scholarly journals Emerging Infectious Diseases in Pregnant Women in a Non-Endemic Area: Almost One Out of Four Is at Risk

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Giulia Modi ◽  
Beatrice Borchi ◽  
Susanna Giaché ◽  
Irene Campolmi ◽  
Michele Trotta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
At Risk ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Health Care Professionals ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Plasmodium Falciparum Malaria ◽  
Emerging Infectious Disease ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan

We report the results of a targeted testing strategy for five emerging infectious diseases (Chagas disease, human T-lymphotropic virus 1 infection, malaria, schistosomiasis, and Zika virus infection) in pregnant women accessing an Italian referral centre for infectious diseases in pregnancy for unrelated reasons. The strategy is based on a quick five-question questionnaire which allows the identification of pregnant women at risk who should be tested for a specific disease. One hundred and three (24%) out of 429 pregnant women evaluated in a 20 month period were at risk for at least one emerging infectious disease. Three (2.9%, all from sub-Saharan Africa) out of 103 at-risk women resulted in being affected (one case of Plasmodium falciparum malaria, two cases of schistosomiasis) and were appropriately managed. Prevalence of emerging infectious disease was particularly high in pregnant women from Africa (three out of 25 pregnant women tested, 12%). The proposed strategy could be used by health care professionals managing pregnant women in non-endemic setting, to identify those at risk for one of the five infection which could benefit for a targeted test and treatment.

scholarly journals Human factors in emerging infectious diseases

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-29 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott B. Halstead
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Human Factors ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Emerging Infectious Disease ◽  
Emerging Disease ◽  
Human Behaviour ◽  
Microbial World ◽  
Underlying Causes ◽  
Methods Of Control

When the underlying causes and mechanisms of emerging infectious disease problems are studied carefully, human behaviour is often involved. Even more often, the only methods of control or prevention available are to change human behaviour. Several major recent emerging disease problems can be cited. It is sometimes emphasized that it is human carelessness, human excesses, human ignorance or human habits of conquest or leisure which contribute directly to the biological niches that microorganisms are all too capable of exploiting. We must look at ourselves as the engines of microbial opportunism. It is not likely that we will ever conquer the microbial world;we must look instead to control the human factors that contribute to emergence.

scholarly journals Severe Case of Plasmodium falciparum Malaria in a Pregnant Woman from Nigeria

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-3
Author(s):  
Kruti Yagnik ◽  
Bilal Farooqi ◽  
Molly W. Mandernach ◽  
Anthony P. Cannella ◽  
Gautam Kalyatanda
Keyword(s):  
Pregnant Women ◽  
Severe Malaria ◽  
Plasmodium Falciparum Malaria ◽  
Severe Case ◽  
Pregnant Patient ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Blood Parasites ◽  
Intrauterine Pregnancy ◽  
Drug Of Choice ◽  
Sub Saharan

Human malaria has arguably affected more of human history than any other pathogen. Pregnant women have a higher risk of developing severe malaria as well as the risk of severe complications. We present a case of severe malaria in a pregnant patient from sub-Saharan Africa who was treated successfully with artesunate. A 28-year-old Nigerian woman with a 20-week intrauterine pregnancy presented with a five-day history of fever and diffuse joint pains. Evaluation of peripheral thin blood smear demonstrated a parasitemia of 9.8%. The patient was admitted to the intensive care unit, and oral clindamycin/quinine was initiated until intravenous artesunate was obtained. The patient completed four doses of IV artesunate, and after the 4th dose of artesunate, no blood parasites were seen on peripheral smear. The patient was discharged home and, upon clinic follow-up, did not have any further complications associated with either her disease or therapy. A review on the treatment of severe malaria in all trimesters of pregnancy supports the WHO recommendation for intravenous artesunate as the drug of choice. This case illustrates the importance of recognizing malaria in pregnant women from endemic countries and shows that artesunate compounds can be used safely in pregnancy, particularly with high parasitemia.

scholarly journals Infectious disease, development, and climate change: a scenario analysis

2007 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 687-706 ◽  
Author(s):  
RICHARD S.J. TOL ◽  
KRISTIE L. EBI ◽  
GARY W. YOHE
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Infant Mortality ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Absolute Poverty ◽  
Control Programs ◽  
Short Run ◽  
Sub Saharan

We study the effects of development and climate change on infectious diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa. Infant mortality and infectious disease are closely related, but there are better data for the former. In an international cross-section, per capita income, literacy, and absolute poverty significantly affect infant mortality. We use scenarios of these three determinants and of climate change to project the future incidence of malaria, assuming it to change proportionally to infant mortality. Malaria deaths will first increase, because of population growth and climate change, but then fall, because of development. This pattern is robust to the choice of scenario, parameters, and starting conditions; and it holds for diarrhoea, schistosomiasis, and dengue fever as well. However, the timing and level of the mortality peak is very sensitive to assumptions. Climate change is important in the medium term, but dominated in the long term by development. As climate can only be changed with a substantial delay, development is the preferred strategy to reduce infectious diseases even if they are exacerbated by climate change. Development can, in particular, support the needed strengthening of disease control programs in the short run and thereby increase the capacity to cope with projected increases in infectious diseases over the medium to long term. This conclusion must, however, be viewed with caution, because development, even of the sort envisioned in the underlying socio-economic scenarios, is by no means certain.

scholarly journals Factors Influencing Intentions to Care For Emerging Infectious Disease Patients among National and Public Hospitals Nurses

2021 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-22
Author(s):  
Hea-Jin Moon ◽  
Ju Young Park
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Social Support ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Pearson Correlation ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Emerging Infectious Disease ◽  
Public Hospitals ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Moral Sensitivity ◽  
Epidemiological Characteristics

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the effect of nurses' nursing professionalism, moral sensitivity, and social support on intention to care for patients with emerging infectious diseases.Methods: A structured self-report questionnaire was used to measure nursing professionalism, moral sensitivity, social support, and intention to care for patients with emerging infectious diseases. Data were collected from April 9~20, 2019. Participants were 200 nurse nurses working in national and public hospitals. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficients, and Multiple regression with the SPSS/WIN 24.0 program.Results: The perceived behavioral control (β=.48, p<.001), control beliefs (β=-.26, p<.001), moral sensitivity (β=.23, p<.001), normative beliefs (β=.17, p=.002), subjective norms (β=.17, p=.001), and attitude toward behavior (β=.10, p=.036) were a significant predictor of the intention to care for emerging infectious disease patients (Adj. R<sup>2</sup>=.65).Conclusion: In order to confidently carry out nursing activities for patients with emerging infectious diseases, sufficient education on the epidemiological characteristics of emerging infectious diseases must be provided and education programs developed and applied with simulation similar to those of actual care for emerging infectious disease patients.

scholarly journals Risk Factors for Infectious Diseases in Urban Environments of Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Critical Appraisal of Evidence

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew R. Boyce ◽  
Rebecca Katz ◽  
Claire J. Standley
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Risk Factors ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Disease Risk ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Health Systems Strengthening ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Original Research ◽  
African Countries ◽  
Sub Saharan

Our world is rapidly urbanizing. According to the United Nations, between 1990 and 2015, the percent of the world’s population living in urban areas grew from 43% to 54%. Estimates suggest that this trend will continue and that over 68% of the world’s population will call cities home by 2050, with the majority of urbanization occurring in African countries. This urbanization is already having a profound effect on global health and could significantly impact the epidemiology of infectious diseases. A better understanding of infectious disease risk factors specific to urban settings is needed to plan for and mitigate against future urban outbreaks. We conducted a systematic literature review of the Web of Science and PubMed databases to assess the risk factors for infectious diseases in the urban environments of sub-Saharan Africa. A search combining keywords associated with cities, migration, African countries, infectious disease, and risk were used to identify relevant studies. Original research and meta-analyses published between 2004 and 2019 investigating geographical and behavioral risk factors, changing disease distributions, or control programs were included in the study. The search yielded 3610 papers, and 106 met the criteria for inclusion in the analysis. Papers were categorized according to risk factors, geographic area, and study type. The papers covered 31 countries in sub-Saharan Africa with East Africa being the most represented sub-region. Malaria and HIV were the most frequent disease focuses of the studies. The results of this work can inform public health policy as it relates to capacity building and health systems strengthening in rapidly urbanizing areas, as well as highlight knowledge gaps that warrant additional research.

scholarly journals Genetics of Sub-Saharan African Human Population: Implications for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gerald Mboowa
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Genetic Diversity ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Susceptible Host ◽  
Host Genetics ◽  
Evolutionary Forces ◽  
Host Genetic ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Hiv Aids

Sub-Saharan Africa has continued leading in prevalence and incidence of major infectious disease killers such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Epidemiological triad of infectious diseases includes susceptible host, pathogen, and environment. It is imperative that all aspects of vertices of the infectious disease triad are analysed to better understand why this is so. Studies done to address this intriguing reality though have mainly addressed pathogen and environmental components of the triad. Africa is the most genetically diverse region of the world as well as being the origin of modern humans. Malaria is relatively an ancient infection in this region as compared to TB and HIV/AIDS; from the evolutionary perspective, we would draw lessons that this ancestrally unique population now under three important infectious diseases both ancient and exotic will be skewed into increased genetic diversity; moreover, other evolutionary forces are also still at play. Host genetic diversity resulting from many years of malaria infection has been well documented in this population; we are yet to account for genetic diversity from the trio of these infections. Effect of host genetics on treatment outcome has been documented. Host genetics of sub-Saharan African population and its implication to infectious diseases are an important aspect that this review seeks to address.

scholarly journals Australian Biosecurity CRC for Emerging Infectious Diseases (AB-CRC)

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 38
Author(s):  
John S Mackenzie ◽  
Lisa Adams
Keyword(s):  
Infectious Disease ◽  
Infectious Diseases ◽  
Federal Government ◽  
Emerging Infectious Diseases ◽  
Geographic Range ◽  
Emerging Infectious Disease ◽  
Emerging Diseases ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Cooperative Research

The Australian Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre for Emerging Infectious Disease (AB-CRC) was a successful applicant under the Federal Government?s 2002 CRC programme, and will be formally established from July 2003. The aim of the AB-CRC is to protect Australia?s health, livestock, wildlife and economic resources by developing new capabilities to monitor, assess, predict and respond to emerging and exotic disease threats which impact on national and regional biosecurity. Emerging diseases are defined as those which are novel, previously unrecognised diseases, or those which are increasing in incidence or geographic range. The threats may be natural, accidental (such as an infected traveller) or deliberate (as in bioterrorism).

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