At least one in seven youngsters has a mental disorder. That鈥檚 the warning from the UN World Health Organization (WHO), which has appealed for much greater investment to help almost 1.3 billion teenagers globally.
Categories: Global Health Feed
The UN Children鈥檚 Fund, UNICEF, issued an urgent appeal on Friday for nearly $59 million to support efforts to halt the rapid spread of mpox in six African countries including Burundi, where youngsters have been impacted the most.
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: The Sharp Bite of Inequity; Anesthesia Without Capnography: 鈥楲ike Flying Blind鈥; and Drunk Worms and Pigeon-Led Weapons
September 19, 2024
A man extracts venom from a poisonous snake at Queen Saovbha Memorial Institute, in Bangkok, on February 17, 2022. Matt Hunt/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty
The Sharp Bite of Inequity
Each year, ~5.4 million people worldwide are bitten by snakes鈥攌illing ~80,000, and leaving ~240,000 people with long-term or permanent disabilities, , recognizing today as International Snakebite Awareness Day.
The poorest and most isolated are particularly at risk: Most snakebites occur in rural areas of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, where antivenoms are scarce, .
Gross inequities: MSF鈥檚 Matthieu Chevallier of the gross inequities at play鈥攆rom the likelihood of encountering a venomous snake and being bitten to having protection like basic shoes and adequate shelter. There鈥檚 also the question of access to treatment.
鈥淎s soon as you are bitten, the clock starts ticking,鈥 he writes. Fast care is crucial鈥攂ut in places like northeastern , it takes ~12 hours to get to a clinic. And even if a victim makes it there, many facilities don鈥檛 have treatments available. In Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia less than a third of the facilities had antivenom on hand.
The details an ambitious plan to tackle the problem鈥攂ut it is still grossly underfunded. Support from the , one of the few funding sources, is set to end soon and no new donors have stepped up.
Why the funding shortage? For one thing, snakebite is not a health security threat for donor countries; there鈥檚 no risk of cross-border contamination. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The U.S. health system ranked dead last among 10 peer nations, 鈥攄espite the fact that Americans pay nearly double the amount that people in other nations pay.
Humor can be an effective way to reach people who would otherwise avoid life-saving information about colorectal cancer screening or other health messaging, .
The only two manufacturers still producing formula for premature infants are threatening to leave the market amid hundreds of lawsuits over safety labeling; the companies are being sued by families whose infants got sick or died after being given one of the formulas involved in a U.S. recall two and a half years ago.
The Los Angeles area is seeing more cases of dengue fever in people who haven鈥檛 left the U.S. mainland; public health officials said at least three people apparently became ill with dengue this month after being bitten by mosquitoes. GHN EXCLUSIVE A capnograph surgical monitoring device in a facility in Uganda. Muhwezi Davis, courtesy of SmileTrain / Lifebox. Anesthesia Without Capnography: 鈥楲ike Flying Blind鈥 鈥淭he color of her blood darkened. That鈥檚 how I knew that my patient was starved of oxygen,鈥 , recounting a harrowing incident when she was an anesthesia resident in Kenya, back in 2001, and the surgical team had trouble intubating the patient.
A simple device could have helped: Had the operating room been equipped with a capnograph鈥攁 noninvasive device that monitors how adequately a patient is breathing鈥攊t would have been clear immediately that the intubation tube wasn鈥檛 placed correctly. Administering anesthesia without it, says Gathuya, is 鈥渓ike flying blind.鈥
After a four-year lapse in routine vaccinations, a major catch-up campaign is underway in North Korea to protect against measles, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, tuberculosis, hepatitis B, and polio.
The country鈥檚 low vaccine coverage rate leaves kids vulnerable to severe illness and death from disease. It also greatly increases the risk of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Drunk Worms and Pigeon-Led Weapons: The Iggys Are Back!
Only one scientific awards ceremony feels like 鈥渁 mixture between Monty Python and The Muppet Show鈥: .
The annual gala鈥攁lso known as 鈥淭he Iggys鈥濃 aims to spur interest in science by making 鈥減eople laugh, then think,鈥 . While winners鈥 contributions are unusual, they are 鈥渘ot to be laughed at鈥r, not to be exclusively laughed at,鈥 explained organizer Karen Hopkin.
Among this year鈥檚 laureates, :
From dodgy deterrence deals to drug cartels: Aid barriers in the Dari茅n 鈥
Bulletproofing America鈥檚 Classrooms 鈥
MomConnect turns 10: Why the state could soon send flood and heatwave warnings to pregnant women 鈥
Today is the first Disabled Women鈥檚 Equal Pay Day 鈥
Q&A: Former NIH director Francis Collins on a Trump administration, science, and God 鈥
How do you help young Afghan refugees heal? A new program in Maine offers a way 鈥 Issue No. 2783
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Each year, ~5.4 million people worldwide are bitten by snakes鈥攌illing ~80,000, and leaving ~240,000 people with long-term or permanent disabilities, , recognizing today as International Snakebite Awareness Day.
The poorest and most isolated are particularly at risk: Most snakebites occur in rural areas of Asia, Africa, and Latin America, where antivenoms are scarce, .
Gross inequities: MSF鈥檚 Matthieu Chevallier of the gross inequities at play鈥攆rom the likelihood of encountering a venomous snake and being bitten to having protection like basic shoes and adequate shelter. There鈥檚 also the question of access to treatment.
鈥淎s soon as you are bitten, the clock starts ticking,鈥 he writes. Fast care is crucial鈥攂ut in places like northeastern , it takes ~12 hours to get to a clinic. And even if a victim makes it there, many facilities don鈥檛 have treatments available. In Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia less than a third of the facilities had antivenom on hand.
The details an ambitious plan to tackle the problem鈥攂ut it is still grossly underfunded. Support from the , one of the few funding sources, is set to end soon and no new donors have stepped up.
Why the funding shortage? For one thing, snakebite is not a health security threat for donor countries; there鈥檚 no risk of cross-border contamination. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners The U.S. health system ranked dead last among 10 peer nations, 鈥攄espite the fact that Americans pay nearly double the amount that people in other nations pay.
Humor can be an effective way to reach people who would otherwise avoid life-saving information about colorectal cancer screening or other health messaging, .
The only two manufacturers still producing formula for premature infants are threatening to leave the market amid hundreds of lawsuits over safety labeling; the companies are being sued by families whose infants got sick or died after being given one of the formulas involved in a U.S. recall two and a half years ago.
The Los Angeles area is seeing more cases of dengue fever in people who haven鈥檛 left the U.S. mainland; public health officials said at least three people apparently became ill with dengue this month after being bitten by mosquitoes. GHN EXCLUSIVE A capnograph surgical monitoring device in a facility in Uganda. Muhwezi Davis, courtesy of SmileTrain / Lifebox. Anesthesia Without Capnography: 鈥楲ike Flying Blind鈥 鈥淭he color of her blood darkened. That鈥檚 how I knew that my patient was starved of oxygen,鈥 , recounting a harrowing incident when she was an anesthesia resident in Kenya, back in 2001, and the surgical team had trouble intubating the patient.
A simple device could have helped: Had the operating room been equipped with a capnograph鈥攁 noninvasive device that monitors how adequately a patient is breathing鈥攊t would have been clear immediately that the intubation tube wasn鈥檛 placed correctly. Administering anesthesia without it, says Gathuya, is 鈥渓ike flying blind.鈥
- Capnography has been widely used in operating rooms in high-income countries for over 30 years; it helped lower anesthesia-related complications and deaths dramatically after it was introduced in the U.S. in 1991.
- However, most operating rooms in Kenya still do not have a capnograph; in many low-income countries, the device is not available at all.
After a four-year lapse in routine vaccinations, a major catch-up campaign is underway in North Korea to protect against measles, rubella, tetanus, diphtheria, tuberculosis, hepatitis B, and polio.
The country鈥檚 low vaccine coverage rate leaves kids vulnerable to severe illness and death from disease. It also greatly increases the risk of vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks.
- By the numbers: 7,200 UNICEF-trained health workers will administer vaccines to 800,000 children and 120,000 pregnant women.
ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Drunk Worms and Pigeon-Led Weapons: The Iggys Are Back!
Only one scientific awards ceremony feels like 鈥渁 mixture between Monty Python and The Muppet Show鈥: .
The annual gala鈥攁lso known as 鈥淭he Iggys鈥濃 aims to spur interest in science by making 鈥減eople laugh, then think,鈥 . While winners鈥 contributions are unusual, they are 鈥渘ot to be laughed at鈥r, not to be exclusively laughed at,鈥 explained organizer Karen Hopkin.
Among this year鈥檚 laureates, :
- A Japanese team that discovered many mammals can breathe through their anuses.
- A Dutch-French team that used chromatography to separate drunk and sober worms.
- American psychologist B.F Skinner, posthumously awarded for attempting to use pigeons to guide missile flight paths.
From dodgy deterrence deals to drug cartels: Aid barriers in the Dari茅n 鈥
Bulletproofing America鈥檚 Classrooms 鈥
MomConnect turns 10: Why the state could soon send flood and heatwave warnings to pregnant women 鈥
Today is the first Disabled Women鈥檚 Equal Pay Day 鈥
Q&A: Former NIH director Francis Collins on a Trump administration, science, and God 鈥
How do you help young Afghan refugees heal? A new program in Maine offers a way 鈥 Issue No. 2783
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health or Johns Hopkins University.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
The report details how this debt crisis is jeopardising progress aimed at ending AIDS in Sub-Saharan African countries, which account for a significant majority of people living with HIV globally 鈥 25.9 million people of the nearly 40 million total.
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: The Purdue Playbook鈥檚 International Influence; Hope Amid South Africa鈥檚 Heroin Epidemic; and Risk Reduction Starts at Home
September 18, 2024
The Purdue Playbook鈥檚 International Influence
While Purdue Pharma is bankrupt and facing a torrent of litigation in the U.S., its global counterparts are still profiting in the hundreds of millions from opioid sales, a joint investigation by a collaboration of journalistic publications in eight countries has found, .
Overview: The multinational company Mundipharma made $531 million in profits from nine of its companies in Europe and Australia between 2020 and 2022 alone.
The XEC COVID variant is quickly gaining traction and could become the dominant subvariant over the winter months, scientists project.
Trachomatous trichiasis鈥攁 condition where inward-turned eyelashes scratch the front of the eye and potentially cause blindness鈥攃an successfully be treated by two common types of eyelid surgery, a published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases has found.
Moderate caffeine consumption was found to be associated with a lower risk of developing cardiometabolic multimorbidity (the coexistence of at least two cardiometabolic diseases), per a new published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. OPIOID CRISIS Hope Amid South Africa鈥檚 Heroin Epidemic
Heroin usage has exploded across South Africa, with ~400,000 using the drug every day.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES WILDFIRES Risk Reduction Starts at Home
Wildfire risk reduction often focuses on forests鈥攂ut houses are sources of fuel for fires, too, and better building practices could lower risk.
The United States Isn't Ready for a Bird Flu Epidemic 鈥
Evidence growing for COVID antivirals to cut poor outcomes, long COVID, experts say 鈥
Chronic Illness and Quality of Life 5 Years After Displacement Among Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh 鈥
Second vote, same result: Senate Republicans block IVF protection bill 鈥
FIFA teams up with WHO on global concussion campaign 鈥
Should young kids take the new anti-obesity drugs? What the research says 鈥
鈥業mmortal鈥 creatures may reveal clues to contagious cancers 鈥 Issue No. 2782
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
While Purdue Pharma is bankrupt and facing a torrent of litigation in the U.S., its global counterparts are still profiting in the hundreds of millions from opioid sales, a joint investigation by a collaboration of journalistic publications in eight countries has found, .
Overview: The multinational company Mundipharma made $531 million in profits from nine of its companies in Europe and Australia between 2020 and 2022 alone.
- Among the beneficiaries: The Sackler family, which owns Mundipharma鈥攁nd which faces ongoing litigation over Purdue鈥檚 alleged role in the U.S. opioid crisis.
- In Germany: Mundipharma sponsored a patients group that encourages opioid use.
- In Brazil: The company paid doctors to hold classes on treating pain.
- In China: An internal company investigation raised concerns that scientific advisory boards were promoting products.
- In Italy: Prosecutors have accused Mundipharma managers of paying kickbacks to doctors.
The XEC COVID variant is quickly gaining traction and could become the dominant subvariant over the winter months, scientists project.
Trachomatous trichiasis鈥攁 condition where inward-turned eyelashes scratch the front of the eye and potentially cause blindness鈥攃an successfully be treated by two common types of eyelid surgery, a published in PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases has found.
Moderate caffeine consumption was found to be associated with a lower risk of developing cardiometabolic multimorbidity (the coexistence of at least two cardiometabolic diseases), per a new published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. OPIOID CRISIS Hope Amid South Africa鈥檚 Heroin Epidemic
Heroin usage has exploded across South Africa, with ~400,000 using the drug every day.
- Between 2011 and 2020, the rate of opioid-related disorders rose by 12% a year, found.
- Instead of a rehab model, the (COSUP) offers drop-in centers, where people who use heroin can access methadone and counseling.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES WILDFIRES Risk Reduction Starts at Home
Wildfire risk reduction often focuses on forests鈥攂ut houses are sources of fuel for fires, too, and better building practices could lower risk.
- Older homes with wooden roofs, decks, or framing are more likely to catch fire and ignite surrounding houses.
- New homes built after 2008 in California were 40% less likely to burn down.
- Currently, California, Nevada, and Utah are the only states with mandatory wildfire risk building codes.
The United States Isn't Ready for a Bird Flu Epidemic 鈥
Evidence growing for COVID antivirals to cut poor outcomes, long COVID, experts say 鈥
Chronic Illness and Quality of Life 5 Years After Displacement Among Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh 鈥
Second vote, same result: Senate Republicans block IVF protection bill 鈥
FIFA teams up with WHO on global concussion campaign 鈥
Should young kids take the new anti-obesity drugs? What the research says 鈥
鈥業mmortal鈥 creatures may reveal clues to contagious cancers 鈥 Issue No. 2782
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
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You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Join HHS Asst. Secretary Micky Tripathi at a Hopkins-Harvard Event: AI in D.C.
September 17, 2024
You鈥檙e Invited: Making AI a Lifesaver / A Hopkins-Harvard Event in D.C.
Please join U.S. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Micky Tripathi and other experts for a thought-provoking discussion about creating the best possible artificial intelligence for public health. You鈥檙e invited on October 8 to an evening of insights, conversation, and refreshments at the new Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., sponsored by Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health magazine, Global Health NOW, and Harvard Public Health.
Policy, research, and private sector experts will explore AI鈥檚 astonishing potential to transform how we confront public health challenges鈥攁nd its technical, ethical, and privacy risks.
Details: Tuesday, October 8
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Please join U.S. Health and Human Services Assistant Secretary Micky Tripathi and other experts for a thought-provoking discussion about creating the best possible artificial intelligence for public health. You鈥檙e invited on October 8 to an evening of insights, conversation, and refreshments at the new Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg Center in Washington, D.C., sponsored by Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health magazine, Global Health NOW, and Harvard Public Health.
Policy, research, and private sector experts will explore AI鈥檚 astonishing potential to transform how we confront public health challenges鈥攁nd its technical, ethical, and privacy risks.
- Micky Tripathi, assistant secretary for Technology Policy; national coordinator for Health Information Technology; and acting chief artificial intelligence officer, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
- Jesse M.鈥疎hrenfeld, immediate past president, American Medical Association.
- Elizabeth Stuart, PhD, Frank Hurley and Catharine Dorrier Professor and Chair, Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
- John Auerbach, senior vice president, ICF; and former commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
- Moderator: Alison Snyder, managing editor, Axios.
Details: Tuesday, October 8
- 6鈥7 p.m.: Networking reception
- 7鈥8 p.m.: Panel and Q&A
- 8鈥8:30 p.m.: Dessert
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
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You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Early Warning Systems Vital for Kenya; Immunizations Halted in Afghanistan; and Looking to Soccer to Solve Scientist Compensation
September 17, 2024
GHN EXCLUSIVE REPORT
Children at Nduru camp are often left alone during the day as their parents look for food. Nduru camp, Kisimu City, Kenya. August 16, 2024. Scovian Lillian
Early Warning Systems Vital for Climate Risk Preparedness in Kenya
KISIMU CITY, Kenya鈥擬onths after last April鈥檚 floods, clusters of white tarp shelters, crammed onto an acre of land in southwestern Kenya, still house ~1,000 families displaced by the disaster.
Critical gender gaps persist in all 17 of the Sustainable Development Goals, that says governments are missing out on massive economic gains by failing to invest in women and girls; e.g., the global cost of inadequately educating young people exceeds $10 trillion a year.
UC Santa Barbara researchers mapped the changes to a woman鈥檚 brain during pregnancy and post-partum, finding major changes including reductions in gray matter (not necessarily bad); the study kicks off a larger project the researchers hope could yield important clues about post-partum depression.
There is evidence of human exposure to at least 3,600 chemicals that leach into food in the manufacturing, processing, packaging, and storage of food supply, 鈥攖he first to systematically link the chemicals used in materials to package and process foods to human exposure. VACCINES Immunizations Halted in Afghanistan
The Taliban have suspended polio vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan鈥攁 devastating setback that could undo years of progress toward polio eradication, UN officials said Monday. The move comes at a time when groups of unvaccinated children have been exposed to an outbreak.
The Taliban鈥檚 decision will likely have major repercussions for neighboring countries. In August, the WHO warned that setbacks in Afghanistan pose a risk to Pakistan鈥檚 program, due to high population movement.
Related:
Two killed in attack on Pakistani polio vaccination team 鈥
Taliban begins enforcing new draconian laws, and Afghan women despair 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS Looking to Soccer to Solve Scientist Compensation
As the Paris Peace Forum began rethinking pandemic preparedness, it hit on a glaring disparity:
Scientists in South Africa and Botswana who first identified the omicron variant of COVID-19 ended up 鈥渓ast in line鈥 to obtain the medical tools that resulted from their research.
To fix that, the Forum suggests looking to an unlikely model: FIFA.
QUICK HITS For people with opioid addiction, Medicaid overhaul comes with risks 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Dave Cundiff!
Abortion bans have delayed emergency medical care. In Georgia, experts say this mother's death was preventable 鈥
The plan to give WHO's snake venom strategy more bite 鈥
Arizona cracked down on Medicaid fraud that targeted Native Americans. It left patients without care. 鈥
Mpox and breastmilk: for once, can we act in time? 鈥
Why global health organizations are hiring chief AI officers 鈥 Issue No. 2781
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
KISIMU CITY, Kenya鈥擬onths after last April鈥檚 floods, clusters of white tarp shelters, crammed onto an acre of land in southwestern Kenya, still house ~1,000 families displaced by the disaster.
- The floods left a trail of death, displacement, and disease across large swaths of the country, .
- Flooding destroyed latrines and created poor water and sanitation conditions that fueled the spread of infectious diseases; Tana River County alone .
- Including early warning weather indicators, especially during flooding, would allow authorities to better anticipate outbreaks of waterborne diseases like cholera and vector-borne diseases like malaria following disasters, the authors say.
- Shore up labs, equipment, health information systems, and networks.
- Train local health workers to detect early signs of health crises caused by flooding and respond swiftly鈥攅.g., by preemptively distributing cholera kits, mosquito nets, and other resources to reduce the impact of potential outbreaks.
Critical gender gaps persist in all 17 of the Sustainable Development Goals, that says governments are missing out on massive economic gains by failing to invest in women and girls; e.g., the global cost of inadequately educating young people exceeds $10 trillion a year.
UC Santa Barbara researchers mapped the changes to a woman鈥檚 brain during pregnancy and post-partum, finding major changes including reductions in gray matter (not necessarily bad); the study kicks off a larger project the researchers hope could yield important clues about post-partum depression.
There is evidence of human exposure to at least 3,600 chemicals that leach into food in the manufacturing, processing, packaging, and storage of food supply, 鈥攖he first to systematically link the chemicals used in materials to package and process foods to human exposure. VACCINES Immunizations Halted in Afghanistan
The Taliban have suspended polio vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan鈥攁 devastating setback that could undo years of progress toward polio eradication, UN officials said Monday. The move comes at a time when groups of unvaccinated children have been exposed to an outbreak.
- Afghanistan and Pakistan are currently the only countries in which the paralyzing has never been eliminated.
- The WHO confirmed 18 polio cases in Afghanistan this year鈥攗p from six in 2023.
The Taliban鈥檚 decision will likely have major repercussions for neighboring countries. In August, the WHO warned that setbacks in Afghanistan pose a risk to Pakistan鈥檚 program, due to high population movement.
Related:
Two killed in attack on Pakistani polio vaccination team 鈥
Taliban begins enforcing new draconian laws, and Afghan women despair 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES PANDEMIC PREPAREDNESS Looking to Soccer to Solve Scientist Compensation
As the Paris Peace Forum began rethinking pandemic preparedness, it hit on a glaring disparity:
Scientists in South Africa and Botswana who first identified the omicron variant of COVID-19 ended up 鈥渓ast in line鈥 to obtain the medical tools that resulted from their research.
To fix that, the Forum suggests looking to an unlikely model: FIFA.
- The international soccer federation has a benefit-sharing plan that 鈥渞ewards grassroots contributions and redistributes benefits, promoting a fair balance of interests across diverse economic contexts,鈥 a of the model鈥檚 potential explains.
QUICK HITS For people with opioid addiction, Medicaid overhaul comes with risks 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Dave Cundiff!
Abortion bans have delayed emergency medical care. In Georgia, experts say this mother's death was preventable 鈥
The plan to give WHO's snake venom strategy more bite 鈥
Arizona cracked down on Medicaid fraud that targeted Native Americans. It left patients without care. 鈥
Mpox and breastmilk: for once, can we act in time? 鈥
Why global health organizations are hiring chief AI officers 鈥 Issue No. 2781
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Missouri H5N1: More Questions Than Answers; Compounding Crisis in the Dari茅n Gap; and The (Gorilla) Doctor Is In
September 16, 2024
University of Massachusetts Boston assistant professor Nichola Hill, who studies infectious diseases, including bird flu, on May 7, in Boston. Suzanne Kreiter/The Boston Globe via Getty
Missouri H5N1: More Questions Than Answers
The source of a human H5 avian flu case in Missouri is still unknown鈥攖hough initial genetic testing suggests it's related to the strain of virus currently affecting dairy cattle in the U.S., CDC officials have said, .
If you鈥檙e one of them, the best way you can show your support is by sharing our . Let colleagues and friends know that GHN can help them:
A wild poliovirus case has been detected in Pakistan, and 15 additional positive environmental samples were reported in the country鈥攕uggesting 鈥渨idespread circulation鈥 of the virus and that Pakistan is 鈥渘ot on track鈥 to interrupt transmission.
The WHO prequalified its , MVA-BN, and established an 鈥渁ccess and allocation mechanism鈥 to ensure that countermeasures including vaccines, treatments, and tests are distributed 鈥渆ffectively and equitably.鈥
An Austrian court has found a 54-year-old woman guilty of grossly negligent homicide after infecting her neighbor with a fatal case of COVID-19. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Compounding Crisis in the Dari茅n Gap
The dense rainforest of the Dari茅n Gap has long been considered inaccessible, shielding Indigenous communities and the region鈥檚 rich biodiversity from outside impact.
But the surge of migration through the region over the last five years has brought unprecedented pollution to the rainforest鈥攖hreatening the local ecosystem and the health of people who depend on it, community leaders say.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CLIMATE Trees as Treatment
Planting trees in urban areas has known climate benefits: cooling, pollution control, and stormwater absorption.
But what does it do for human health?
University of Louisville researchers are starting to answer that question, with the recently released 鈥斺渁 clinical trial where trees are the medicine.鈥
PHARMACEUTICALS The (Gorilla) Doctor Is In
Plants consumed by 鈥渟elf-medicating鈥 gorillas in Gabon have antibacterial and antioxidant properties and may yield promising clues to developing new drugs,.
QUICK HITS Nurses working in fear: BBC visits mpox epicentre 鈥
Breaking the conformity of global health 鈥
1 in 7 moms in SA are teens. We dive into the numbers 鈥
New Report Highlights U.S. 2022 Gun-Related Deaths: Firearms Remain Leading Cause of Death for Children and Teens, and Disproportionately Affect People of Color 鈥
She Ate a Poppy Seed Salad Just Before Giving Birth. Then They Took Her Baby Away. 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner!
Gas stoves may soon come with a tobacco-style health warning label in California 鈥
HHS updates rules for probing research misconduct 鈥
New Version of Reth茅 Project to Promote African Scientific Writing 鈥
Barcelona children find safety in numbers as they bike to school in herds 鈥 Issue No. 2780
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
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Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
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You can or .
The source of a human H5 avian flu case in Missouri is still unknown鈥攖hough initial genetic testing suggests it's related to the strain of virus currently affecting dairy cattle in the U.S., CDC officials have said, .
- The investigation has shown no evidence of human-to-human spread and no link to raw dairy products. So far, there has been no unusual rise in Missouri鈥檚 flu activity.
- But: The CDC Friday that a household contact of the H5-positive Missouri patient also became ill on the same day鈥攖hough the second person was not tested, and the cause of the illness is unknown, .
- A lack of universal testing of dairy farms means scientists still don鈥檛 know the true scope of the spread, .
If you鈥檙e one of them, the best way you can show your support is by sharing our . Let colleagues and friends know that GHN can help them:
- Keep up with essential global health news.
- Learn from global health leaders around the world and get ideas for advancing global health causes.
- Network and learn about career-advancing opportunities.
A wild poliovirus case has been detected in Pakistan, and 15 additional positive environmental samples were reported in the country鈥攕uggesting 鈥渨idespread circulation鈥 of the virus and that Pakistan is 鈥渘ot on track鈥 to interrupt transmission.
The WHO prequalified its , MVA-BN, and established an 鈥渁ccess and allocation mechanism鈥 to ensure that countermeasures including vaccines, treatments, and tests are distributed 鈥渆ffectively and equitably.鈥
An Austrian court has found a 54-year-old woman guilty of grossly negligent homicide after infecting her neighbor with a fatal case of COVID-19. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Compounding Crisis in the Dari茅n Gap
The dense rainforest of the Dari茅n Gap has long been considered inaccessible, shielding Indigenous communities and the region鈥檚 rich biodiversity from outside impact.
But the surge of migration through the region over the last five years has brought unprecedented pollution to the rainforest鈥攖hreatening the local ecosystem and the health of people who depend on it, community leaders say.
- 鈥淪uddenly we found ourselves flooded with trash. It鈥檚 worrying because we depend on our local ecosystem for everything. It鈥檚 our source of life,鈥 said Yenairo Aji, a community leader in the village of Nueva Vig铆a.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CLIMATE Trees as Treatment
Planting trees in urban areas has known climate benefits: cooling, pollution control, and stormwater absorption.
But what does it do for human health?
University of Louisville researchers are starting to answer that question, with the recently released 鈥斺渁 clinical trial where trees are the medicine.鈥
- Researchers followed 700+ residents across a four-square-mile area where ~8,000 trees and shrubs were planted.
- Residents of greened neighborhoods had 13%鈥20% lower levels of a blood marker of general inflammation compared to residents of neighborhoods without new greenery.
PHARMACEUTICALS The (Gorilla) Doctor Is In
Plants consumed by 鈥渟elf-medicating鈥 gorillas in Gabon have antibacterial and antioxidant properties and may yield promising clues to developing new drugs,.
- The researchers focused on four trees consumed by western lowland gorillas that local healers highlighted for potential medicinal benefits.
- All four trees showed antibacterial activity against E. coli strains, as well as high levels of antioxidants.
QUICK HITS Nurses working in fear: BBC visits mpox epicentre 鈥
Breaking the conformity of global health 鈥
1 in 7 moms in SA are teens. We dive into the numbers 鈥
New Report Highlights U.S. 2022 Gun-Related Deaths: Firearms Remain Leading Cause of Death for Children and Teens, and Disproportionately Affect People of Color 鈥
She Ate a Poppy Seed Salad Just Before Giving Birth. Then They Took Her Baby Away. 鈥 Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner!
Gas stoves may soon come with a tobacco-style health warning label in California 鈥
HHS updates rules for probing research misconduct 鈥
New Version of Reth茅 Project to Promote African Scientific Writing 鈥
Barcelona children find safety in numbers as they bike to school in herds 鈥 Issue No. 2780
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
Overcrowded shelters in Gaza, a lack of running water and the constant threat of disease are making conditions worse by the day for people in the enclave, the UN agency for Palestine refugees, UNRWA, warned on Monday.
Categories: Global Health Feed
The civil war in Sudan has brought to country鈥檚 health system to its knees. UN mobile health teams are attempting to plug the gaps, crossing conflict zones to help pregnant women to give birth in safety.
Categories: Global Health Feed
Around 560,000 children under ten have been successfully vaccinated against polio during the first round of an emergency campaign in the Gaza Strip, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Friday.
Categories: Global Health Feed
The World Health Organization (WHO) has approved the use of an mpox vaccine for the first time, which it says should facilitate 鈥渢imely and increased access鈥 for millions at risk in Africa where the latest outbreak has infected more than 20,000 so far this year.
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Pesticide Bans Slow Suicides in Nepal; New Tickborne Virus Discovered in China; and Nacho Average Side Effect
September 12, 2024
Pesticide Bans Slow Suicides in Nepal
A few years ago, pesticides鈥攐r 鈥減lant medicines,鈥 as the locals called them鈥攚ere used in roughly a third of Nepal鈥檚 suicides.
鈥淲hat if the pesticide had not been on the market?鈥 wondered one doctor, Rakesh Ghimire, recognizing that most suicides are impulsive, and the chemicals were too easily available.
The eye-opening turning point: Ghimire helped launch a ban on the sale and import of eight pesticides in 2019. Deaths began to fall鈥攂y as much as 30% by 2023.
It鈥檚 not just Nepal: Globally, pesticide consumption is linked to ~140,000 suicide deaths each year鈥攎ost in LMICs, 鈥渨here the toxins can still be bought in small bottles for just a few pence in local shops.鈥
More women opted for tubal ligations after the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, based on insurance claims data鈥攁nd states that banned abortion showed the largest rise in the procedure, 3% each month.
India鈥檚 expanded health coverage will provide people 70 and older with annual coverage of $6,000 per family鈥攁 plan expected to benefit 60 million citizens.
An NIH-funded database is slated to shut down this weekend, cutting off access to molecular information on parasites and fungi that cause a range of infectious diseases, from malaria to Chagas disease; parasitologists and vector biologists say planned replacements are inadequate and critical research will suffer. TICKBORNE ILLNESSES New Tickborne Virus Discovered in China
In June 2019, a patient with a fever and organ dysfunction reported being bitten by a tick in a wetland park in Inner Mongolia, in northeastern China.
Researchers conducted next-generation sequencing to determine the origin, revealing a new tickborne illness called Wetland virus (WELV), earlier this month.
Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner! GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MATERNAL HEALTH Delivering with Dignity ... for All
Despite policies to safeguard the rights of people with disabilities in Malawi, pregnant women with disabilities suffer extra challenges鈥攚ith mistreatment, miscommunication, and discrimination affecting their access to care.
Related: I'm Embarrassed to Admit I Have No Idea How to Care for Patients With Disabilities 鈥 ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Nacho Average Side Effect
The magical powers of Doritos dust are well-known to those of us who have polished off a bag鈥檚 finger-licking orange remnants鈥攂ut 鈥渪-ray vision鈥 has not typically been on the list.
Until now: In a head-spinning (and stomach-spinning) new published in Science, scientists demonstrated how the same dye used in Doritos and other snacks鈥擸ellow No. 5, also known as tartrazine鈥攃an render mice skin temporarily transparent, giving scientists a window into pulsing vessels and organs beneath.
Thanks for the tip, Xiaodong Cai!
Related: US cave system鈥檚 bats and insects face existential threat: discarded Cheetos 鈥 QUICK HITS The midwives who stopped murdering girls and started saving them 鈥
How a Maine County Jail Helped Prisoners Blunt Opioid Cravings 鈥
How a Video Game Community Became a Mental Health Support System for Military Veterans 鈥
Estimate: COVID vaccines saved up to 2.6 million lives in Latin America, Caribbean 鈥
Suspicious phrases in peer reviews point to referees gaming the system 鈥
The clown doctor will see you now 鈥 and you鈥檒l get better, quicker 鈥 Issue No. 2779
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
A few years ago, pesticides鈥攐r 鈥減lant medicines,鈥 as the locals called them鈥攚ere used in roughly a third of Nepal鈥檚 suicides.
鈥淲hat if the pesticide had not been on the market?鈥 wondered one doctor, Rakesh Ghimire, recognizing that most suicides are impulsive, and the chemicals were too easily available.
The eye-opening turning point: Ghimire helped launch a ban on the sale and import of eight pesticides in 2019. Deaths began to fall鈥攂y as much as 30% by 2023.
It鈥檚 not just Nepal: Globally, pesticide consumption is linked to ~140,000 suicide deaths each year鈥攎ost in LMICs, 鈥渨here the toxins can still be bought in small bottles for just a few pence in local shops.鈥
- After phasing out or banning dangerous pesticides, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and South Korea all saw suicides linked to the hazardous products fall dramatically鈥攚ithout damaging agricultural yields.
- Most countries in the West鈥攚here most pesticide manufacturers are based鈥攈ave already banned or restricted use of potentially lethal pesticides.
- Ghimire and others developed the country鈥檚 first treatment guidelines, which led to Nepal鈥檚 first Poison Information Center鈥攁 Brown University-funded effort that provides a 24/7 advice hotline for health workers across Nepal.
- Also needed: more mental health services鈥攁nd erasing stigma.
More women opted for tubal ligations after the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade, based on insurance claims data鈥攁nd states that banned abortion showed the largest rise in the procedure, 3% each month.
India鈥檚 expanded health coverage will provide people 70 and older with annual coverage of $6,000 per family鈥攁 plan expected to benefit 60 million citizens.
An NIH-funded database is slated to shut down this weekend, cutting off access to molecular information on parasites and fungi that cause a range of infectious diseases, from malaria to Chagas disease; parasitologists and vector biologists say planned replacements are inadequate and critical research will suffer. TICKBORNE ILLNESSES New Tickborne Virus Discovered in China
In June 2019, a patient with a fever and organ dysfunction reported being bitten by a tick in a wetland park in Inner Mongolia, in northeastern China.
Researchers conducted next-generation sequencing to determine the origin, revealing a new tickborne illness called Wetland virus (WELV), earlier this month.
- People infected with WELV most commonly 鈥減resented with nonspecific symptoms, including fever, dizziness, headache, malaise, myalgia, arthritis, and back pain,鈥 the researchers report, per .
- Since identifying the new virus, researchers have collected and analyzed thousands of ticks and tested hundreds of animals and people for the virus.
Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner! GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MATERNAL HEALTH Delivering with Dignity ... for All
Despite policies to safeguard the rights of people with disabilities in Malawi, pregnant women with disabilities suffer extra challenges鈥攚ith mistreatment, miscommunication, and discrimination affecting their access to care.
- Myths, such as women with disabilities having different biology, perpetuate false stereotypes.
- Patients with disabilities鈥攅specially speech and hearing impairments鈥攐ften must rely on friends and guardians to communicate due to a lack of medical professionals trained to meet their needs.
- Infrastructure such as bathrooms, ambulances, and labor wards are not special needs-friendly, providing little privacy.
Related: I'm Embarrassed to Admit I Have No Idea How to Care for Patients With Disabilities 鈥 ALMOST FRIDAY DIVERSION Nacho Average Side Effect
The magical powers of Doritos dust are well-known to those of us who have polished off a bag鈥檚 finger-licking orange remnants鈥攂ut 鈥渪-ray vision鈥 has not typically been on the list.
Until now: In a head-spinning (and stomach-spinning) new published in Science, scientists demonstrated how the same dye used in Doritos and other snacks鈥擸ellow No. 5, also known as tartrazine鈥攃an render mice skin temporarily transparent, giving scientists a window into pulsing vessels and organs beneath.
- 鈥淚t鈥檚 not magic, but it鈥檚 still very powerful,鈥 said biophotonics researcher Christopher Rowlands.
- When skin absorbs the dye, it changes how blue wavelengths are refracted by the animal tissues.
Thanks for the tip, Xiaodong Cai!
Related: US cave system鈥檚 bats and insects face existential threat: discarded Cheetos 鈥 QUICK HITS The midwives who stopped murdering girls and started saving them 鈥
How a Maine County Jail Helped Prisoners Blunt Opioid Cravings 鈥
How a Video Game Community Became a Mental Health Support System for Military Veterans 鈥
Estimate: COVID vaccines saved up to 2.6 million lives in Latin America, Caribbean 鈥
Suspicious phrases in peer reviews point to referees gaming the system 鈥
The clown doctor will see you now 鈥 and you鈥檒l get better, quicker 鈥 Issue No. 2779
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
The UN Children鈥檚 Fund (UNICEF) is stepping up lifesaving support to the Congolese Government to protect children under 15 from mpox, who account for around 60 per cent of suspected cases and 80 per cent of deaths in the African nation so far this year.
Categories: Global Health Feed
More than 22,500 people 鈥 a quarter of those wounded in Gaza since Israel鈥檚 offensive began 鈥 have life-changing injuries, requiring rehabilitation services 鈥渘ow and for years to come鈥, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) reported on Thursday.
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Abortion Takes Center Stage in U.S. Presidential Debate; Tragic Consequences of 鈥楾he Switch鈥; and Baaa-d Lettuce to Blame
September 11, 2024
Former U.S. President Donald Trump and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris at last night's presidential debate in Philadelphia. Doug Mills/The New York Times/Bloomberg via Getty
Abortion Takes Center Stage in U.S. Presidential Debate
Reproductive rights were a central鈥攁nd incendiary鈥攖opic at the first presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump Tuesday night, .
Harris roundly criticized Trump for his role in overturning Roe v. Wade and condemned state-level abortion bans, sharing stories of pregnant women unable to access critical care, .
Other health points:
On the Affordable Care Act: While Trump again expressed interest in overturning the health law, he described having only 鈥渃oncepts of a plan鈥 to replace it, .
Healthy Black women in the U.S. were ~20% more likely to receive unnecessary, unscheduled C-sections than white women with similar medical histories鈥攅specially when operating rooms were unbooked鈥攑er based on 1 million births in New Jersey hospitals.
Most people over age 70鈥攅ven those without a history of cardiovascular disease鈥攕hould consider taking statins, according to that linked the cost-effective treatment to better health outcomes for that age group.
Early puberty in girls may be triggered by an endocrine-disrupting chemical compound found in a wide variety of cosmetic and cleaning products, according to published in Endocrinology. POLIO Tragic Consequences of 鈥楾he Switch鈥
The polio outbreak now prompting an emergency vaccination campaign in Gaza stemmed from 鈥渁 fateful decision鈥 in 2016 by global health organizations to change the oral polio vaccine.
The intent: The move, dubbed 鈥渢he switch,鈥 involved removing the Type 2 virus from the vaccine to prevent the rare risk of vaccine-derived polio.
How it backfired: Problems in the execution of the vaccine鈥檚 rollout left more children vulnerable to poliovirus Type 2. Cases of vaccine-derived Type 2 polio have increased 10X since before 2016, affecting dozens of countries and paralyzing 3,300+ children.
A formal evaluation has now called the move 鈥渁n unqualified failure.鈥
Related: Polio vaccination starts in north Gaza despite obstacles 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CANCER Tribes Seek Answers
As cancer cases proliferate on the remote Duck Valley Indian Reservation, leaders of the Shoshone-Paiute tribes living there are demanding answers from the U.S. government about chemicals that could have contributed to 鈥渨idespread illness.鈥
Questions About Agent Orange: Toxins have been found in the reservation鈥檚 soil, and petroleum is in the groundwater. But the recent discovery of a decades-old document has raised more fears:
Meanwhile: The tribal health clinic has logged 500+ illnesses since 1992 that could be cancer.
CLIMATE CRISIS & FOOD SAFETY Baaa-d Lettuce to Blame
Lettuce contaminated by sheep feces was the likely source of a 2022 outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, U.K. public health officials say.
A found that climate change鈥搑elated heavy rainfall and flooding washed the feces into lettuce fields. Investigators found no failures by the lettuce grower.
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Reproductive rights were a central鈥攁nd incendiary鈥攖opic at the first presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump Tuesday night, .
Harris roundly criticized Trump for his role in overturning Roe v. Wade and condemned state-level abortion bans, sharing stories of pregnant women unable to access critical care, .
- She pledged that if Congress passed a bill reviving abortion protections, she would 鈥減roudly sign it into law鈥 if elected president.
- He falsely claimed that most legal scholars wanted Roe overturned.
Other health points:
On the Affordable Care Act: While Trump again expressed interest in overturning the health law, he described having only 鈥渃oncepts of a plan鈥 to replace it, .
- Harris, meanwhile, pledged to expand drug pricing reforms and to 鈥渕aintain and grow the Affordable Care Act,鈥 .
Healthy Black women in the U.S. were ~20% more likely to receive unnecessary, unscheduled C-sections than white women with similar medical histories鈥攅specially when operating rooms were unbooked鈥攑er based on 1 million births in New Jersey hospitals.
Most people over age 70鈥攅ven those without a history of cardiovascular disease鈥攕hould consider taking statins, according to that linked the cost-effective treatment to better health outcomes for that age group.
Early puberty in girls may be triggered by an endocrine-disrupting chemical compound found in a wide variety of cosmetic and cleaning products, according to published in Endocrinology. POLIO Tragic Consequences of 鈥楾he Switch鈥
The polio outbreak now prompting an emergency vaccination campaign in Gaza stemmed from 鈥渁 fateful decision鈥 in 2016 by global health organizations to change the oral polio vaccine.
The intent: The move, dubbed 鈥渢he switch,鈥 involved removing the Type 2 virus from the vaccine to prevent the rare risk of vaccine-derived polio.
How it backfired: Problems in the execution of the vaccine鈥檚 rollout left more children vulnerable to poliovirus Type 2. Cases of vaccine-derived Type 2 polio have increased 10X since before 2016, affecting dozens of countries and paralyzing 3,300+ children.
A formal evaluation has now called the move 鈥渁n unqualified failure.鈥
Related: Polio vaccination starts in north Gaza despite obstacles 鈥 GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES CANCER Tribes Seek Answers
As cancer cases proliferate on the remote Duck Valley Indian Reservation, leaders of the Shoshone-Paiute tribes living there are demanding answers from the U.S. government about chemicals that could have contributed to 鈥渨idespread illness.鈥
Questions About Agent Orange: Toxins have been found in the reservation鈥檚 soil, and petroleum is in the groundwater. But the recent discovery of a decades-old document has raised more fears:
- In the 1997 document, government officials mention using Agent Orange chemicals to clear foliage along widely used reservation canals.
Meanwhile: The tribal health clinic has logged 500+ illnesses since 1992 that could be cancer.
CLIMATE CRISIS & FOOD SAFETY Baaa-d Lettuce to Blame
Lettuce contaminated by sheep feces was the likely source of a 2022 outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, U.K. public health officials say.
A found that climate change鈥搑elated heavy rainfall and flooding washed the feces into lettuce fields. Investigators found no failures by the lettuce grower.
- The tainted lettuce sickened 259 people, 75 of them requiring hospitalization, in August and September 2022.
- 鈥淣ew techniques could help to predict and prevent future outbreaks and inform risk assessments and risk management for farmers growing fresh produce for people to eat.鈥
Bird Flu Is Quietly Getting Scarier 鈥
Deadlier drugs, younger addiction and no help in sight 鈥
White House announces rule that would cut insurance red tape over mental health and substance use disorder care 鈥
Perceptions of HIV self-testing promotion in black barbershop businesses: implications for equitable engagement of black-owned small businesses for public health programs 鈥
Diabetes drug helps the immune system recognize reservoirs of HIV, study discovers 鈥
Apple Will Sell Air Pods With Hearing Aids Built In 鈥
Whatever happened to ... the Brazilian besties creating an mRNA vaccine as a gift to the world 鈥
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
Six staff members with the UN agency that assists Palestine refugees, UNRWA, were killed in Gaza on Wednesday when two Israeli airstrikes hit a school-turned-shelter and its surroundings.
Categories: Global Health Feed
The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, appealed on Wednesday for $21.4 million to urgently scale up health services for forcibly displaced people in African countries impacted by mpox.
Categories: Global Health Feed
96
Global Health NOW: Lockdowns鈥 Effects on Teenage Brain Development; 鈥楧eadliest Year鈥 for Aid Workers; and Dangers Percolating at Fur Farms
September 10, 2024
A teenager unable to attend school because of COVID-19 tries to entertain herself on April 11, 2020, in New Canaan, CT. Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty
Lockdowns鈥 Effects on Teenage Brain Development
During pandemic lockdowns, teenage brains鈥攅specially girls鈥 brains鈥攁ged much faster than expected, per a Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences .
Caveats and questions: The study size was small. And, the accelerated thinning could have been caused by many other conditions during that time鈥攁 rise in screen time, social media usage, less physical activity, and more family stress, Bradley S. Peterson, a Children鈥檚 Hospital Los Angeles psychiatrist and brain researcher not involved in the study, told the NYT. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Abortion policies and legislation in states with the most severe restrictions on the procedure also have the least access to reproductive health care and support programs for pregnant women, a new finds; Northwestern University School of Medicine researchers analyzed insurance data for the study.
A South Korean commission that hospitals, maternity wards, and adoption agencies in the country colluded to coerce parents鈥攎ostly single mothers鈥攊nto giving up their children for adoption to Australia, Denmark, and the U.S., among other countries.
COVID survivors with disabilities experienced 2X the rates of long COVID compared to those without disabilities鈥攐ver 40% compared to 19%, by University of Kansas researchers in the American Journal of Public Health.
More Americans are inclined to believe COVID-19 vaccination misinformation, and are less willing to vaccinate, according to a new Annenberg Public Policy Center health survey that found over 20% of Americans incorrectly believe that getting a COVID-19 infection is safer than getting the vaccine鈥攗p from 10% in April 2021. ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE Nobody Is Safe
Deaths from drug-resistant infections are predicted to number over 10 million a year by 2050.
In most immediate danger: The ill, young, elderly, and those living in poverty.
But everyone is at risk, as a troubling set of profiles reveals:
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ATTACKS ON AID WORKERS 鈥楧eadliest Year鈥 for Humanitarian Workers
An ambulance driver in Ethiopia, shot while driving to the hospital.
A volunteer in Sudan gunned down while collecting data.
A paramedic killed while evacuating wounded civilians from the West Bank.
These workers are among the killed globally in 2024 in what is tracking toward the 鈥渄eadliest year ever for aid workers鈥 amid growing disregard for international protections.
Areas of high risk: Gaza, Sudan, and South Sudan accounted for most of the deaths.
SPILLOVER Dangers Percolating at Fur Farms
A host of novel viruses have been detected at fur farms in China鈥攊ncluding a 鈥渃oncerning鈥 new bat coronavirus, a new published in Nature finds.
A closer look: After analyzing samples from 461 dead animals, including raccoon dogs, mink, and guinea pigs.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Polio vaccination starts in north Gaza despite obstacles 鈥
Poliovirus that infected a Chinese child in 2014 may have leaked from a lab 鈥
More support is needed for more than 4.2 million refugees and migrants who seek safety and stability in the Americas 鈥
Officials await testing clues from Missouri H5 avian flu case as Michigan reports more affected cows 鈥
Dobbs Has Fundamentally Changed Obstetric Care, Study Finds 鈥
Native-led suicide prevention program focuses on building community strengths 鈥 Issue No. 2777
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
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During pandemic lockdowns, teenage brains鈥攅specially girls鈥 brains鈥攁ged much faster than expected, per a Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences .
- University of Washington researchers used MRI scans from 160 nine- to 17-year-olds to measure cortical thinning鈥攌nown to accelerate in stressful times, and linked to depression and anxiety, .
- Comparing 2018 scans to follow-up scans from the same cohort in 2021 and 2022, boys showed cortical thinning 1.4 years faster than expected鈥攂ut girls were 4.2 years ahead of expectations, .
Caveats and questions: The study size was small. And, the accelerated thinning could have been caused by many other conditions during that time鈥攁 rise in screen time, social media usage, less physical activity, and more family stress, Bradley S. Peterson, a Children鈥檚 Hospital Los Angeles psychiatrist and brain researcher not involved in the study, told the NYT. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners Abortion policies and legislation in states with the most severe restrictions on the procedure also have the least access to reproductive health care and support programs for pregnant women, a new finds; Northwestern University School of Medicine researchers analyzed insurance data for the study.
A South Korean commission that hospitals, maternity wards, and adoption agencies in the country colluded to coerce parents鈥攎ostly single mothers鈥攊nto giving up their children for adoption to Australia, Denmark, and the U.S., among other countries.
COVID survivors with disabilities experienced 2X the rates of long COVID compared to those without disabilities鈥攐ver 40% compared to 19%, by University of Kansas researchers in the American Journal of Public Health.
More Americans are inclined to believe COVID-19 vaccination misinformation, and are less willing to vaccinate, according to a new Annenberg Public Policy Center health survey that found over 20% of Americans incorrectly believe that getting a COVID-19 infection is safer than getting the vaccine鈥攗p from 10% in April 2021. ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE Nobody Is Safe
Deaths from drug-resistant infections are predicted to number over 10 million a year by 2050.
In most immediate danger: The ill, young, elderly, and those living in poverty.
But everyone is at risk, as a troubling set of profiles reveals:
- In Pakistan, 25-year-old Naveed contracted a hospital-acquired infection following emergency surgery; and 47-year-old Malik faced amputation after a roadside cut on his foot left him with an infection that would not heal.
- In Nigeria, 9-day-old Ahamba fought a life-threatening infection that started hours after birth.
- In the U.S., 39-year-old Tamara developed a series of urinary tract infections that no longer responded to antibiotics.
GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ATTACKS ON AID WORKERS 鈥楧eadliest Year鈥 for Humanitarian Workers
An ambulance driver in Ethiopia, shot while driving to the hospital.
A volunteer in Sudan gunned down while collecting data.
A paramedic killed while evacuating wounded civilians from the West Bank.
These workers are among the killed globally in 2024 in what is tracking toward the 鈥渄eadliest year ever for aid workers鈥 amid growing disregard for international protections.
- 101 aid workers have been wounded and 68 have been kidnapped.
Areas of high risk: Gaza, Sudan, and South Sudan accounted for most of the deaths.
SPILLOVER Dangers Percolating at Fur Farms
A host of novel viruses have been detected at fur farms in China鈥攊ncluding a 鈥渃oncerning鈥 new bat coronavirus, a new published in Nature finds.
A closer look: After analyzing samples from 461 dead animals, including raccoon dogs, mink, and guinea pigs.
- The scientists identified 125 different virus species, including 36 new pathogens.
- Of the viruses detected, 39 were deemed to have 鈥渉igh spillover potential.鈥
- Among those: A dangerous new bat coronavirus called HKU5, found in a mink.
OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Polio vaccination starts in north Gaza despite obstacles 鈥
Poliovirus that infected a Chinese child in 2014 may have leaked from a lab 鈥
More support is needed for more than 4.2 million refugees and migrants who seek safety and stability in the Americas 鈥
Officials await testing clues from Missouri H5 avian flu case as Michigan reports more affected cows 鈥
Dobbs Has Fundamentally Changed Obstetric Care, Study Finds 鈥
Native-led suicide prevention program focuses on building community strengths 鈥 Issue No. 2777
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, Jackie Powder, Aliza Rosen, and Rin Swann. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on and follow us on Instagram and X .
Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues:
Want to change how you receive these emails? You can or . -->
Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can or .
Categories: Global Health Feed
The UN Middle East envoy has strongly condemned deadly airstrikes by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) on Tuesday on a densely populated area in an Israeli-designated humanitarian zone in Gaza.
Categories: Global Health Feed
