DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ 'Mary & George' creator says finale is 'true to the spirit' of the story despite diverging from history
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-18 | by ( Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The ending used is 'true to the spirit of how Mary and George lived their lives'Moore, who co-wrote the finale with Laura Grace, told Business Insider that for him, the ending was "true to the spirit" of Mary and George's lives — despite the fact that it diverges from history. Nicholas Galitzine as George Villiers in "Mary & George." "There is some level of dramatic license that we've taken, but for me, it feels very true to the spirit of how Mary and George lived their lives." As the series depicts, once Charles became king, George retained his powerful position in court until he himself was assassinated in 1628, at age 35. The finale of "Mary & George" is now streaming on Starz.

Persons: —, Mary, George, King James I, Tony Curran, George Villiers, Nicholas Galitzine, schemed, Mary Villiers, Julianne Moore, Countess, Buckingham, Duke of Buckingham, King James I's, King, James, aren't, Moore, Laura Grace, George's, Rory Mulvey, didn't, Benjamin Woolley's, James I, Woolley, Charles Organizations: Service, Starz, Business Locations: Spain

☆ 'Mary & George': the Scandalous True Story Behind the Starz Series
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-13 | by ( Eve Crosbie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

"Mary & George" takes viewers inside the raucous 17th century court of Britain's King James I. AdvertisementNicholas Galitzine as George Villiers in "Mary & George." Tony Curran as King James and Nicholas Galitzine as George Villiers in "Mary & George." Nicholas Galitzine as George Villiers in "Mary & George." "Mary & George" is released weekly on Fridays at midnight on the Starz app and the Starz linear channel at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Persons: Mary, George, Britain's King James I, —, Long, Kris Kardashian, Mary Villiers, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Galitzine, Tony Curran, Countess, Duke of Buckingham, Benjamin Woolley's, James I, England's James I, Scotland's James VI, George Villiers, Mary Villiers's, Sir George Villiers, Moore, what's, James, Robert Carr, Earl of Somerset, Laurie Davidson, King James, Carr, Alan Stewart, King James I, Marquess of Buckingham, George Villiers's, George reminisced, King James Until James, Katherine Manners, Earl of Rutland, Katherine, Starz Mary, Woolley, poultices, King Charles I, Charles Organizations: Service, Starz, Royal, Farnham, BBC, Smithsonian Magazine Locations: France, England, Scottish, London, Surrey, Britain

☆ Agencies Consider New Aid Route Into Sudan as Humanitarian Crisis Worsens
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By Aidan Lewis(Reuters) - Aid agencies are looking at delivering aid to Sudan on a new route from South Sudan as they struggle to access much of the country, a senior U.N. official said on Monday, nine months into a war that has caused a major humanitarian crisis. More than 7.5 million people have fled their homes, making Sudan the biggest displacement crisis globally, and hunger is rising. Aid agencies lost access to Wad Madani, a former aid hub in the important El Gezira agricultural region southeast of Khartoum, after the RSF seized it from the army last month. Diplomats and aid workers say that the army and officials aligned with it have hampered humanitarian access as both sides pursue their military campaigns. They say the RSF does little to protect aid supplies and workers, and that its troops have been implicated in cases of looting.

Persons: Aidan Lewis, Rick Brennan, Madani, Brennan, We've, Martin Griffiths, Christina Fincher Organizations: Reuters, Rapid Support Forces, World Health Organization, WHO, ., Diplomats Locations: Sudan, South Sudan, Port Sudan, Cairo, Khartoum, El Gezira, South Kordofan, Chad, Darfur, Kordofan

The Peace Corps has agreed to pay $750,000 to the family of a 24-year-old volunteer from Illinois who died in 2018 in East Africa after the agency’s doctors misdiagnosed a case of malaria, a law firm announced Tuesday. The doctor told her to drink water and take aspirin, said Dinnell, whose firm filed a federal lawsuit for damages in Chicago on behalf of the Heiderman family. Her daughter had wanted to join the Peace Corps since the time she was in junior high, Heiderman said. The Peace Corps issued a statement saying it “continues to mourn the tragic loss of Volunteer Bernice Heiderman.”“She was a remarkable Volunteer who was admired by her students and community in Comoros. The inspector general's review also found that Heiderman had not been following her required malaria suppression medication regime for several months prior to her death.

Persons: Bernice Heiderman, wasn’t, Adam Dinnell, Schiffer Hicks Johnson PLLC, Dinnell, Julie Heiderman, “, Heiderman, ___ Kusmer Organizations: Corps, Peace Corps, Houston, Associated Press, Volunteers Locations: Illinois, East Africa, Inverness , Illinois, Comoros, Chicago, Mozambique, Madagascar, Washington, Indianapolis

☆ Mosquitoes are annoying and some are deadly. Here’s why we can’t – and shouldn’t – simply kill them all
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ritu Prasad | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Some mosquitoes are actually helpfulThe first problem to tackle here is the word “all.” There are more than 3,000 recognized mosquito species worldwide. Healy, who is also president of the American Mosquito Control Association, offered Louisiana, which is home to many swamps where mosquitoes thrive, as an example. “Disease-transmitting mosquito species, such as Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, are invasive species in many parts of the world. As for the Anopheles mosquitoes, which transmit malaria, things are a little different. … We are constantly educating mosquito control workers to follow these practices.

Persons: birdsong, We’ve, ”, Kristen Healy, Healy, we’d, Laura Harrington, Culex, Aedes, ” John Marshall, ” Marshall, ” Healy, Soumyabrata Roy, NurPhoto, it’s, Harrington, Wolbachia, ” Harrington, Stefan Sauer, “ We’ve Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, Entomology, Louisiana State University, American Mosquito Control Association, Cornell University, University of California, Getty Locations: –, West Nile, Louisiana, West, Berkeley

CNN —Mary Achieng’s family is in the malaria ward at Nightingale Hospital in western Kenya almost every month. Mary Achieng and her child on the malaria wars at the Nightingale Hospital in western Kenya. Now with the introduction of the world’s first malaria vaccine, hailed as a breakthrough, there is talk of one day reaching eradication. So it’s a bitter irony that as Kenya celebrates hard-earned gains, new malaria species and cases are popping up in areas historically deemed low-risk. We are seeing [malaria] going to places where we didn’t expect,” she said.

Persons: Mary Achieng’s, she’s, ”, haven’t, Achieng, Mary Achieng, Fred Ooko, Steve Ngugi, Jackson Njehia, Gitahi Githinji, Richard Munang, Ruth Kavere, Faith, Yasuyoshi Chiba, Damaris, “, Muhia Organizations: CNN, Nightingale, Malaria, Kenya Medical Research Institute, International, of, Physiology, Reuters, Health Locations: Kenya, Kisumu, Africa, Nairobi, Health Africa, “, Saharan Africa, Mukuli, AFP, Ghana, Malawi

☆ Opinion | We Have Unfinished Business With These Three Killer Diseases
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Richard Conniff | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

As with so many infectious diseases, lack of determination is the real stumbling block. The United States and other donor nations could argue that we already do more than our share, contributing billions annually to the fight against TB and other infectious diseases. The realities of modern travel mean that none of us is protected from a TB resurgence until we have protected people everywhere. That ought to serve as a reminder that an estimated 247 million cases of malaria occurred worldwide in 2021, and 619,000 people died. They have eliminated wild poliovirus from major cities and Taliban-dominated regions where it was still circulating just a few years ago.

Persons: specter Organizations: Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, Malawi — Locations: United States, Great, Texas, Florida, Saharan Africa, South Asia, El Salvador, China, Africa — Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Pakistan, Afghanistan

☆ A Marylander who hadn't recently traveled internationally caught malaria. Officials say it's the state's first 'locally acquired' case in 40 years.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Maryland detected a locally acquired case of malaria, the first in over 40 years, health officials said. Health officials maintain there is an "extremely low" risk of locally contracting malaria in the US. Someone in Maryland contracted malaria, and officials are scratching their heads as they grapple with the state's first local case of the disease in four decades. The Maryland Department of Health confirmed the case on Friday, saying the individual lives in the Washington, D.C., region and had not recently traveled internationally – a common flag for malaria cases. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention previously reported similar, locally acquired malaria cases in Florida and Texas, calling the risk of catching the disease locally "extremely low in the United States."

Persons: Laura Herrera Scott, Nilesh Kalyanaraman Organizations: Health, Morning, Maryland Department of Health, D.C, of Heath, Public Health Services, Disease Control, CDC Locations: Maryland, Florida and Texas, Washington, United States, Florida, Texas

☆ The US eliminated malaria in 1951. How can it keep it under control now?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Meg Tirrell | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

“The risk is very low,” Dr. Peter McElroy, chief of the malaria branch in the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Parasitic Diseases and Malaria, told CNN. In an effort to limit its impact in the southeastern US during World War II, particularly around military training bases, the US created the Office of Malaria Control in War Areas in 1942. The April 1945 edition of the Malaria Control in War Areas field bulletin. Malaria was eliminated in the United States in 1951, but modern mosquito control is mostly managed locally. Oxitec also says it’s working on applying the approach to anopheles mosquitoes for malaria control as well.

Persons: ”, Janneth Rodrigues, Rodrigues, tsuruhatensis, National Institutes of Health’s Dr, Carolina, Dr, Peter McElroy ,, haven’t, McElroy, Wade Brennan, Chandan Khanna, “, ” McElroy, Daniel Markowski, ” Markowski, They’re, Markowski, Mury, Sanjay Gupta, Aedes, Oxitec, “ We’ve Organizations: CNN, GSK, Malaria, National Institutes of Health’s, of Malaria, Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy, US Centers for Disease Control, Prevention’s, Sarasota County Mosquito Management, of Malaria Control, CDC, American Mosquito Control Association, Public Health Service, National Library of Medicine, Getty, “, CNN Health, Google Locations: Tres Cantos, Madrid, Burkina Faso, Africa, United States, Sarasota, Sarasota , Florida, Atlanta, Sarasota County , Florida, Palm Beach County , Florida, Florida, New Jersey

☆ Fact Check-U.S. malaria outbreak in 2023 not caused by GM mosquitoes
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

(This story was corrected on July 27, 2023, to clarify that genetically modified mosquitoes were not released in Texas. The modified mosquitoes, which were released only in Florida, were all male, and only female mosquitoes feed on blood, which is how they transmit the malaria parasite from person to person, a mosquito-control expert said. Moreover, Markowski noted, only female mosquitoes “blood feed,” which needs to happen to transmit diseases like malaria, and the only genetically modified mosquitoes released are males, which feed only on plant juices and therefore cannot transmit malaria (explained further here). Reuters has previously addressed misinformation about uses of genetically modified mosquitoes (here), (here) and (here). Recent cases of malaria in the U.S. could not have been caused by the release of genetically modified mosquitoes.

Persons: they’re, Aedes aegypti, Daniel Markowski, Markowski, Oxitec, Joshua Van Raalte, “ Oxitec, Read Organizations: Oxitec, U.S . Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, Reuters, U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, American Mosquito Control Association Locations: Texas, Florida, Harris County , Texas, U.S, BioNTech, Florida and Texas, Saharan Africa, South Asia

☆ Fact Check-U.S. malaria outbreak in 2023 not caused by GM mosquitos
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The release of genetically modified mosquitos in Florida and Texas could not have caused recent cases of malaria detected in the U.S., as suggested in social media posts. The OX5034 mosquitos developed by Oxitec were approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2020 for pilot testing (here). Markowski noted that only female mosquitos “blood feed,” which needs to happen to transmit diseases like malaria, and the only genetically modified mosquitos being released are males, which feed only on plant juices and therefore cannot transmit malaria (explained further here). Reuters has previously addressed misinformation about uses of genetically modified mosquitos (here), (here) and (here). Recent cases of malaria in the U.S. could not have been caused by the release of genetically modified mosquitos.

Persons: they’re, mosquitos, Daniel Markowski, Markowski, Read Organizations: Oxitec, U.S . Environmental Protection Agency, Reuters, U.S . Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, American Mosquito Control Association Locations: Florida, Texas, U.S, BioNTech, Florida and Texas, Saharan Africa, South Asia

☆ U.S. officials say risk of locally acquired malaria remains low as nationwide cases jump to seven
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Annika Kim Constantino | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Joe Raedle | Getty ImagesU.S. public health officials say the risk of locally transmitted malaria in the country remains low as seven new cases in Florida and Texas raise questions. "Despite these cases, the risk of locally acquired malaria remains extremely low in the United States," the agency added. The seven are the first known cases of "locally acquired" malaria in the country since 2003. Health experts say the new locally acquired cases shouldn't warrant panic about widespread malaria transmission in the U.S. Here's what you need to know about the locally acquired malaria cases in the U.S. – and why the risk of transmission remains low right now.

Persons: Barrington Sanders, Joe Raedle, it's, vivax, Daniel Parker, –, Parker, Sadie Ryan, Ryan, Chandan Khanna, UC Irvine's Parker, we're, Rajiv Chowdhury, Chowdhury, Stephane de Sakutin Organizations: Miami - Dade Mosquito Control, Getty, Florida Department of Health, Centers for Disease Control, CDC, CNBC, UC Irvine, University of Florida, Florida Climate Institute, Local, Sarasota County Mosquito Management Services, AFP, UC, Florida International University Locations: Miami, Miami , Florida, Florida, Texas, Sarasota County, United States, U.S, Florida , Texas, Sarasota, Sarasota , Florida

☆ Nine new African countries to receive millions of malaria vaccines- GAVI
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 5 (Reuters) - Global vaccine alliance GAVI said on Wednesday 12 countries in Africa would receive 18 million doses of malaria vaccine over the next two years, expanding access to the shots to nine new countries in the region. Malaria remains one of the continent's deadliest diseases, killing nearly half a million children each year under the age of five. In 2021, Africa accounted for about 95% of global malaria cases and 96% of deaths, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). "At least 28 African countries have expressed interest in receiving the RTS,S (malaria) vaccine," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a media briefing, adding that a second malaria vaccine was under review for pre-qualification and if successful, could provide additional supply in the short term. The first doses of the RTS,S vaccine are expected to reach the 12 African countries during the last quarter of 2023, allowing them to start rolling out by early next year.

Persons: GAVI, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Raghav Mahobe, Shinjini Organizations: World Health Organization, WHO, GAVI, UNICEF, British, GSK, Democratic, Thomson Locations: Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Niger, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Bengaluru

☆ The mosquito era: As the world warms, these insects are thriving – and bringing disease
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

James Gathany/CDC/Handout/ReutersWhile serious mosquito-borne diseases remain rare in the US, other countries are not so lucky. While scientists are yet to assess the role climate change has played in the outbreak, Carlson said the links seem clear. But the shift of mosquito-borne diseases into regions like the US and Europe is still likely to be a shock. Scientists are working to develop tools to be able to better assess the link between mosquito-borne diseases and climate change. The path the world takes on reducing planet-heating pollution will lead to very different futures for mosquito-borne diseases, Brady said.

Persons: it’s, Edgar Su, ”, Oliver Brady, –, James Gathany, Colin Carlson, Carlson, I’m, Ernesto Benavides, Celine Gossner, ” Brady, “, Shannon LaDeau, they’ve, ” LaDeau, Jon Cherry, Gossner, Brady Organizations: CNN, US Centers for Disease Control, London School of Hygiene, Medicine, Climate Central, Georgetown University, Getty, European Centre for Disease Prevention, Carey Institute of Ecosystems Studies, Louisville Metro Department of Health, Wellness Locations: United States, Singapore, zika, West, Saharan Africa, Peru, Piura, AFP, Europe, “, Western Europe, China, Texas , Florida, Hawaii, Arizona, India, Louisville , Kentucky, Florida

☆ First U.S. malaria cases diagnosed in decades in Florida and Texas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Sharon Bernstein | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Tobias Schwarz//File PhotoJune 26 (Reuters) - Five cases of malaria have been confirmed in Florida and Texas, the first time the potentially fatal mosquito-borne disease has been locally acquired in the United States in 20 years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. The four Florida cases, along with one in Texas, have been diagnosed over a period of two months, the agency said. The state of Florida said that its first case was diagnosed on May 26 in Sarasota County, while officials in Texas said on June 23 that a Texas resident who worked outdoors in Cameron County had been diagnosed with the disease. The CDC said in an alert released Monday that malaria is considered a medical emergency, and that anyone with symptoms should be "urgently evaluated." However, the CDC said that risk of malaria remains low in the United States, and that most cases are acquired when people travel outside of the country.

Persons: Tobias Schwarz, Sharon Bernstein, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, Centers for Disease Control, Prevention, CDC, Thomson Locations: Leipzig, Florida, Texas, United States, Sarasota County, Cameron County, Africa

☆ The US documented 3 locally transmitted malaria cases for the first time in 20 years. It's not a reason to panic, but sheds a light on the concerns of climate change
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Three cases of malaria spread locally have been identified in Texas and Florida. But in Texas, the Department of State Health Services confirmed Friday that a person working outdoors in Cameron County, Texas, contracted malaria locally. According to the DSHS, although Texas sees about 120 malaria cases a year from international travelers, the last locally acquired case in Texas was detected in 1994. About 1,400 miles away in Sarasota County, Florida, however, two more cases of locally transmitted malaria infections have been identified this year — one in May and one in June. "And I think we should be funding more public health responses."

Persons: —, Vox, Photini Sinnis, Johns, Sinnis, it's, mosquitos Organizations: Service, Department of State Health Services, Johns Hopkins Malaria Research Institute, WHO Locations: Texas, Florida, Southern, Cameron County , Texas, Sarasota County , Florida, States, United States, mosquitos

☆ These images aren’t real, but for some refugees they depict a painful truth
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( Hilary Whiteman | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +14 min

For some, Australia’s approach has been seen as a model, particularly in the United Kingdom, which wants to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda. As AI images, they’re powerful and controversial, not least due to fears they could be mistaken for real images in a world awash with false and misleading information. Amnesty International was recently called out for using AI images in a report to depict protesters in Colombia that critics said undermined its credibility as a news source. The refugee AI images were created partly because no “real” alternative existed – partly due to distance but also restrictions on media access and early bans on mobile phones. But the use of fake images to visualize accounts raises questions about when it’s acceptable to create AI images and how they should be presented.

Persons: Ian Rintoul, ”, I’m, It’s, Saman, “ I’m, Maurice Blackburn, they’d, –, Jennifer Kanis, Maurice Blackburn “, “, we’d, Behrouz Boochani, Kim Wade, Wade, Gavin, Kanis Organizations: Australia CNN, Asylum Seeker Resource, Refugee, Coalition, United Nations, CNN, High, Amnesty, Guardian, University of Warwick, Howatson, Australia’s Home Affairs Department, “, Papua New, Papua New Guinea Government Locations: Brisbane, Australia, Nauru, Manus, Papua New Guinea, United Kingdom, Rwanda, Pakistan, United States, New Zealand, Indonesia, Colombia, Papua

☆ Oxford malaria vaccine rollout could have 'major' implications in sub-Saharan Africa, economist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The University of Oxford Jenner Institute, which developed the vaccine, estimates that malaria kills around 800,000 people per annum. These casualties occur predominantly in sub-Saharan Africa, where one in five childhood deaths is associated with the disease. The WHO assessed that 241 million clinical cases of malaria occurred in 2020, resulting in 627,000 deaths, mostly among children in Africa. A health worker vaccinates a child against malaria in Ndhiwa, Homabay County, western Kenya on September 13, 2019 during the launch of malaria vaccine in Kenya. Brian Ongoro | AFP | Getty ImagesIn 2021, the WHO signed off on GSK's RTS,S malaria vaccine for rollout across sub-Saharan Africa, following pilot programs in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi, which tracked 800,000 children since 2019.

☆ Candida auris is just one infection fueled by rising temperatures. See how extreme climate helps spread disease, in 3 simple charts.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Climate change may be driving the rapid spread of Candida auris, a deadly fungus, across the US. Three charts show how extreme weather and environmental changes help spread disease. Nicolas Armer/picture alliance via Getty ImagesA leading theory on this fungus's sudden emergence and wide spread is that it's fueled by climate change. Whatever survives, however, is adapted to extreme heat — including the fever our bodies produce to kill off pathogens. David Ryder/Getty ImagesHumans and their infrastructure are more vulnerable to the devastating impacts of disease when they're compromised by extreme weather.

☆ Davos 2023: Climate change leads to more malaria, tuberculosis up in a recession
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Leela De Kretser | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Climate change is increasing malaria infections, the executive director of the world's biggest health fund said in Davos on Monday. Huge surges in malaria infections followed recent floods in Pakistan and cyclones in Mozambique in 2021, said Peter Sands, the executive director of the Global Fund to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. He said climate change was also changing the geography of mosquitoes. Sands runs the world's largest global fund, which invests in fighting tuberculosis, malaria and HIV/AIDS in some of the poorest nations in the world. Looking ahead, climate change is just one of the factors that could hamper efforts to eradicate the diseases, Sands said.

☆ BioNTech starts human trial to test malaria vaccine
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationBERLIN, Dec 23 (Reuters) - BioNTech (22UAy.DE) on Friday initiated an early-stage study to evaluate its experimental malaria vaccine in humans, the German drugmaker said. The Phase 1 trial is expected to enrol 60 volunteers in the United States with no history of malaria to assess the vaccine candidate at three-dose levels. Known as BNT165b1, it is the first vaccine candidate from BioNTech's malaria project, which will also establish vaccine production in Africa. Another keenly-watched effort is a malaria vaccine from Oxford University. BioNTech's malaria vaccine effort is based on its mRNA technology, which was employed during the pandemic to quickly develop COVID-19 vaccines, by prompting the human body to make a protein that is part of the pathogen, triggering an immune response.

☆ Malaria deaths dip in 2021 after rising in first year of COVID, says WHO
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Pratik Jain | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Estimated deaths from malaria globally declined to 619,000 last year from 625,000 in 2020 as healthcare services stabilized after pandemic-led disruptions, especially in Africa where the disease is most prevalent, the WHO stated in its World Malaria Report 2022. Four countries - Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Niger and Tanzania - accounted for just over half of all malaria deaths globally in 2021. The decline in deaths comes even as the number of malaria infections continued to rise, albeit at a slower pace, to an estimated 247 million in 2021. The WHO also highlighted that lower funding due to the pandemic and rising costs have increased pressure on national malaria programmes. Funding in 2021 came in at nearly $3.5 billion, the report said, compared with a required investment of $7.3 billion.

☆ Uganda applies well-honed lessons to new Ebola outbreak
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Mithil Aggarwal | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

Now, the East African country — lauded for its coronavirus response, which was built around engaging the community and training health officials — is drawing lessons from the first Ebola outbreak in 2004. “They alerted the WHO early and put in the basic pillars of a response early,” Dr. Benjamin Black, an obstetrician, said recalling the West African Ebola response from 2014 to 2016. But Ghebreyesus said Wednesday a clinical trial of vaccines to combat the Sudan species of the Ebola virus could start within weeks. “There’s burnout amongst health workers, health officials and the public across the board in Uganda,” Agoada said. The threadlike Ebola virus spreads when it comes in contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids.

☆ ‘Africa on its own’: Little help in epidemics, says official
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-13 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Africa must plan to respond effectively to disease outbreaks without international help, a top public health official said Wednesday, warning that the continent of 1.3 billion people is “on its own” during pandemics. “This is not the first outbreak of the Sudan strain of Ebola virus here in Africa and particularly here in Uganda,” he said. He said no help has come to Africa, where more monkeypox deaths have been reported this year than anywhere in the world. “Recently, during the pandemic, when we saw the number of monkeypox cases growing here in Africa, we issued a global alert but no help came to Africa,” he said. “In fact, today, as we see the tail end of the pandemic, there’s still no help coming to Africa for monkeypox.

☆ Ancient bodies of 'vampires' were buried with rocks in their mouths to stop them returning from the dead
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Many people thought this could be stopped by putting a stone or brick in the mouths, experts said. 'Vampires' were thought to eat their way out of the grave, unless something hard stopped them. These body were not completely dead and were captured by some demonic influence," said Borrini, describing the old beliefs. This one was buried in a child cemetery on the site of the Poggio Gramignano ancient Roman villa in Teverina, Italy. Borrini defines a "vampire" as a dead person rising from the dead as a body.

Search resuls for: "of Malaria"

25 mentions found