Page 3 - World Health Organization

Pakistan's week-long polio eradication campaign begins amid tight security

A week-long polio eradication campaign across Pakistan began on Monday amid tight security to ensure its smooth sailing against the crippling disease that saw a surge this year with 63 cases reported so far. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only countries where the paralysing virus is still rampant. During the campaign, more than 44.7 million children under the age of five will be vaccinated. The campaign has started across 143 districts of the country to prevent the resurgence of the polio virus. A target has been set to vaccinate 23.3 million children in Punjab's 36 districts, 7.2 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's 36 districts, 10.6 million in Sindh's 30 districts and 2.6 million in Balochistan's 36 districts. Additionally, more than 800,000 children will be vaccinated in Islamabad, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and five districts of Gilgit-Baltistan. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province alone, 54,000 security personnel, including police

Bavarian Nordic partners with Serum Institute for Mpox vaccine production

Bavarian Nordic has partnered with the Serum Institute of India to produce its Mpox vaccine for the Indian market and expand global capacity through contract manufacturing

'Disease X' outbreak spreads more as UN sends health team to Congo

Outbreak is centered in a remote rural area of Kwango province, where poor road conditions and heavy rains mean it takes nearly 48 hours to reach from Kinshasa

WHO calls for global commitment to fight against HIV on World AIDS Day

WHO also highlighted the situation of children and adolescents living with HIV. In the Southeast Asia Region, approximately 80,000 children and adolescents are living with HIV

WHO chief congratulates Okonjo on reappointment as WTO Director General

On her reappointment, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala thanked the members and highlighted the challenges she plans to address

WHO Africa director-elect dies while receiving treatment in India

The World Health Organisation's regional director-elect for Africa died while receiving medical treatment in India, Tanzania's parliament speaker said Wednesday. Plans to repatriate the body of Tanzania's Dr Faustine Ndugulile, 55, were underway, Speaker Tulia Ackson said, adding that funeral plans would be announced later. She didn't disclose Ndugulile's ailment. No other details were available. Ndugulile served as a member of parliament for Kigamboni Constituency in Tanzania's commercial capital, Dar es Salaam. He was also the East African country's health assistant minister between 2017-2020 and the information and communication minister until 2021. He was elected as the WHO's African director in August and was set to start his new role in February 2025, following Dr Matshidiso Moeti who served in the role for two terms. In his acceptance speech, Ndugulile expressed a firm commitment to advancing the health and well-being of people in Africa. Tanzania's President Samia Suluhu .

WHO begins 16 Days of Activism against gender based violence ending Dec 10

Experiences of violence lead to long-lasting physical and mental health impacts on the survivors, including injury, unintended pregnancy and pregnancy related complications, WHO's Saima Wazed said

Mpox continues to be public health emergency as cases resurge, says WHO

Decision comes as Mpox cases surge, particularly with the spread of the clade Ib variant beyond its origin in the Democratic Republic of Congo to neighbouring African nations, Europe, and Asia

World Pneumonia Day 2024: Know history, prevention, significance and theme

World Pneumonia Day is celebrated every year on November 12. Pneumonia continues to be a life-threatening disease, but it is treatable and preventable

New study claims Mpox clade la has evolved to spread from human to human

Investigation of the Clade la strain of the virus circulation in Central Africa shows genetic mutations indicative of sustained human-to-human spread

Meeting sodium recommendations could avert deaths from heart disease: Study

Complying with the WHO-recommended levels of sodium intake could avert three lakh deaths due to heart and chronic kidney disease in 10 years, a modelling study by the World Health Organization has estimated. High levels of sodium -- an ingredient of salt -- are one of the main dietary risks of death and disability. Packaged foods are a major source of sodium intake in high-income countries, and increasingly becoming so in low- and middle-income countries. However, researchers, including those from The George Institute for Global Health, Hyderabad, said that India has no national strategy for sodium reduction despite people consuming double the recommended intake and increasing amounts of packaged foods. The WHO recommends under two grams of sodium a day, which is roughly the same as less than a teaspoon or five grams of salt a day. Published in The Lancet Public Health journal, the results suggested substantial health gains and cost savings within the first ten years of compliance,

Pakistan logs 40th polio case in 2024: Why it fails to curb this endemic?

An infectious disease, Polio can cause crippling paralysis among young children. It has been virtually eradicated from the world, except for Pakistan and Afghanistan

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

WHO secures $1 billion for 2025-28, with $700 million in new funding

Germany pledged nearly $400 million over four years, with $260 million in new voluntary funding

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

Health ministry issues advisory to states, UTs on measures against 'Mpox'

The advisory also directed the states to review public health preparedness particularly at health facility level at the state and districts by senior officials

Higher price of mpox vaccine to pose key hurdle in Africa order talks

But with a shot significantly pricier than many other vaccines commonly used for immunisation in Africa, costs remain a key barrier to getting more orders in place

Congo receives its first mpox vaccine shipment to combat outbreak

With a population of around 100 million, the Congo is currently at the centre of the outbreak

Wasn't polio wiped out? Here's why it is still problem in some countries

Polio was eliminated from most parts of the world as part of a decadeslong effort by the World Health Organisation and partners to wipe out the disease. But polio is one of the world's most infectious diseases and is still spreading in a small number of countries. The WHO and its partners want to eradicate polio in the next few years. Until it is gone from the planet, the virus will continue to trigger outbreaks anywhere children are not fully vaccinated. The recent polio infection in an unvaccinated baby in Gaza is the first time the disease has been reported in the territory in more than 25 years. What is polio? Polio is an infection caused by a virus that mostly affects children under 5. Most people infected with polio don't have any symptoms, but it can cause fever, headaches, vomiting and stiffness of the spine. In severe cases, polio can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis within hours, according to the WHO. The UN agency estimates that 1 in 200 polio cases results i

As Israel-Hamas war escalates, polio strikes Gaza for first time in 25 yrs

Born into the devastating Israel-Hamas war, 10-month-old Abdel-Rahman Abuel-Jedian started crawling early. Then one day, he froze his left leg appeared to be paralyzed. The baby boy is the first confirmed case of polio inside Gaza in 25 years, according to the World Health Organization. Abdel-Rahman was an energetic baby, said the child's mother, Nevine Abuel-Jedian, fighting back tears. Suddenly, that was reversed. Suddenly, he stopped crawling, stopped moving, stopped standing up, and stopped sitting. Health care workers in Gaza have been warning of the potential for a polio outbreak for months, as the humanitarian crisis unleashed by Israel's offensive on the strip only grows. Abdel-Rahman's diagnosis confirms health workers' worst fears. Before the war, Gaza's children were largely vaccinated against polio, the WHO says. But Abdel-Rahman was not vaccinated because he was born just before Oct. 7, when Hamas militants attacked Israel and Israel launched a retaliatory offensive