The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene
-
Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jul 2020
ReviewApplication of Schistosomiasis Consortium for Operational Research and Evaluation Study Findings to Refine Predictive Modeling of Schistosoma mansoni and Schistosoma haematobium Control in Sub-Saharan Africa.
An essential mission of the Schistosomiasis Consortium for Operational Research and Evaluation (SCORE) was to help inform global health practices related to the control and elimination of schistosomiasis. To provide more accurate, evidence-based projections of the most likely impact of different control interventions, whether implemented alone or in combination, SCORE supported mathematical modeling teams to provide simulations of community-level Schistosoma infection outcomes in the setting of real or hypothetical programs implementing multiyear mass drug administration (MDA) for parasite control. These models were calibrated using SCORE experience with Schistosoma mansoni and Schistosoma haematobium gaining and sustaining control studies, and with data from comparable programs that used community-based or school-based praziquantel MDA in other parts of sub-Saharan Africa. ⋯ Starting in 2014, SCORE modeling projections were also compared with the models of colleagues in the Neglected Tropical Diseases Modelling Consortium. To explore further possible improvement to program-based control, later simulations examined the cost-effectiveness of combining MDA with environmental snail control, and the utility of early impact assessment to more quickly identify persistent hot spots of transmission. This article provides a nontechnical summary of the 11 SCORE-related modeling projects and provides links to the original open-access articles describing model development and projections relevant to schistosomiasis control policy.
-
Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jul 2020
COVID-19 Mitigation Steps Provide a Blueprint for Malaria Control and Elimination.
Most countries around the world have responded promptly to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) challenge by adopting considered and scientifically guided strategies for its containment. However, the situation is more complex for nations where malaria is endemic, as they now have the additional burden of COVID-19. In such nations, the healthcare systems are either in the preparatory or containment phase of the current pandemic. ⋯ Nonetheless, we feel that the best facets of COVID-19 public health management can become new guiding principles in malaria-endemic countries to improve malaria control and hasten malaria elimination. Redirection against malaria of the best public health initiatives used in COVID-19 containment could fast-track the global goal of a malaria-free world. Such public health advancement could be one positive outcome from the scourge of COVID-19.
-
Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jul 2020
Recommendations for the COVID-19 Response at the National Level Based on Lessons Learned from the Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The tenth outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in North Kivu, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), was declared 8 days after the end of the ninth EVD outbreak, in the Equateur Province on August 1, 2018. With a total of 3,461 confirmed and probable cases, the North Kivu outbreak was the second largest outbreak after that in West Africa in 2014-2016, and the largest observed in the DRC. ⋯ It took more than 21 months to control the outbreak, with critical innovations and systems put into place. We describe systems that were put into place during the EVD response in the DRC that can be leveraged for the response to the current COVID-19 global pandemic.
-
Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg. · Jul 2020
Concealment of Potential Exposure to COVID-19 and Its Impact on Outbreak Control: Lessons from the HIV Response.
Globally, more than 4 million people have been infected with COVID-19, and more than 300,000 deaths have been reported across 188 countries. Concealment of one's potential exposure to the virus has negative implications for the spread of COVID-19 across the socio-ecological spectrum, including the futility of contact-tracing efforts, exposure of frontline staff, and the spread of COVID-19 in the community. We draw lessons learned from HIV to discuss stigma and the attribution of blame surrounding the phenomenon of concealment of one's potential exposure to COVID-19 using a socio-ecological perspective. This article also illustrates the psychosocial aspect of the disease, and the negative repercussions of concealment of potential exposure on transmission in the community and to front-liners, healthcare resources, and outbreak containment.
-
Because of the pandemic of COVID-19, the federal government of Nigeria has instituted a mandatory policy requiring everyone going out in public to wear face masks. Unfortunately, the Nigeria media is awash with images of misuse and abuse of face masks by the public, government officials, and healthcare workers. Medical masks are used widely in community settings amid reported scarcity within healthcare facilities. ⋯ Inappropriate use and disposal of face masks in Nigeria could promote the spread of the novel coronavirus in the country and negate the country's efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. In the implementation of the universal masking policy in Nigeria, federal and state governments ought to consider local applicability, feasibility, and sustainability, as well as identify and mitigate all potential risks and unintended consequences. Also critical is the need for intensive public sensitization and education on appropriate use and disposal of face masks in the country.