The

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...

's estimate of life expectancy for a female child born in Guinea-Bissau in 2008 was 49 years, and 47 years for a boy. in 2016 life expectancy had improved to 58 for men and 61 for women. The prevalence of HIV-infection among the adult population is 1.8%.The WHO estimates a 1.8% HIV-infection rate from 2007 data among 15- to 49-year-old Bissau-Guineans – see statistics on page 65 of: . (The section's introduction describes estimation methodology). Only 20% of infected pregnant women receive anti retroviral coverage to prevent transmission to newborns.

Malaria Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects humans and other animals. Malaria causes symptoms that typically include fever, tiredness, vomiting, and headaches. In severe cases, it can cause jaundice, seizures, coma, or death. ...

kills more residents; 9% of the population have reported infection, It causes three times as many deaths as AIDS. In 2008, fewer than half of children younger than five slept under antimalaria nets or had access to

antimalarial drugs Antimalarial medications or simply antimalarials are a type of antiparasitic chemical agent, often naturally derived, that can be used to treat or to prevent malaria, in the latter case, most often aiming at two susceptible target groups, young c ...

. Despite lowering rates in surrounding countries,

cholera Cholera is an infection of the small intestine by some strains of the bacterium '' Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea that lasts a few days. Vomiting an ...

rates were reported in November 2012 to be on the rise, with 1,500 cases reported and nine deaths. A 2008 cholera epidemic in Guinea-Bissau affected 14,222 people and killed 225. The 2010

maternal mortality Maternal death or maternal mortality is defined in slightly different ways by several different health organizations. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines maternal death as the death of a pregnant mother due to complications related to pre ...

rate per 100,000 live births for Guinea Bissau was 1000. This compares with 804.3 in 2008 and 966 in 1990. The under-5 mortality rate, per 1,000 live births, was 195 and the neonatal mortality as a percentage of under-5 mortality was 24. The number of midwives per 1,000 live births was 3; one out of eighteen

pregnant women Pregnancy is the time during which one or more offspring develops ( gestates) inside a woman's uterus (womb). A multiple pregnancy involves more than one offspring, such as with twins. Pregnancy usually occurs by sexual intercourse, but ca ...

die as a result of pregnancy. According to a 2013 UNICEF report, 50% of women in Guinea Bissau had undergone

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

.UNICEF 2013
, p. 27. In 2010, Guinea Bissau had the seventh-highest maternal mortality rate in the world. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative finds that Guinea-Bissau is fulfilling 61.2% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to health based on its level of income. When looking at the right to health with respect to children, Guinea-Bissau achieves 85.8% of what is expected based on its current income. In regards to the right to health amongst the adult population, the country achieves only 70.8% of what is expected based on the nation's level of income. Guinea-Bissau falls into the "very bad" category when evaluating the right to reproductive health because the nation is fulfilling only 27.0% of what the nation is expected to achieve based on the resources (income) it has available.

Healthcare

The

estimated there were fewer than 5 physicians per 100,000 persons in the country in 2009. Guinea-Bissau has an unusually high ratio of nursing staff to doctors. Medical facilities outside

Bissau Bissau () is the capital, and largest city of Guinea-Bissau. Bissau had a population of 492,004. Bissau is located on the Geba River estuary, off the Atlantic Ocean, and is Guinea-Bissau's largest city, major port, and its administrative and ...

are virtually non existent. In Bissau there is the Raoul Follerau Hospital, and the Hospital Nacional Simão Mendes. The

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a public research university in Bloomsbury, central London, and a member institution of the University of London that specialises in public health and tropical medicine. The inst ...

is conducting research into infectious diseases on the

Bijagos Islands The Bissagos Islands, also spelled Bijagós ( pt, Arquipélago dos Bijagós), are a group of about 88 islands and islets located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Guinea-Bissau. The archipelago was formed from the ancient delta of the Geb ...

. Because the islands are so isolated there is less danger of contamination of the results than in other places.

References

{{Guinea-Bissau topics