|
MenAfriVac
MenAfriVac is a vaccine developed for use in sub-Saharan Africa for children and adults between 9 months and 29 years of age against meningococcal bacterium '' Neisseria meningitidis'' group A. The vaccine costs less than US$0.50 per dose. History Epidemics of meningococcal A meningitis, which is a bacterial infection of the thin lining surrounding the brain and spinal cord, have swept across 26 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for a century, killing and disabling young people every year. The disease is highly feared on the continent; it can kill or cause severe brain damage in a child within hours. Epidemics usually start at the beginning of the calendar year when dry sands from the Sahara Desert begin blowing southward. The largest meningitis epidemic in African history swept across sub-Saharan Africa from 1996 to 1997, numbering 250,000 new cases and taking 25,000 lives. Three years later, the World Health Organization (WHO) held a technical consultation in Cairo, Egypt with Afr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meningitis Vaccine Project
The Meningitis Vaccine Project is an effort to eliminate the meningitis epidemic in Sub-Saharan Africa by developing a new meningococcal vaccine. The meningitis problem in that area is caused by a strain of meningitis called "meningitis A", which is present only in the African meningitis belt. In June 2010 various sources announced that they had developed MenAfriVac, which is an inexpensive, safe, and highly effective vaccine that is likely to stop the epidemic as quickly as anyone had ever hoped that it would. The project marked the first time that medical research had developed a vaccine to combat a disease that is endemic to and only a problem for Africa. The project began in 2001 when the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded the World Health Organization and the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH) a US $70 million seed grant to begin research. Background In 2001, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded the World Health Organization and the Program fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neisseria Meningitidis
''Neisseria meningitidis'', often referred to as the meningococcus, is a Gram-negative bacterium that can cause meningitis and other forms of meningococcal disease such as meningococcemia, a life-threatening sepsis. The bacterium is referred to as a coccus because it is round, and more specifically a diplococcus because of its tendency to form pairs. About 10% of adults are carriers of the bacteria in their nasopharynx. As an exclusively human pathogen, it causes developmental impairment and death in about 10% of cases. It causes the only form of bacterial meningitis known to occur epidemically, mainly in Africa and Asia. It occurs worldwide in both epidemic and endemic form. ''N. meningitidis'' is spread through saliva and respiratory secretions during coughing, sneezing, kissing, chewing on toys and through sharing a source of fresh water. It has also been reported to be Sexually transmitted infection, transmitted through oral sex and cause urethritis in men. It infects its hos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meningitis
Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, intense headache, vomiting and neck stiffness and occasionally photophobia. Other symptoms include confusion or altered consciousness, nausea, and an inability to tolerate loud noises. Young children often exhibit only nonspecific symptoms, such as irritability, drowsiness, or poor feeding. A non-blanching rash (a rash that does not fade when a glass is rolled over it) may also be present. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, fungi or parasites. Non-infectious causes include malignancy (cancer), subarachnoid hemorrhage, chronic inflammatory disease ( sarcoidosis) and certain drugs. Meningitis can be life-threatening because of the inflammation's proximity to the brain and spinal cord; therefore, the condition is classified as a medical emergency. A lumba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
African Meningitis Belt
The African meningitis belt is a region in sub-Saharan Africa where the rate of incidence of meningitis is very high. It extends from Senegal to Ethiopia, and the primary cause of meningitis in the belt is ''Neisseria meningitidis''. The belt was first proposed by Léon Lapeyssonnie of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1963. Lapeyssonnie noticed that the disease occurred in areas receiving 300–1,100 mm of mean annual rainfall, which is the case in sub-Saharan Africa. The intercontinental spread of meningitis has also been traced to South Asia, brought by those making the Hajj, a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, in 1987, leading to epidemics in Nepal, Saudi Arabia, and Chad. Regions It consists of part of or all of (from West to East), the Gambia, Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Central African Republic, Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Eritrea. Many other countries in Africa experience outbreaks as well, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vaccine
A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified. A vaccine typically contains an agent that resembles a disease-causing microorganism and is often made from weakened or killed forms of the microbe, its toxins, or one of its surface proteins. The agent stimulates the body's immune system to recognize the agent as a threat, destroy it, and recognize further and destroy any of the microorganisms associated with that agent that it may encounter in the future. Vaccines can be prophylaxis, prophylactic (to prevent or alleviate the effects of a future infection by a natural or "wild" pathogen), or therapeutic vaccines, therapeutic (to fight a disease that has already occurred, such as cancer vaccine, cancer). Some vaccines offer full sterilizing immunity, in which infection is prevented. T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Niger
Niger, officially the Republic of the Niger, is a landlocked country in West Africa. It is a unitary state Geography of Niger#Political geography, bordered by Libya to the Libya–Niger border, north-east, Chad to the Chad–Niger border, east, Nigeria to the Niger–Nigeria border, south, Benin and Burkina Faso to the Benin-Niger border, south-west, Mali to the Mali–Niger border, west, and Algeria to the Algeria–Niger border, north-west. It covers a land area of almost , making it the largest landlocked country in West Africa and the second-largest landlocked nation in Africa behind Chad. Over 80% of its land area lies in the Sahara. Its Islam in Niger, predominantly Muslim population of about million lives mostly in clusters in the south and west of the country. The capital Niamey is located in Niger's south-west corner along the namesake Niger River. Following the spread of Islam to the region, Niger was on the fringes of some states, including the Kanem–Bornu Empire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, a population of more than 230 million, it is the List of African countries by population, most populous country in Africa, and the List of countries and dependencies by population, world's sixth-most populous country. Nigeria borders Niger in Niger–Nigeria border, the north, Chad in Chad–Nigeria border, the northeast, Cameroon in Cameroon–Nigeria border, the east, and Benin in Benin–Nigeria border, the west. Nigeria is a Federation, federal republic comprising 36 States of Nigeria, states and the Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria, Federal Capital Territory, where its capital, Abuja, is located. The List of Nigerian cities by population, largest city in Nigeria by population is Lagos, one of the largest List of largest cities, metr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the least developed countries and extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, where its capital city, capital, Lomé, is located. It is a small, tropical country, spanning with a population of approximately 8 million, and it has a width of less than between Ghana and its eastern neighbour Benin. Various peoples settled the boundaries of present-day Togo between the 11th and 16th centuries. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, the coastal region served primarily as a Atlantic slave trade, European slave trading outpost, earning Togo and the surrounding region the name "The Slave Coast of West Africa, Slave Coast". In 1884, during the scramble for Africa, German Empire, Germany established a protectorate in the region called Togoland. After World War I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Médecins Sans Frontières
(MSF; pronounced ), known in some English-speaking settings as Doctors Without Borders, is a charity that provides humanitarian medical care. It is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) of French origin known for its projects in conflict zones and in countries affected by endemic diseases. The organisation provides care for diabetes, drug-resistant infections, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, tropical and neglected diseases, tuberculosis, vaccines and COVID-19. In 2019, the charity was active in 70 countries with over 35,000 personnel; mostly local doctors, nurses and other medical professionals, logistical experts, water and sanitation engineers, and administrators. Private donors provide about 90% of the organisation's funding, while corporate donations provide the rest, giving MSF an annual budget of approximately US$1.63 billion. MSF was founded in 1971, in the aftermath of the Biafran famine of the Nigerian Civil War, by a small group of French doctors and journalists who ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Herd Immunity
Herd immunity (also called herd effect, community immunity, population immunity, or mass immunity) is a form of indirect protection that applies only to contagious diseases. It occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population has become immune to an infection, whether through previous infections or vaccination, that the communicable pathogen cannot maintain itself in the population, its low incidence thereby reducing the likelihood of infection for individuals who lack immunity. Once the herd immunity has been reached, disease gradually disappears from a population and may result in eradication or permanent reduction of infections to zero if achieved worldwide. Herd immunity created via vaccination has contributed to the reduction of many diseases. Effects Protection of those without immunity Some individuals either cannot develop immunity after vaccination or for medical reasons cannot be vaccinated. Newborn infants are too young to receive many vaccines, either for sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Lancet
''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal, founded in England in 1823. It is one of the world's highest-impact academic journals and also one of the oldest medical journals still in publication. The journal publishes original research articles, review articles ("seminars" and "reviews"), editorials, book reviews, correspondence, as well as news features and case reports. ''The Lancet'' has been owned by Elsevier since 1991, and its editor-in-chief since 1995 has been Richard Horton. The journal has editorial offices in London, New York City, and Beijing. History ''The Lancet'' was founded in 1823 by Thomas Wakley, an English surgeon who named it after the surgical instrument called a lancet (scalpel). According to BBC, the journal was initially considered to be radical following its founding. Members of the Wakley family retained editorship of the journal until 1908. In 1921, ''The Lancet'' was acquired by Hodder & Stoughton. Elsevier acquire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ghana
Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to the east. Ghana covers an area of , spanning diverse ecologies, from coastal savannas to tropical rainforests. With nearly 35 million inhabitants, Ghana is the second-most populous country in West Africa. The capital and largest city is Accra; other significant cities include Tema, Kumasi, Sunyani, Ho, Cape Coast, Techiman, Tamale, and Sekondi-Takoradi. The earliest kingdoms to emerge in Ghana were Bonoman in the south and the Kingdom of Dagbon in the north, with Bonoman existing in the area during the 11th century. The Asante Empire and other Akan kingdoms in the south emerged over the centuries. Beginning in the 15th century, the Portuguese Empire, followed by other European powers, contested the area for trading r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
