NHIS not panacea to quality healthcare delivery - Dr Issah Nov 14, 2008
There are also 122 other patients on treatment and 433 people have joined each other to form 12 associations of people living with HIV/AIDS," Dr Issah told the students. The HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the region is 3.3 per cent while that of Wa Municipality is 5.8 per cent, a sentinel survey carried out in 2007 between September and October indicated. Dr Issah indicated that tuberculosis posed a big challenge in diagnosis and treatment due to lack of laboratories and equipment in some of the... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Fact Sheet: White House Summit on International Development Oct 21, 2008
Dr. Uche Amazigo, Director, World Health Organization African Programme for Onchocerciasis (river blindness) Control. 3:15 pm. (White House News Releases)
7.4 million Ghanaians may go blind if... Oct 10, 2008
Currently, there are about 220,000 Ghanaians blinded through various other causes such as trachoma, onchocerciasis (river blindness) childhood blindness, refractive errors and low vision. Glaucoma occurs when the optic nerve at the back of the eye is slowly destroyed due to increased pressure inside the eye. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Inadequate human resource, impediment to health care delivery- Expert Aug 10, 2008
" The jubilee lectures, which had the theme: "GMA at 50: Ghana's Health" aimed at deepening its advocacy and policy dialogue in its quest to promote good health among people of Ghana and its commitment to the development and maintenance of the highest standards of health care delivery in the country. Prof. Akosa noted the need for more research in the health centre adding, " The work we all do, the NHIS and the health policy 2007-2011 must all be underpinned by research". He said with the... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Nigeria Health Minister urges action on Visions 2020, 20-2020Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - Nigeria's Health Minister Hassan MuhammadLawal has challenged health stakeholders to fast-track measurestowardsmaking Nigeria a healthy nation and a leading economy by 2020. 01/08/2008 Full Text... Aug 1, 2008
Trachoma and onchocerciasis (river blindness), two of the "Neglected Tropical Diseases" together, account for 4% of blindness being more important in some areas of the country than in other parts of the country. In addition to the blind, there are another three million people in Nigeria whose vision is inadequate for normal functioning. (Panapress.com)
Blindness In Old Age May Be Triggered By Hyperactive Immune Resistance Jul 25, 2008
ScienceDaily (July 25, 2008) Age-dependent macular degeneration (AMD) is the commonest cause of blindness in the western industrialised nations. Hereditary changes in the regulation of the immune system influence the risk of contracting AMD.. (Science Daily)
AfDB Approves U.S. $ 24.5 Million for Onchocerciasis Control Program in Africa Jul 16, 2008
5 Million for Onchocerciasis Control Program in Africa ... 5 Million for Onchocerciasis Control Program in Africa ... 5 million to finance Phase II and the phasing out stage of the Onchocerciasis (river blindness) Control Programme (APOC) in 19 African countries. (allAfrica.com)
Experts advocate multiple intervention approach for disease controlAddis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) - A three-day international meeting ofdisease control experts has ended here with participants advocatingtheintegration and co-implementation approach in dealing with NeglectedTropical Diseases (NTDs) and Malaria control interventions. 29/06/2008 Full Text... Jun 29, 2008
In one of its recommendations, this first follow-up meeting on Integration of Onchocerciasis (river blindness) Control into National Health Systems and Co-implementation of NTDs with some components of Malaria control, which took place at the Hilton Hotel, Addis Ababa, 25-27 June 2008, called on countries "to adopt the Community-Directed Intervention (CDI) strategy for scaling up integration and co-implementation of NTDs with malaria control interventions to increase access of hard-to-reach... (Panapress.com)
Benin: The End of River Blindness May 9, 2008
When, in 1994, international agencies and the government first conducted a survey in Benin for river blindness, also known by the medical term onchocerciasis, between 25 percent and 98 percent of people were found to have it ... Onchocerciasis is an insect-borne disease caused by the parasite onchocerca volvulus with is transmitted by various species of blackflies of the Simulium genus ... But onchocerciasis is still a major cause of blindness in many other African countries with the result that... (allAfrica.com)
Samba prescribes recipe against food crisis in AfricaOuagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - To survive the looming globalhunger tsunami, Africa must embrace the 3Rs - "re-agriculturalise,re-Africanise and re-democratise," according to Dr. Ebrahim MalickSamba, the 1992 co-laureate of the Africa Prize for Leadership,awarded by the New York-based Hunger project. 04/05/2008 Full Text... May 4, 2008
Before his retirement in 2004 after 10 years as Regional Director of the Brazzaville-based WHO/AFRO, the Gambian surgeon had headed the Burkina Faso-based Onchocerciasis Control Programme (OCP) for West Africa for 14 years from 1981, leading a successful campaign against river blindness in the politically restive sub-region. Apart from putting the parasitic, black fly-transmitted disease under control in 11 onchocerciasis-endemic West African countries, the OCP also increased the income of... (Panapress.com)
APOC advocates community empowerment to meet health MDGs in AfricaOuagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - African communities, especially thepoor and those in the hard-to-reach areas, shouldbe empowered to manage their own health delivery systems if thecontinent is to achieve the health Millennium Development Goals(MDGs) by 2015, Dr. Uche Veronica Amazigo, the Director of the WHOAfrican Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC), said here. 02/05/2008 Full Text... May 2, 2008
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso (PANA) - African communities, especially the poor and those in the hard-to-reach areas, should be empowered to manage their own health delivery systems if the continent is to achieve the health Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by 2015, Dr. Uche Veronica Amazigo, the Director of the WHO African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control (APOC), said here ... The community-directed treatment with ivermectin, which was launched in 1997, two years after APOC's inception, had... (Panapress.com)
World Health Day marked Apr 8, 2008
He said WHO had also supported the formulation of ethical and evidence-based health policies and strategies, both global and national health and disease specific like malaria, HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis, integrated disease surveillance and response, maternal and child health, non-communicable diseases, health promotion and nutrition, guinea worm and buruli ulcer, vaccine preventable diseases and onchocerciasis. Dr Saweka assured Ghana of WHO's continuous technical support in health related... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Meeting Ghana's First Female Scientist - Dr Letitia Obeng Mar 20, 2008
For her thesis, Dr Obeng investigated into the life cycle of the Simulium fly popularly called the black fly, which transmitted the worm that caused onchocerciasis or river blindness. This made her the first Ghanaian female to obtain a PhD in Simuliidae from the Liverpool University in the United Kingdom Letitia's love for water and the environment is amply demonstrated without one being told as soon as one entered her compound and her living room. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
USAID Fights Neglected Tropical Diseases Feb 23, 2008
The initiative will build on U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) investments in NTDs control and will target seven major diseases: lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis); schistosomiasis (snail fever); trachoma (eye infection); onchocerciasis (river blindness); and three soil-transmitted helminthes (hookworm, roundworm, and whipworm). Approximately one billion people, mostly in the developing world, suffer from one or more NTDs. (PR Newswire)
Fact Sheet: Fighting Neglected Tropical Diseases Around The World Feb 20, 2008
This Initiative will make a total of $350 million available over five years to provide integrated treatment of more than 300 million people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and target seven major NTDs: lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis); schistosomiasis (snail fever); trachoma (eye infection); onchocerciasis (river blindness); and three soil-transmitted helminthes (STHs hookworm, roundworm, whipworm). This investment increases the United States' commitment to NTDs from $15 million in 2008 to... (White House News Releases)
The Rwanda Cure Feb 15, 2008
Merck (nyse: - - )'s 20-year-program to donate its antiparasitic ivermectin has helped treat 530 million cases of onchocerciasis (river blindness), spread by black flies in some parts of Africa; it has prevented 40,000 cases of blindness per year. Cases of Guinea worm, a parasite that slowly burns through the skin, are down from 3. (Forbes)
River Blindness Parasite Shows Signs Of Resistance To Only Effective Drug Feb 2, 2008
1, 2008) Onchocerciasis is an infection caused by Onchocerca volvulus, a parasite nematode worm transmitted to humans by a species of black fly of the Simulium genus whose larvae develop in fast-flowing rivers ... Ivermectin, a medicine capable of killing the parasite embryos (the microfilariae) circulating in the organism of patients and temporarily interrupting the nematode's reproduction, is the only treatment used for onchocerciasis control ... Since 1995, the African Programme for... (Science Daily)
Poor Americans Suffer Hidden Burden Of Parasitic And Other Neglected Diseases Jan 2, 2008
1, 2008) Large numbers of the poorest Americans living in the United States are suffering from some of the same parasitic infections that affect the poor in Africa, Asia, and Latin America, says the Editor-in-Chief of PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. In an article entitled "Poverty and Neglected Diseases in the 'Other' America," Professor Peter Hotez (George Washington University and the Sabin Vaccine Institute) says that there is evidence that the parasitic diseases toxocariasis, cysticercosis... (Science Daily)
Neglected tropical diseases burden those overseas, but travelers also at risk Dec 26, 2007
Though little known to most Americans, lymphatic filariasis, trachoma, leishmaniasis, onchocerciasis, schistosomiasis and other so-called neglected tropical diseases are responsible for severe health burdens, especially among the worlds poorest people ... The researchers found that filarial infections responsible for such diseases as onchocerciasis (river blindness), lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis) and loiasis (African eyeworm illness) made up 271 (0. (EurekAlert!)
Cte d'Ivoire: River Blindness is Back Dec 25, 2007
The World Health Organization (WHO) in 2002 closed its West Africa programme to eliminate river blindness, or onchocerciasis, as a public health threat ... 29 percent of under-five children there suffer from onchocerciasis ... "These results show that the situation has become alarming in these zones, where the disease had been eradicated," Health Minister Remi Allah Kouadio told reporters on 19 December, following an onchocerciasis conference in Brussels. (allAfrica.com)
Parasitic Tropical Diseases In The Americas -- A Legacy Of Slavery -- Can Be Eliminated Nov 27, 2007
26, 2007) Although it has been speculated for more than a century that the slave trade was responsible for bringing many tropical diseases to the Americas, only recently has convincing evidence shown that lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis), schistosomiasis, and onchocerciasis (river blindness) originated in this way ... "Lymphatic filariasis, schistosomiasis, and onchocerciasis were most likely imported to the Americas through transportation of millions of persons from sub-Saharan Africa to... (Science Daily)
Medical researchers urged not to compromise quality Oct 13, 2007
Dr Thomas Kruppa, Director of KCCR, said the Centre was at the forefront of filariasis research revolutionizing the treatment of onchocerciasis and elephantiasis, adding that, the Centre had been selected as one of the 8 centres in Africa to participate in the clinical development of the promising malaria vaccine, which if proved successful would save millions of children's lives in Africa. The Centre was also building up capacity into clinical research with the aim of testing drugs and vaccines... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Divergence receives $734,000 NIH grant Sep 25, 2007
Another filarial parasite-caused disease, onchocerciasis or river blindness, is a major cause of infectious blindness. "Filarial infections cause substantial human morbidity, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia," James McCarter, Divergence's president and chief scientific officer, said in a statement. (St. Louis Business Journal, MO)
Genetic Code Of Parasitic Worm That Causes Elephantiasis Revealed Sep 22, 2007
The WHO also estimates that about half a million people around the world have lost their vision due to onchocerciasis, or river blindness, which is caused by another type of filarial parasite. "Filarial diseases are treatable, but the current treatments were discovered decades ago," says NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D. "There is an urgent need for new discoveries in this area because of the limitations of the current drugs, including toxicities and the development of resistance." The B.... (Science Daily)
More Problems For Flood Victims Sep 20, 2007
Bolgatanga -- THE predicament of people living in the flood-hit areas of the three northern regions has worsened with the influx of black flies, the tiny insects which cause river blindness or onchocerciasis, the multi-sectoral damage-assessment team from Accra has found. The black fly, locally called "behn" is currently common in the Upper East Region, especially in areas between the Red and White Volta Rivers along the Bolgatanga, Bawku road. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Special Security Camp for Bui Sep 13, 2007
Mr. Baffour Awuah said this during the launching of the Bui Disinfestation Project being executed by Zoomlion Ghana Limited, a private Waste and Sanitation Management Company, the National Secretariat of the Onchocerciasis with funding from the Ministry of Finance, at Bongaase in the Tain District. The project is aimed at riding the area of black flies and create a congenial atmosphere for workers and residents during and after the construction of the hydro electric dam at Bui, expected to... (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Zoomlion to rid Bui of Black flies Sep 10, 2007
Bui, (B/A), Sept. 10, GNA-Zoomlion Ghana Limited, a private waste and sanitation management company, in collaboration with the National Onchocerciasis Secretariat have embarked on a disinfestation exercise along the Black Volta River in the Brong Ahafo Region to rid the area of black flies ... Mr. Gilbert Delly, official of the Secretariat, said onchocerciasis was detected in the 1980's in the country. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
River Blindness Parasite Becoming Resistant To Standard Treatment Sep 6, 2007
Ivermectin, the standard drug for treating river blindness (onchocerciasis), is causing genetic changes in the parasite that causes the disease, according to a new study by Roger Prichard (McGill University, Canada) and colleagues, published on August 30, 2007 in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases ... larva, or black fly, is a vector of the disease, onchocerciasis, or river blindness ... According to this study, the genetic selection shown "could have implications for the... (Science Daily)
River blindness 'curse' lifted Aug 20, 2007
The control of one of these diseases, onchocerciasis or river blindness, in West Africa is a true success story for a continent where reports of success stories are typically in short supply ... Onchocerciasis is caused by a round worm that is transmitted among humans by black flies ... The Onchocerciasis Control Program, established in 1974 and led by the World Health Organization of the United Nations, has controlled this disease in 11 West African countries. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Opinion)
Treating River Blindness Jul 10, 2007
Onchocerciasis Can Be Treated, Perhaps Even Eradicated, But Not Yet ... It has been a useful treatment for other filarial diseases (diseases caused by species of worms that produce microfilariae); however, in onchocerciasis, the drug causes serious side effects, making its widespread use impossible ... Treatment of onchocerciasis with DEC must be carefully monitored. (Suite101.com)
New Drug Resistance Found In River Blindness: Parasite Could Re-emerge As Major Scourge Jun 29, 2007
A 20-year effort to control the spread of onchocerciasis, or river blindness, in African communities is threatened by the development of drug resistance in the parasite that causes the disease, a study by McGill University researchers has found ... Of those communities, 19 had been receiving annual doses of ivermectin, the only widely available drug used to treat onchocerciasis. (Science Daily)
Drug-resistant river blindness spreading Jun 16, 2007
The discovery could force public health officials to rethink strategies for controlling river blindness, also known as onchocerciasis. In The Lancet study, researchers tested 2,501 people in disease-endemic regions of Ghana from 2004 to 2005, and found 19. (MSNBC -- Health)
River blindness resistance fears Jun 15, 2007
River blindness (onchocerciasis) is caused by a nematode worm which is transmitted by a black fly ... He carried out a study of the West African Onchocerciasis Control Programme among Ghanaian communities that had received between six and 18 years of annual ivermectin treatment and other communities that had never received treatment. (BBC News)
River blindness parasite resisting treatment Jun 15, 2007
River blindness or onchocerciasis is an eye and skin disease caused by the filaria worm. It is transmitted to humans by blackflies breeding along fast-flowing tropical rivers and streams. (Scientific American)
Eradicating onchocerciasis-related blindness May 24, 2007
Impact of long-term treatment of onchocerciasis with ivermectin in Ecuador: potential for elimination of infection ... Onchocerciasis is a leading cause of blindness worldwide and elimination of the infection is an important health priority ... A strategy of annual to twice-annual treatments with ivermectin has been used in endemic communities for onchocerciasis in Ecuador for up to 14 years. (BioMed Central)
WHO Developing Plan to Tackle Neglected Tropical Diseases Apr 20, 2007
A trusted source of newsand information since 1942. And, breaking barriers has been a long process of thinking, moving from 'I am in charge of leprosy' to 'I am in charge of neglected tropical disease of which leprosy is one of the diseases' is a big change in the way things are doing. (Voice of America)
Carter proposes health, education alliance against diseasesAddis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) - For African nations to be able toeradicate most of the diseases endemic within the continent,alliances must be created between the health and educationministries, former US President Jimmy Carter suggested here Monday. 12/02/2007 Full Text... Feb 12, 2007
In addition, Carter said that ten zones of Ethiopia were endemic with river blindness (Onchocerciasis), which is caused by a parasitic worm and transmitted by blackflies ... "We have only addressed diseases not commonly known, but the primary victims of these diseases are children. Trachoma and Onchocerciasis cause unnecessary suffering to children," Carter noted, urging the African ministers at the conference to explore ways by which they could replicate the Ethiopian initiative in their own... (Panapress.com)
Amansie West District records high still births Feb 7, 2007
Mr Adomako said apart from malaria, which topped the diseases, the hospital recorded 113 buruli ulcer cases, 13 HIV/AIDS, 15 onchocerciasis, three yaws and 17 tuberculosis (TB). He said the high cost of service delivery was one of the problems facing the District as the District Health Directorate spent 4. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Stakeholders meet on neglected tropical diseases Feb 7, 2007
Five of the ancient neglected tropical diseases 96 Trachoma; Lymphatic Filariasisl; Onchocerciasis; Schistosomiasis and intestinal worms - are associated with poverty and poor environment. Opening a three-day stakeholders meeting on Strategic Planning on Neglected Tropical Disease Programme in Accra, Prof. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
Malaria Strategic Document to be revised - Official Feb 3, 2007
Professor John Gyarpong, Head of the Health Research Unit of GHS, spoke on the neglected diseases like onchocerciasis, popularly known as river blindness, and Lymphatic Filariasis, which is Elephantiasis, were some of the diseases which attacked people but were not talked about. He said strategies had been put in place to scale up interventions and called for more human resource, infrastructure and logistics as well as funding from the Government to run programmes. (Ghana Web, Ghana)
