Most big cities around the world are above World Health Organization-recommended safe levels of particular matter in the air, with 42 percent at dangerously high levels, and only 8 percent within safe limits, a new study finds. At just 2.5 microns in size or smaller, fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is “a leading environmental health risk” […] Continue reading ->
80 percent of people with viral hepatitis lack access to services for prevention, testing & treatment. To address this gap, the World Health Organization calls on countries to invest in scaling up hepatitis services as part of their universal health coverage (UHC) plans. On the occasion of World Hepatitis Day (28 July), WHO raised alarm […] Continue reading ->
[DNDi Press Release] Geneva/New Delhi – 22 July 2019 The results of an innovative “infectivity” study conducted by the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh (icddr,b) confirm that people successfully treated for visceral leishmaniasis in South Asia can still infect others if they develop a skin condition known […] Continue reading ->
An estimated 820 million people went hungry in 2018, the third continuous year in a worldwide trend of rising hunger. And over one-quarter of the world’s population, or 2 billion people in all, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity, according to the The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report for 2019. […] Continue reading ->
[WHO news release] Three quarters of people living with epilepsy in low-income countries do not get the treatment they need, increasing their risk of dying prematurely and condemning many to a life of stigma. These findings are part of a first-ever global report on Epilepsy, a public health imperative, released today by WHO and two […] Continue reading ->
The proportion of the world’s population using safely managed sanitation services increased from 28-45% between 2000 and 2017, according to the latest joint report of the World Health Organization and UNICEF on Progress in Household Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene. However, huge service gaps still remain, with 4.2 billion people worldwide still lacking access to […] Continue reading ->
A major agreement has been signed between Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and two private sector partners to deploy a new form of biometric fingerprint technology to give children – who may not even have a birth certificate – a complete medical record in order to track critical childhood vaccines. Image Credits: Simprints, Simprints . Continue reading ->
To reach the 2025 global target on reducing the prevalence of low birthweight, a condition that impacts lifelong health and disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries, the world needs to double its current rate of progress, a new study finds. Image Credits: UNICEF. Continue reading ->
Child vaccination targets of at least 80 percent coverage in low- and middle-income countries, are regularly being missed. To better understand why this is happening, a new study created high resolution maps of vaccine coverage to identify disparities within countries and to inform effective strategies to increase coverage and access. Image Credits: WHO. Continue reading ->
Global health policymakers need to adopt a “bench-to-bedside” approach to research and development, to ensure that new drugs and vaccines are not only put into the development pipeline, but are also readily available for responding to global health crises such as Ebola, says Michelle Childs of the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi). Image Credits: […] Continue reading ->