scholarly journals The 2019 measles epidemic in Bosnia and Herzegovina: What is wrong with the mandatory vaccination program?

Author(s):  
Jurica Arapović ◽  
Željana Sulaver ◽  
Borko Rajič ◽  
Aida Pilav

Measles are a highly contagious and communicable viral disease which may be prevented by a sustained vaccination program. Due to missed vaccination, two major epidemics of measles (1997–1999 and 2014–2015) have been recorded after the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BH) with over 10,000 patients registered. According to the World Health Organization, BH is categorized as a country with endemic transmission of measles. The last measles epidemic was between 2014 and 2015, with 5,083 documented patients in the Federation of BH. In the first four months of 2019, more than 700 measles cases were registered in the same region. Significant transmission rate has been observed in Sarajevo Canton (SC) with 570 documented measles cases. Out of 570 measles cases in SC, 92.5% were unvaccinated. The most affected were children up to 6 years of age (62.8%), with one documented case of death (7-month old infant). In addition to this report, we discussed key stakeholders and possible circumstances responsible for the epidemic. The measles epidemic is still ongoing.

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nafisa Qibriya Khan ◽  
A. H. Farooqui ◽  
Syed Ayesha Fatima ◽  
Jalil Ahmad ◽  
Tausif S. Khan

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a pandemic disease of modern time with unique and rapid transmission rate and affected almost all the nations without respecting any border. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is arguably the biggest health crisis the world has faced in 21st century. It is an infectious disease and declared pandemic by the World Health Organization. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, which originated in Wuhan, China, has now spread to 192 countries and administrative regions infecting nearly 800,000 individuals of all ages as of 31 March 2020. Though most infected individuals exhibit mild symptoms including fever, upper respiratory tract symptoms, shortness of breath, and diarrhoea, or are asymptomatic altogether, severe cases of infection can lead to pneumonia, multiple organ failure, and death. Globally, at least 7900 deaths have been directly attributed to COVID19, and this number is expected to rise with the ongoing epidemic. This is particularly crucial as the current outbreak involves a new pathogen (SARS-CoV-2), on which limited knowledge exists of its infectivity and clinical profile. Research is in progress on therapeutic efficacy of various agents including anti-malarials (Chloroquine and Hydroxychloroquine), antiviral drugs, and convalescent serum of recovered patients. Unani system of medicine is one of the traditional systems of medicine which is being explored for providing preventive, supportive and rehabilitative care to patients. Unani system of medicine has a detailed description of drugs that are utilized in many infectious diseases, including respiratory infections. Immune response is essential to eliminate virus and to preclude disease progression to severe stages. Therefore, it is important to summarize the evidence regarding the preventive measures, control options such as immune-stimulator and prophylactic treatment in Unani medicine against Covid19. This review summarizes various pharmacological actions of Unani formulation Tiryaq-e-Arba in Unani literature and various reported pharmacological activities which can possibly provide prevention, control and reduction of complications of this deadly disease.


Author(s):  
Petter I. Andersen ◽  
Klara Krpina ◽  
Aleksandr Ianevski ◽  
Nastassia Shtaida ◽  
Eunji Jo ◽  
...  

Viruses are the major causes of acute and chronic infectious diseases in the world. According to the World Health Organization, there is an urgent need for better control of viral diseases. Re-purposing existing antiviral agents from one viral disease to another could play a pivotal role in this process. Here we identified novel activities of obatoclax and emetine against herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2), human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1), echovirus 1 (EV1), human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) in cell cultures. Moreover, we demonstrated novel activities of emetine against influenza A virus (FluAV), niclosamide against HSV-2, brequinar against HIV-1, and homoharringtonine against EV1. Our findings may expand the spectrum of indications of these safe-in-man agents and reinforce the arsenal of available antiviral therapeutics pending the results of further in vivo tests.


2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (4) ◽  
pp. 1511 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nícia Rosário-Ferreira ◽  
António J. Preto ◽  
Rita Melo ◽  
Irina S. Moreira ◽  
Rui M. M. Brito

Influenza (flu) is a contagious viral disease, which targets the human respiratory tract and spreads throughout the world each year. Every year, influenza infects around 10% of the world population and between 290,000 and 650,000 people die from it according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Influenza viruses belong to the Orthomyxoviridae family and have a negative sense eight-segment single-stranded RNA genome that encodes 11 different proteins. The only control over influenza seasonal epidemic outbreaks around the world are vaccines, annually updated according to viral strains in circulation, but, because of high rates of mutation and recurrent genetic assortment, new viral strains of influenza are constantly emerging, increasing the likelihood of pandemics. Vaccination effectiveness is limited, calling for new preventive and therapeutic approaches and a better understanding of the virus–host interactions. In particular, grasping the role of influenza non-structural protein 1 (NS1) and related known interactions in the host cell is pivotal to better understand the mechanisms of virus infection and replication, and thus propose more effective antiviral approaches. In this review, we assess the structure of NS1, its dynamics, and multiple functions and interactions, to highlight the central role of this protein in viral biology and its potential use as an effective therapeutic target to tackle seasonal and pandemic influenza.


Author(s):  
Angela Mary George ◽  
Daniel Manoj ◽  
Sowmya Ramani ◽  
Lalropuii . ◽  
Murugan Timiri Palani ◽  
...  

The World Health Organization has declared the outbreak of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. The alarming levels of spread and severity of the viral disease has resulted in significant morbidity and mortality. Women often face the highest risk of suffering devastating losses from the pandemic. Historically, women’s health has always been inadequately represented in responses to global outbreaks. Resources are often funnelled away from women’s health services towards targets perceived to be more important. Pregnant women with suspected, probable or confirmed COVID-19, should have access to obstetric and foetal medicine, neonatal care as well as mental health and psychosocial support, at facilities ready to tackle maternal and neonatal complications. In this article, we attempt to look at the challenges faced by gynaecologists because of this pandemic, and provide an overview on the current protocols in antenatal care, foetal care, childbirth, and oncological care.


POCUS Journal ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-28
Author(s):  
Sheena Bhimji-Hewitt MAppSc; DMS, CRGS, RDMS

Novel Corona Virus Disease-19 (nCov-19, COVID-19) was recognised as a pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. As of June 14, 2020, this contagious viral disease has afflicted 188 out of 195 countries in the world with 7,893,700 confirmed cases and 432,922 global deaths. Canada has 98,787 people infected and 8,146 deaths. COVID-19 is thought to transmit through contact, droplets and aerosolization. A rapid review showed limited information on the benefits of conducting lung ultrasound (LUS) versus chest radiograph (CXR) or studies correlating lung ultrasound to chest computed Tomography (CT) in patients positive for Covid-19. The literature review confirmed that CT and LUS cannot diagnose this disease, but that both can help in the management and staging of this disease. There is no literature to prove that LUS at the bedside may be beneficial from the view of decreased transmission to other health care workers and bystanders due to reduced transit but comparing the transit pathway and contact leads one to propose that this would be so. Pregnant patients with COVID-19, young children and patients in the reproductive stage would also benefit from LUS since there is no radiation dose and the critical patient in distress will benefit from testing at the bedside.


Epidemiologia ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 402-425
Author(s):  
Marjan Mohamadi ◽  
Yuling Lin ◽  
Mélissa Vuillet Soit Vulliet ◽  
Antoine Flahault ◽  
Liudmila Rozanova ◽  
...  

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in China was first reported to the World Health Organization on 31 December 2019, after the first cases were officially identified around 8 December 2019. However, the case of an infected patient of 55 years old can probably be traced back on 17 November. The spreading has been rapid and heterogeneous. Economic, political and social impacts have not been long overdue. This paper, based on English, French and Chinese research in national and international databases, aims to study the COVID-19 situation in China through the management of the outbreak and the Chinese response to vaccination strategy. The coronavirus disease pandemic is under control in China through non-pharmaceutical interventions, and the mass vaccination program has been launched to further prevent the disease and progressed steadily with 483.34 million doses having been administered across the country by 21 May 2021. China is also acting as an important player in the development and production of SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-59
Author(s):  
Peter Heidrich ◽  
Moritz Schäfer ◽  
Mostafa Nikouei ◽  
Thomas Götz

Since the end of 2019 an outbreak of a new strain of coronavirus, called SARS–CoV–2, is reported from China and later also from other parts of the world. Since 21 January 2020, World Health Organization (WHO) reports daily data on confirmed cases and deaths from both China and other countries [1]. The Johns Hopkins University [2] collects those data from various sources worldwide on a daily basis. For Germany, the Robert–Koch–Institute (RKI) also issues daily reports on the current number of infections and infection related fatal cases and also provides estimates of several disease-related parameters [3]. In this work we present an extended SEIRD–model to describe these disease dynamics in Germany. The model takes into account the susceptible, exposed, infected, recovered and deceased fractions of the population. Epidemiological parameters like the transmission rate, lethality or the detection rate of infected individuals are estimated by fitting the model output to available data. For the parameter estimation itself we compare two methods: an adjoint based approach and a Monte–Carlo based Metropolis algorithm.


Author(s):  
Théophile Uwiringiyeyezu ◽  
Bouchra El Khalfi ◽  
Rachid Saile ◽  
Jamal Belhachmi ◽  
Abdelaziz Soukri

CoViD-19 pandemic is a viral disease caused by SARS-COV-2virus and since December 2019, has spread rapidly in all the world countries; At the end of June 2020, over 10 million peoples were infected in the world and more than 500,000 deaths have been identified. Due to its fast transmission, the unavailability of drugs and vaccines and the asymptomatic patients who still spread the virus various measures were implemented to stop this virus. The studies were carried out to identify the molecular characteristics, transmission methods, origins, and all other clinical parameters necessary to eradicate it. The results have shown that CoViD-19 can be transmitted either animal-to-person or person-to-person by airborne. On March 11, 2020, world health organization (WHO) declared the CoViD-19 a pandemic, there, every concerned country has made the different health measures to stop the virus spread; the confirmed CoViD-19 patient undergoes the validation medicals diagnostics tests to follow specific treatments as time goes staying in quarantine room of the hospital to keep away from contact with others. To treat this pandemic, the world of medicine has tried with previous treatments of other viruses with encouraging results but of course, with doubts about the success of the therapeutic effectiveness and the scientific researches continue until the development of the therapeutic medicine and the Covid-19 specific vaccine. Today, the use of anti-inflammatory drugs was reported like chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine, the antiviral drugs like ritonavir, Lopinavir, ribavirin, and remdesivir and also the glycocorticoids hormones like dexaméthasone to the patients with severe CoViD-19. Different strains of this coronavirus infect humans, bats, and other mammals. Two strains of VOC-SARS have caused outbreaks of severe respiratory disease in humans: VOC-SARS, which caused an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) between 2002 and 2003, and VOC-SARS-2, which since late 2019 has caused a coronavirus disease pandemic 2019 (COVID-19). Even if today, there are not validated CoViD-19 drugs or vaccines. In This paper, we will talk about what we know until today on SARS-COV-2 and CoViD-19 pandemic particularly the clinical symptoms, transmissions ways, biological samples concerned by SARS-COV-2 infection, medicals laboratories parameters in CoViD-19 cases, medication and medicine and molecular diagnostics methods.


2018 ◽  
Vol 51 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-74
Author(s):  
Marta Custódio ◽  
Tânia Strecht ◽  
Jana Zelinová ◽  
Anabela Marques

Measles is a serious, highly contagious viral disease. The measles virus is a single-stranded, RNA virus of the genus Morbillivirus within the family Paramyxoviridae, transmitted by air, through droplets of aerosols or by direct contact with respiratory secretions of infected individuals. The infection is acquired through the mucosa of respiratory tract or conjunctiva. In 2005, the World Health Organization established that measles eradication in the European Region should be achieved by 2010, but despite the measures adopted by the various countries, measles re-emerged, with 10271 cases reported only in 2013 in 30 states of European Union, with more than 91% of them in Germany, Italy, Netherland and United Kingdom. In the beginning of 2017, Portugal was threatened with a measles outbreak, reporting in the first five months of the year 31 confirmed cases, 20 (65%) of them in adults (18 or older), of which 45% (13) were in health professionals. Because this measles outbreak had so many cases in adults, the authors decided to make a brief review, trying to remember an old infection, not so well known by younger doctors, and that can be overlooked in the approach of the adult patients. The authors also point out that measles virus could virtually be eradicated as there is an effective vaccine and there is no reservoir in nature for the virus other than humans.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tanweer Alam

Currently, the COVID‐19 has directly affected the millions of humans lives. The symptoms of the disease involving fever, malaise, chest infection, and breathing difficulties, were identified, and its existence is continuously becoming restructured. The World Health Organization (WHO) had mentioned the wide diagnostics test besides COVID-19 that would also assist medical facilities to recognize infectious diseases as well as currently focusing efficiently on preventing and afterward defeating this viral disease. The infection is usually transmitted among human beings in direct contact, greatest through the liquid bubbles generated through cough, sneeze, or speaking. This paper reviews the COVID 19 pandemic, its history, current updates, contact tracing applications, and use of emerging technologies like the Internet of Things (IoT) and Blockchain for stopping the spreading and provide service online to the patient from a distance.


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