothers with mistimed pregnancies. Education, but not wealth, correlates with the start of antenatal care. Conclusions Having achieved near universal coverage, emphasising a prompt start and adherence to recommended visits could optimise the life-saving potential of antenatal care in Lesotho.

scholarly journals A Systematic Review of the Incremental Costs of Implementing a New Vaccine in the Expanded Program of Immunization in Sub-Saharan Africa

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 238146831989454
Author(s):  
Joe Brew ◽  
Christophe Sauboin
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Interquartile Range ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
World Health ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Vaccine Type ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Health Organization ◽  
The Cost

Background. The World Health Organization is planning a pilot introduction of a new malaria vaccine in three sub-Saharan African countries. To inform considerations about including a new vaccine in the vaccination program of those and other countries, estimates from the scientific literature of the incremental costs of doing so are important. Methods. A systematic review of scientific studies reporting the costs of recent vaccine programs in sub-Saharan countries was performed. The focus was to obtain from each study an estimate of the cost per dose of vaccine administered excluding the acquisition cost of the vaccine and wastage. Studies published between 2000 and 2018 and indexed on PubMed could be included and results were standardized to 2015 US dollars (US$). Results. After successive screening of 2119 titles, and 941 abstracts, 58 studies with 80 data points (combinations of country, vaccine type, and vaccination approach–routine v. campaign) were retained. Most studies used the so-called ingredients approach as costing method combining field data collection with documented unit prices per cost item. The categorization of cost items and the extent of detailed reporting varied widely. Across the studies, the mean and median cost per dose administered was US$1.68 and US$0.88 with an interquartile range of US$0.54 to US$2.31. Routine vaccination was more costly than campaigns, with mean cost per dose of US$1.99 and US$0.88, respectively. Conclusion. Across the studies, there was huge variation in the cost per dose delivered, between and within countries, even in studies using consistent data collection tools and analysis methods, and including many health facilities. For planning purposes, the interquartile range of US$0.54 to US$2.31 may be a sufficiently precise estimate.

scholarly journals The Coupling Coordination Relationship between Tourism Competitiveness and Economic Growth of Developing Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 2350
Author(s):  
Xia Wang ◽  
Danli Liu
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Entropy Weight ◽  
Developing Regions ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Entropy Weight Method ◽  
Weight Method ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
The Relationship

On the basis of the coupling coordination degree (CCD) model and information entropy weight method, this study examined the relationship between tourism competitiveness and economic growth of 56 developing countries from 2008 to 2017. The results show that: (1) the overall status of the CCD between tourism competitiveness and economic growth was in a state of unbalance that was mainly caused by the lag of economic growth, which demonstrates the important contribution of tourism in developing regions. (2) the CCD has been gradually improving since 2008, and the differences amongst the CCDs of developing countries have been shrinking and (3) the spatial distribution of the CCD between tourism competitiveness and economic growth has heterogeneity. Latin America & the Caribbean, and East Asia & the Pacific have the highest CCD, whereas Sub-Saharan Africa witnessed severely unbalanced development between tourism competitiveness and economic growth in 2008–2017.

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