More than two million travelers checked at 37 points of entry — airports, river ports, and border crossings — between the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries. More than six thousand people who had contact with the sick, including health workers, or with others who had contact with them, vaccinated. Three different investigational treatment […]
Health-care worker infections add to Ebola challenge in Congo – The challenges arising when a new Ebola outbreak surfaces in an area where the virus hasn’t been seen before include the exposure of frontline health workers without experience in necessary detection and protection measures. The resulting infections among medical staff who are needed most and […]
With Ebola confirmation in seven health workers, hospital staff of 74 on leave, replaced, WHO leader says With 57 apparent Ebola cases — 30 of which are confirmed — and 41 deaths so far from the outbreak that was recognized in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province two weeks ago, the toll of […]
Sustained US preparedness needed for Ebola and other pan-epidemic threats – Dr. Daniel Lucey of Georgetown University’s O’Neil Institute is familiar both with the on-the-ground obstacles to preventing the spread of disease with pandemic potential, and the on-the-ground consequences of delayed or inadequate responses. Having completed two volunteer stints caring for patients during the 2013-2016 […]
Ebola vaccine deployment reflects progress, need for ongoing strides in surveillance, laboratory resources, training Research toward the development of an Ebola vaccine had languished for more than a decade when the gravity of the outbreak in West Africa was recognized in 2014. Although the virus, and its potential to spread quickly and devastatingly in remote […]
“Tracking a deadly high threat pathogen across a war zone” puts response “at the top of the degree of difficulty scale” Risk of global spread remains low The context of the Ebola outbreak just announced in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s North Kivu province is “very different” from the context of the outbreak just declared […]
Two years after recognition of the dangers posed by Zika virus infection during pregnancy, and two years after the waning days of the most devastating Ebola outbreak yet seen, new findings about the impacts of the diseases continue to emerge. Four newborns with paralyzed chest muscles and twisted joints as well as microcephaly, and lab […]
Potential for spread, effective intervention highlighted importance of building local capacities The Democratic Republic of Congo had experienced eight previous Ebola virus outbreaks when the most recent emergence of the disease was confirmed there in early May, and hard-earned lessons from the past supplied much of the knowledge that drove the swift response that followed. […]
The following is a guest post by Olivier Kakesa, MPH, of MEASURE Evaluation The Democratic Republic of Congo government’s response to the outbreak of Ebola in the country’s northwest Bikoro, Equatuer province includes mobilization of national epidemiological experts and local health staff to deal with the outbreak, vaccinating key personnel — such as health workers […]
A World Health Organization-convened committee examining the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo concluded today that the current conditions of the outbreak do not constitute an international health emergency, but do continue to pose significant challenges that could warrant revisiting the question. WHO Director General Tedros Ghebreyesus called for the committee to weigh […]
HIV
The following is a guest post By Sharon Weir, Ph.D. of MEASURE Evaluation For almost 35 years, HIV/AIDS has been a household word across the globe. […]
Tuberculosis
The following is a guest post by Stephanie Mullen, DrPH, and Jim Thomas, PhD of MEASURE Evaluation USAID announced September 26 a new approach to fight […]
Research & Development
A trial to test the safety of, and immune response prompted by, the latest candidate for a vaccine to protect against Zika virus infection has begun […]
Policy
In July 2018, the arrival in Lagos, Nigeria of a man sick with Ebola represented a pivotal moment in the crisis that already was ravaging families, […]