Author: alphyjuma

By Gift Briton As the world marks Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) Day, celebrated annually on January 30th to raise awareness and garner support to end these diseases, experts offer insights on how countries can unite and act to eliminate them. These diseases are responsible for the suffering of approximately 1.62 billion people in the world’s most vulnerable communities with Africa accounting for 40% of the global burden, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Globally, 50 countries have eliminated at least one NTD, 21 of which are African countries. However, systemic barriers and structural inequalities impedes efforts in achieving the 2030 elimination goal.…

By Gift Briton Several cases of emerging malaria parasites have been reported in different parts of Africa over the last decade with the latest being in the Central region of Ghana. Scientists warn that emerging malaria parasites could sabotage the 2030 malaria elimination goal, thereby calling on countries to boost active surveillance of new parasitic infections and to implement the World Health Organization’s (WHO) malaria elimination guidelines including conducting mass testing, mass treatment, and mass relapse prevention, if the goal is to be achieved. In Ghana, a recent research study titled: Molecular speciation of Plasmodium and multiplicity of P. falciparum infection…

By Sharon Atieno Though tetanus continues to be a substantial cause of maternal and neonatal mortality in many Sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries, the rate of vaccine uptake among pregnant mothers remains low. This is according to a research study published in the PLOS Journal of Medicine titled “Prevalence and correlates of tetanus toxoid uptake among women in sub-Saharan Africa: Multilevel analysis of demographic and health survey data.” Despite antenatal tetanus vaccination reducing neonatal mortality by 94% if the majority of childbearing-age women are immunized, the study found that the prevalence uptake of tetanus toxoid- a vaccine that is given during pregnancy to…

By Gift Briton The efforts to eliminate malaria disease have received a major boost following the official launch of routine malaria vaccination in Africa with Cameroon becoming the first country to do so. In November 2023, Cameroon received over 330,000 doses of the World Health Organization (WHO) approved RTS, S vaccine from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, with an additional over 650,000 doses to be delivered in 2024. The malaria vaccines will be administered, in a four-dose schedule, to all children aged between five months and five years. It will be given to children across the 42 malaria-endemic districts in Cameroon. However,…

By Clifford Akumu The Kenyan Government has been advised to ensure health systems are disease outbreak-resilient and to future-proof them against poor service delivery likely to dent maternal and child health outcomes. This is according to a newly published research report by experts from the African Institute for Development Policy (AFIDEP) in the BMJ Public Health, an international, open access and peer-reviewed journal, titled Assessing the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on maternal healthcare usage: evidence from routine health data in Kenya and Ethiopia. The team, led by Michael Give Chipeta, Senior Research and Policy Analyst at the AFIDEP says that such epidemics as COVID-19…

By Gift Briton With nearly five in ten Africans still lacking access to health care, the establishment of VillageReach’s continental regional hub in Nairobi, Kenya is expected to optimize the organization’s efforts to reduce health inequities in the region. VillageReach is a global nonprofit organization headquartered in the United States that works especially with African governments to solve healthcare delivery challenges in low-resource communities. The organization aims to address healthcare inequities for over 350 million people globally by 2030. The Africa regional hub will be critical in reaching more people across the continent and reflects on the organization’s commitment to…

With aflatoxin, a cancer-causing substance, contaminating grains and posing a serious concern for food safety and trade, Kenya has received two state-of-the-art decontamination plants to deal with the issue. The facilities worth CA$ 1.6 million (approximately Ksh190 million) were handed over to the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depots in Bungoma and Nairobi by the Canadian Government through TradeMark Africa (TMA). The introduction of these decontamination units in Kenya, a first in commercial use in Africa, is significant as they can eliminate up to 98% of aflatoxins in food commodities like grains, pulses, and nuts. The selection of Western…

By Sharon Atieno Though bats have been linked to various diseases globally including Ebola, Marburg, Nipah, Hendra, Middle East respiratory coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and COVID-19 among others, human interference in most instances have contributed significantly to these transmissions. Speaking during a Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA) biodiversity café in Nairobi, Kenya, Bernard Agwanda, research scientist and curator, National Museums of Kenya called for the need to avoid such interferences to prevent the occurrence of spillover events (spread of virus from the bats to human beings). He observed that bats have many viruses but very few are transmitted to…

Outbreaks Newsletter -July 2023 Outbreaks in the African region – update Brazzaville- There are currently 145 ongoing disease outbreaks and health emergencies due to humanitarian crises in the region reported to World Health Organization (WHO). Over the past month, 5 new emergency events have been reported, including Dengue fever in Ivory Coast, Poliomyelitis (cVDPV2) in Kenya and suspected Anthrax in Ghana. WHO and partners are supporting governments to respond to 125 disease outbreaks. The Organization is also supporting response to 20 humanitarian crises triggered by conflict and/or natural disasters. In the past month, 12 outbreaks have been controlled, including Marburg Virus Disease  in Tanzania and Equatoria Guinea, Lassa Fever in Guinea, and Rift Valley Fever in Niger.   —————————————————————————————————————–Stepping…

Transforming postpartum hemorrhage treatment with Uterine Balloon Tamponade By Pauline Achieng Tom Lilian Achieng Omondi, 28, from Kosinyo village in Siaya County experienced excessive bleeding throughout her first two pregnancies which would stop upon receiving an oxytocin injection. However, during her most recent birth, the bleeding would not stop despite receiving the same injection leading her to lose consciousness. Lilian was suffering from postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) which contributes to 287,000 deaths in Kenya alone. This is 34 percent of overall maternal deaths. To plug the existing gaps in PPH care in Kenya, Kisumu Medical and Education Trust (KMET) a Non-governmental…