HEALTH - The African Mirror

Oct

29

2020

Tunisia says COVID spread ‘very dangerous’ with new curbs expected

COVID-19

TUNISIA says that the coronavirus pandemic had become "very dangerous" with 2,125 new infections and 52 deaths recorded in the past 48 hours, and new restrictions were expected to be announced within hours. The total death toll now exceeds 1,150 with 55,000 cases and medical sources told Reuters intensive care units in most state hospitals had reached maximum capacity. Health Ministry spokeswoman Nassaf ben Alaya said that the situation had become "very dangerous". Ministry official Faisal ben Saleh told reporters that the number of deaths was expected to double next month. New curbs were expected, but no full lockdown, he…

Oct

29

2020

By The African Mirror

Algerian leader flies to Germany for ‘medical checks’ after isolating for COVID

COVID-19

ALGERIAN President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has been transferred to Germany for medical checks, days after senior aides tested positive for COVID-19 and he went into hospital, state media has reported. Tebboune, 75, has been in office for less than a year after winning an election to replace the veteran president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who was ousted during mass protests last year. He said on Saturday he was self isolating after senior government aides had fallen sick and on Tuesday state media said he had been admitted to a specialised treatment unit in an army hospital, without saying if he had COVID-19. "I…

Oct

28

2020

By The African Mirror

Algeria’s president enters specialised treatment unit, his condition is stable – statement

COVID-19

ALGERIA’S president has entered a specialised treatment unit at an army hospital, but his health condition is stable and does not cause any concern, a statement from the presidency said. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, 75, had decided to put himself in isolation a few days ago after his top aides contracted COVID-19. It was not immediately clear if his admission to the hospital was linked to the coronavirus. - Thomson Reuters Foundation.

Oct

28

2020

By The African Mirror

UN in New York cancels in-person meetings due to COVID-19 infections

COVID-19

THE United Nations has cancelled all in-person meetings at its New York headquarters after five people in Niger's U.N. mission were infected with the coronavirus, diplomats said. After largely operating virtually since New York became a global COVID-19 hotspot in March, the 193-member world body had been holding some in-person gatherings again, with COVID-19 precautions such as requiring diplomats to wear masks, social distance and restricting the number of people at meetings. In a letter to member states late on Monday, U.N. General Assembly President Volkan Bozkir said the U.N. medical unit had recommended cancelling in-person meetings on Tuesday, pending…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

COVID-19 causes some patients’ immune systems to attack their own bodies, which may contribute to severe illness

COVID-19

MATTHEW WOODRUFF, Instructor, Lowance Center for Human Immunology, Emory University ACROSS the world, immunologists who retooled their labs to join the fight against SARS-CoV-2 are furiously trying to explain why some people get so sick while others recover unscathed. The pace is dizzying, but some clear trends have emerged. One area of focus has been the production of antibodies – powerful proteins capable of disabling and killing invading pathogens like viruses. Of great concern has been the sporadic identification of so-called autoreactive antibodies that, instead of targeting disease causing microbes, target the tissues of individuals suffering from severe cases of…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Africa’s miners face new TB threat as pandemic disrupts treatment

HEALTH

KIM HARRISBERG VAMA Jele's heart dropped every time he heard that another migrant miner home from South Africa had died from tuberculosis (TB) due to skipping treatment under lockdown. In just four months, it happened 60 times. When COVID-19 shut South Africa's mines, workers from Jele's homeland eSwatini and other neighbouring nations rushed home - disrupting TB care for thousands of miners at high risk from the disease due to weakened lungs after years working underground. Jele - secretary general of a migrant mineworkers' association in eSwatini - said more lives could now be lost to TB as overstretched healthcare…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Why Nigeria can’t fix its development agenda: and where the solutions lie

HEALTH

UCHE ISIUGO-ABANIHE, Professor of Demography, University of Ibadan NIGERIA has an estimated population of about 206 million, making it the seventh most populous country in the world. The country’s population is projected to increase to 263 million in 2030 and 401 million in 2050 when it will become the third most populous country in the world. This is because the country’s population continues to grow at a high rate of 2.6%. The global population growth is 1.05% per year. Nigeria’s population growth is a product of persistent high fertility and consistently declining mortality. In 2018 the total fertility rate (or…

Oct

27

2020

By The African Mirror

Wave of new COVID-19 cases crashes across U.S. and Europe as winter looms

COVID-19

JAMES MACKENZIE and LISA SHUMAKER THE United States, Russia, France and many other countries are setting records for coronavirus infections as a tidal wave of cases washes over parts of the Northern Hemisphere, forcing some countries to impose new curbs. The gloom weighed on global financial markets on Monday as surging infections clouded the economic outlook. U.S. stocks had their worst day in more than seven weeks over the double whammy of record coronavirus cases and political deadlock in negotiations to provide more economic aid. Word that a vaccine being developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca Plc produced…

Oct

26

2020

By The African Mirror

Are warnings of a COVID-19 famine in Africa overblown?

COVID-19

OBI ANYADIKE ALARM bells have been ringing for months that COVID-19 could push fragile African countries “closer to the abyss” of famine as jobs are lost, local markets close, and poverty deepens. Aid agencies routinely list the coronavirus as a major factor in driving humanitarian needs, from the Sahel to Somalia, and don’t shy away from describing its impact as the “perfect storm”. A joint report in July by the World Food Programme (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) calculated that COVID-19 could create an additional 121 million hungry people globally by the end of the year – mostly in 15 already crisis-affected African countries. But…

Oct

25

2020

By The African Mirror

Malaria parasites in Nigeria are genetically diverse: a danger but also a useful tool

HEALTH

SEGUN ISAAC OYEDEJI, Lecturer, Federal University, Oye Ekiti MALARIA is one of the world’s most dangerous parasitic disease and a major public health challenge, especially in Africa. Each year, over 200 million new cases of malaria occur globally. This leads to the death of over 400,000 individuals, most of whom are children below the age of five. Nigeria accounts for about a quarter of all malaria cases and deaths worldwide. Malaria is caused by parasites of the genus Plasmodium. Humans acquire malaria when an infected female Anopheles mosquito bites an individual and injects Plasmodium parasites into the bloodstream. Five species…