Page 5 - Who

TB infects around 8 mn people in 2023, highest ever seen, says WHO

More than 8 million people were diagnosed with tuberculosis last year, the World Health Organization said Tuesday, the highest number recorded since the U.N. health agency began keeping track. About 1.25 million people died of TB last year, the new report said, adding that TB likely returned to being the world's top infectious disease killer after being replaced by COVID-19 during the pandemic. The deaths are almost double the number of people killed by HIV in 2023. WHO said TB continues to mostly affect people in Southeast Asia, Africa and the Western Pacific; India, Indonesia, China, the Philippines and Pakistan account for more than half of the world's cases. The fact that TB still kills and sickens so many people is an outrage, when we have the tools to prevent it, detect it and treat it, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement. TB deaths continue to fall globally, however, and the number of people being newly infected is beginning to stabilize. The

Over 77% of India's children lack WHO-suggested diversity in diet: Study

About 77 per cent of children in India aged 6-23 months lack diversity in diet as suggested by the WHO, with the country's central region showing the highest prevalence of minimum dietary failure, a study has found. The states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh reported the highest levels of inadequate diversity in children's diets -- all above 80 per cent -- while Sikkim and Meghalaya were the only two to report an under-50 per cent prevalence. The World Health Organisation (WHO) suggests using the Minimum Dietary Diversity (MDD) score to evaluate the quality of a child's diet -- it is considered to be diverse if it contains five or more food groups, including breastmilk, eggs, legumes and nuts, and fruits and vegetables. Analysing National Family and Health Survey data from 2019-21 (NFHS-5), researchers, including those from the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare, found that the country's overall rate of minimum dietary diversity ...

WHO approves Zydus Lifesciences' typhoid vaccine for UN procurement

Typhoid affects an estimated 11 to 21 million people annually, leading to between 117,000 and 161,000 deaths

CDSCO meets WHO standards for functional vaccine regulatory system

Drug regulator CDSCO and the National Regulatory Authority of India have met the standards set up by the World Health Organisation for a functional vaccine regulatory system A team of international experts from various countries led by the World Health Organisation (WHO) headquarters in Geneva reviewed India's vaccine regulatory system from September 16 to 20, the health ministry said in a statement. Safety, efficacy, and quality were the three basic parameters of assessment of vaccines, it said. The WHO has established global standards and benchmarks for assurance of vaccine quality through the development of tools and guidelines, benchmarking of the National Regulatory Authorities (NRA) and pre-qualification programme of vaccines, the statement said. The WHO NRA re-benchmarking was aimed to assess and document the status of the India regulatory system in the area of vaccine regulation, re-benchmark the status of the India vaccine regulatory system against the WHO NRA Global ...

Four new polio cases reported in Pakistan, tally rises to 32 this year

At least four new cases of polio have been reported in Pakistan, taking the tally to 32 this year, according to an official statement. Of the four new cases, three were reported from Sindh province and one from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. So far this year, 16 cases have been reported from Balochistan, 10 from Sindh, four from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one each from Punjab and Islamabad. Currently only two out of seven regions i.e. Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan are polio-free. The virus has reached five regions, including four provinces and the federal capital, according to the official data. The Dawn newspaper reported that an official of the Health Ministry said that the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme vaccinated nearly 33 million children under the age of five during a nationwide campaign in September this year. The campaign aimed to protect children from the devastating effects of polio. A comprehensive evaluation of the campaign was conducted to assess its

WHO felicitates India for eliminating trachoma as public health problem

India was on Tuesday felicitated by the World Health Organisation for the elimination of trachoma as a public health problem, making it the third country in the region after Nepal and Myanmar to achieve this feat. The WHO also felicitated Bhutan for achieving interim targets for cervical cancer elimination, Maldives and Sri Lanka for Hepatitis B control in children, Timor-Leste for eliminating lymphatic filariasis and six countries for achieving SDG and global targets for reducing under-five mortality and stillbirth rates. "India's success is due to the strong leadership of its government and the commitment of ophthalmologists and other cadres of health-care workers. "They worked together with partners to ensure effective surveillance, diagnosis and management of active trachoma, provision of surgical services for trichiasis, and promotion of water, sanitation and hygiene, particularly facial cleanliness, among communities," said Saima Wazed, Regional Director WHO South-East Asia, a

WHO approves Abbott's Mpox test for emergency use in outbreak zones

Cases of the clade Ib strain of the virus have been confirmed in Sweden, Thailand, and India, outside of Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring nations

WHO to train AIIMS doctors, medical staff on handling casualty incidents

In a first, the WHO Academy has started a training programme at the AIIMS Trauma Centre for doctors, nurses and other professionals to respond effectively to mass casualty incidents in emergency units. The WHO Academy has developed a training course for Mass Casualty Preparedness and Response in Emergency Units (WHO MCM Course), according to a statement. The inaugural course will be held from October 1 to 5. Apart from AIIMS New Delhi, teams from AIIMS-Jodhpur, AIIMS-Patna and AIIMS-Jammu are also participating in the training sessions, it said. A robust mass casualty management (MCM) plan is crucial for ensuring that healthcare facilities, particularly emergency units, are prepared to respond effectively during MCIs, said chief of JPNTC Trauma Centre Dr Kamran Farooque. Effective preparedness minimises disruptions in essential health services, ensures efficient use of resources, and maintains patient and staff safety. Training healthcare professionals, including doctors, nurses,

Unsafe food causes 600 mn illnesses, 420K deaths annually: WHO chief

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Friday highlighted the critical role of food regulators in combating unsafe food, which causes 600 million cases of foodborne diseases and 4,20,000 deaths annually. In a video message to the second Global Food Regulators Summit in Delhi, Ghebreyesus said, "Our food systems are facing increasing challenges due to climate change, population growth, new technologies, globalisation and industrialisation." He revealed that 70 per cent of fatalities from unsafe food occur among children under five. "The food regulator community has a critical role to play in addressing these global challenges," the WHO Chief said, emphasising the need for coordinated efforts as over 3 million people cannot afford a nutritious diet. Ghebreyesus stressed that collaboration is essential to ensure safe and accessible food for all, as food systems cross borders and continents. Union Health Minister J P Nadda, Food Minister Prahlad Joshi, Health Secretary and

World Patient Safety Day 2024: History, significance, theme and more

World Health Organisation established World Patient Safety Day in 2019 to address the issue of patient safety and take actions to promote safety in healthcare

One dead from Nipah virus in Kerala, 151 people under observation

This is the second death from a Nipah infection in Malappuram this year after a 14-year-old boy succumbed in July

Startups tackle loneliness with services for friendships and companionship

Studies show that loneliness transcends age, affecting everyone from the teenagers to the elderly

WHO grants first mpox vaccine approval to enhance response in Africa

The World Health Organisation on Friday said it has granted its first authorisation for use of a vaccine against mpox in adults, calling it an important step toward fighting the disease in Africa and beyond. The pre-qualification of the vaccine by Bavarian Nordic A/S means that donors like GAVI the Vaccine Alliance and UNICEF can buy it. But supplies are limited because there's only a single manufacturer. This first pre-qualification of a vaccine against mpox is an important step in our fight against the disease, both in the context of the current outbreaks in Africa, and in future, said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The UN health agency chief called for urgent scale-up of procurement, donations and rollout to get the vaccine where it is needed most, along with other response measures. Under the WHO authorisation, the vaccine can be administered in people aged 18 or above in a two-dose regimen. The approval says that while the vaccine is not currently licensed fo

Ukraine faces dramatic health crisis ahead of its third winter at war: WHO

The World Health Organisation issued a stark warning on Thursday about a potential health crisis in Ukraine as the country faces its third winter of war since Russia's full-scale invasion. Ongoing Russian airstrikes have severely damaged the nation's energy and health care infrastructure, leaving millions vulnerable as temperatures drop, officials from the United Nations agency said. Ukraine is approaching its third winter amid a full-scale war likely its most challenging yet. The renewed focus on health is more critical than ever, Hans Kluge, the WHO's regional director for Europe, told reporters in Kyiv. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, the UN agency has recorded nearly 2,000 attacks on Ukraine's health care infrastructure, which it said is having a severe impact on the largely public health system. Targeted attacks have damaged Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Frequent power outages are already taking a toll with danger signs for the winter, Klu

Africa's doses fall short amid Mpox spread while rich nations have plenty

A small fraction of those doses could help curb what is now the biggest mpox outbreak on record in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries, disease experts say

Mpox patient at LNJP hospital stable, no need to panic: Delhi minister

The mpox patient admitted at LNJP Hospital here is in a stable condition, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj said on Tuesday. Bharadwaj conducted a surprise inspection of the hospital to assess preparations for dealing with mpox and dengue. "There is one confirmed patient of mpox at LNJP hospital. He has a travel history and it's believed that he got infected during his travel abroad," the minister said. "The patient has been isolated in a separate ward. He is in a stable condition," he added. The 26-year-old patient, a resident of Haryana's Hisar, has only genital ulcers and skin rashes but no fever, a health department official said. Bharadwaj emphasised that there was no need to panic over mpox, as it spreads through contact, not through the air. The Union Health Ministry on Monday said that it was an "isolated case" and there was no immediate risk to public. "The individual, a young male who recently travelled from a country experiencing ongoing mpox transmission, is ..

India reports first Mpox case: Symptoms, transmission, WHO norms and more

India's health ministry has reassured the public that the nation has robust preventive measures in place and is handling the case as per established protocols

Mpox case confirmed, strain not part of WHO's health emergency: Govt

Union Health Ministry asks states/UT's to review preparedness, increase screening

Mpox scare: Centre asks states to review preparedness, screen all suspects

India on Sunday reported a suspected case of Mpox

Sudan's war has killed at least 20,000 people, says WHO chief Ghebreyesus

More than 16 months of war in Sudan has killed more than 20,000 people, a senior United Nations official said on Sunday, a grim figure amid a devastating conflict that has wrecked the northeastern African country. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director general of the World Health Organisation, gave the tally at a news conference in Sudan's Red Sea city of Port Sudan, which serves as the seat of the internationally recognised, military-backed government. He said the death toll could be much higher. Sudan is suffering through a perfect storm of crisis, Tedros said as he wrapped up his two-day visit to Sudan. The scale of the emergency is shocking, as is the insufficient action being taken to curtail the conflict. Sudan was plunged into chaos in April last year when simmering tensions between the military and a powerful paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, exploded into open warfare across the country. The conflict has turned the capital, Khartoum, and other urban areas into ..