Malaria

What is Malaria?

 

Malaria is a life-threatening parasitic disease that is transmitted from person to person through the bite of a mosquito.

 

Who is at risk?

 

40% of the world’s population! Though the disease has successfully been eliminated from countries with more temperate climates, it still exists in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world…some of the poorest regions of the world.

 

 

Between 350 million and 500 million people are infected every year.

 

The disease is estimated to cause at least one million deaths annually.

 

90% of these deaths occur in Africa.

 

Most of those who die from the disease are children. Every 30 seconds an African child dies of Malaria.

 

The Economics

 

The disease is not only associated with poverty, but more importantly, with the prospect of economic development.

 

At least one study estimate the disease is costing Africa about $12 billion a year in economic output. (Factored into this is cost of health care, working days lost due to sickness, days lost in education, decreased productivity due to brain damage from cerebral malaria, and loss of investment and tourism.)

 

The disease it taking its toll on the future as it affects children's schooling and social development through both absenteeism and permanent neurological damage.

 

An on-going fight

 

There is no “cure” for malaria, and many people doubt there will ever be one.

 

Malaria parasites are growing resistant to the drugs that are currently used to combat it

 

Many insecticides are no longer useful against mosquitoes transmitting the disease.

 

Still, the disease is preventable.

 

Effective low-cost strategies are available for its treatment, prevention and control.

 

What’s being done?

 

Dozens of organizations dedicated helping, hundreds of millions of dollars in grant money.

 

Still, it’s not enough. Just the cost of treatment alone in 2008 is estimated to be $938 million.

 

 

Sources:

 

Roll Back Malaria. http://www.rbm.who.int/cmc_upload/0/000/015/372/RBMInfosheet_1.htm

Malaria and Extreme Poverty. http://www.millenniumpromise.org/site/PageServer?pagename=malaria_poverty

FP6 Malaria Initiative. http://www.antimal.eu/overview.htm

 

 

 

Tuberculosis

 

 

General

 

·         Most commonly attacks lungs (pulmonary TB) but also affects systemic systems (central nervous system, lymphatic system, circulatory system, genitourinary system, bones, joints, and skin)

·         Symptoms: chest pain, coughing up blood, prolonged cough; fever, chills, night sweats, appetite loss, weight loss, pallor, fatigue

·         Over 1/3 of the world’s population has been exposed to the TB bacterium

·         Infections occur at a rate of one per second. Deaths occur at a rate of one per 18 seconds

·         Not everyone infected develops the full-blown disease – asymptotic TB is most common – however, one in ten will progress to active TB which kills half of its victims if left untreated

·         2004 – 8.9 million new cases, 14.6 million existing cases, 1.6 million deaths

·         Most deaths occur in developing countries, however, developed countries also suffer because of lower immune systems (substance abuse, HIV/AIDS) – TB is the leading cause of death among people who are HIV-positive

 

 

 

Transmission

 

·         Contagious like the common cold – spreads through the air – cough, sneeze, talk, spit – VERY contagious, only a small number of bacilli needed to infect

·         Only people who are sick with TB in their lungs are contagious

·         If left untreated, each person with TB will infect 10-15 people per year

 

 

 

Estimated TB Incidence, Prevalence and Mortality, 2005

 

	Incidencea				Prevalencea		TB Mortality
	All forms		Smear-positiveb
WHO region	number (thousands)	per 100 000 pop	number (thousands)	per 100 000 pop	number (thousands)	per 100 000 pop	number (thousands)	per 100 000 pop
	(% of global total)
Africa	2 529 (29)	343	1 088	147	3 773	511	544	74
The Americas	352 (4)	39	157	18	448	50	49	5.5
Eastern Mediterranean	565 (6)	104	253	47	881	163	112	21
Europe	445 (5)	50	199	23	525	60	66	7.4
South-East Asia	2 993 (34)	181	1 339	81	4 809	290	512	31
Western Pacific	1 927 (22)	110	866	49	3 616	206	295	17
Global	8 811 (100)	136	3 902	60	14 052	217	1 577	24

^aIncidence - new cases arising in given period; prevalence - the number of cases which exist in the population at a given point in time.

^bSmear-positive cases are those confirmed by smear microscopy, and are the most infectious cases.

 

 

 

World TB Incidence, 2005 (Cases per 100,000)

 

Red = >300, orange = 200-300; yellow = 100-200; green 50-100 and grey <50

 

 

 

Treatment

 

·         Until 50 years ago, there were no medicines to treat TB.

·         Strains resistant to a single drug have been documented in every country – some caused by inconsistent or partial treatment – requires chemotherapy to treat AND second-line drugs that are much more expensive

·         Strains resistant to all major anti-TB drugs are emerging

 

 

 

Prevention

 

·         Vaccines – 80% effective prevention for infants, no vaccine that provides reliable resistance for adults

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources

 

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/GlobalHealth/Pri_Diseases/Tuberculosis/TB_Backgrounder.htm

 

 

 

World Health Organization

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs104/en/

 

 

 

 

AIDs and HIV

 

General Info

 

AIDS = Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome

 

HIV = Human Immunodeficiency Virus

 

-          If a person has HIV, it does not mean that they have AIDS

 

-          Opportunistic infections

 

 

 

AIDS/HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa

 

-          Nearly 2/3 of all people infected with HIV can be found in Sub-Saharan Africa, although this region contains little more than 10% of the world’s population (www.avert.org)

 

-          During 2006 alone, an estimated 2.1 million adults and children died from AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa (www.avert.org)

 

Health Care Effects

 

-          Brings extra pressure on health sector in the regions

 

-          In sub-Saharan Africa, the direct medical costs of AIDS (excluding antiretroviral therapy) have been estimated at about US$30 per year for every person infected, at a time when overall public health spending is less than US$10 per year for most African countries (2002 – UN AIDS Report)

 

-          In sub-Saharan Africa, people with HIV-related diseases occupy more than half of all hospital beds (2006 – UN AIDS Report)

 

-          It is predicted that patients affected by HIV and AIDS will soon account for 60-70% of hospital expenditure in South Africa (www.avert.org)

 

-          Putting a massive strain on hospitals who don’t have funding or space for all the patients

 

-          AIDS/HIV affecting medical workers as well – not many to begin with

 

o   Botswana, for example, lost 17% of its healthcare workforce due to AIDS between 1999 and 2005 (www.avert.org)

 

Family/Household Effects

 

-          AIDS epidemic adds to food insecurity à agricultural work is neglected or abandoned due to household illness (www.avert.org)

 

-          It is thought that by 2020, Malawi’s agricultural workforce will be 14% smaller than it would have been without HIV and AIDS.

 

-          In other countries, such as Mozambique, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe, the reduction is likely to be over 20%. (2006 - UN AIDS Report)

 

-          The financial burden of death can also be considerable, with some families in South Africa spending three times their total household monthly income on a funeral (2003)

 

-          It is estimated that, on average, HIV-related care can absorb one-third of a household’s monthly income (2002)

 

-          More children have been orphaned by AIDS in Africa than anywhere else in the world (www.avert.org)

 

-          With adults getting sick from AIDS, children must take on the labor roles for the family (www.avert.org)

 

Education Effects

 

-          AIDS has circular effect on education à people affected with AIDS do not have money to pay for schooling (www.avert.org)

 

-          Studies have suggested that young people with little or no education may be 2.2 times more likely to contract HIV as those who have completed primary education (2004)

 

 

 

Life Expectancy Effects

 

-          A recent study found that the average life expectancy of individuals living in sub-Saharan Africa has fallen by five years since the early 1990s, mainly because of AIDS (2006)

 

-          In Swaziland it has been estimated that life expectancy at birth, which is currently just 33, would be 66 without AIDS (2005)

 

 

 

HIV and AIDS statistics as of November 2007

 

REGION	Adults (15+) and children living with HIV	Adults (15+) and children newly infected with HIV	Adults (15 – 49) prevalence (%)	Adults (15+) and child death due to AIDS	No. of Orphans
Sub-Saharan Africa	22.5 million	1.7 million	5.0	1.6 million	11.4 million
World	33.2 million	2.5 million	0.8	2.1 million
Africa’s Burden	68%	68%		76%

 

-          Women especially bear a dispropor­tionate part of the AIDS burden in Sub-Saharan Africa - the majority of people living with HIV are women (61%)

 

-          A morbid “equilibrium” has been reached across Sub-Saharan Africa – the number of newly infected people nearly equals the number of people dying due to AIDS

 

 

Key Issues in HIV/AIDS

 

Mitigation of gender inequalities and feminization of the HIV epidemic continue to be one of the most needed strategic areas of intervention

 

Scaling up existing tools and methods, as well as providing innovative and effective prevention tools that incorporate a gender-perspective is a priority.

 

Although financing for HIV/AIDS programs has increased to US$8.9 billion in 2007, significant funding gaps still exist.

 

HIV/AIDS is recognized as regional public good and a cross-border issue, requiring inter-country cooperation to track the epidemic, prevent the spread of drug resistance, and sufficiently address refugee and mobile populations, and transport corridors.

 

 

 

What people are doing…

 

-          In partnership with UNAIDS, ACTafrica launched specialized Technical Support Teams (TST) to improve AIDS support programs

 

-          Medical help and supplies are being supplied to Africa more and more

 

-          Red Campaign – products – raised a Global Fund of $100 million

 

-          ONE Organization – fighting AIDS and poverty

 

 

Video

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Other Research

 

 

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation website is great on the different, more prominent diseases

 

Random Facts:

• AIDS/HIV - Nearly 40 million people around the world are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Almost 2.8 million die of the disease each year, 95 percent of them in the developing world. Close to five million people become infected with HIV each year.
• Malaria - About 40 percent of the world's people live in areas with mosquitoes that carry malaria parasites. Between 350 million and 500 million of these people are infected with malaria every year, and more than 1 million of those who become infected—the vast majority of them children in Africa—die from what is a preventable disease.
• TB now kills one person every 18 seconds
• Poor nutrition is a leading cause underlying death in the developing world.

 

 

**Leading Causes of Death in Children Under Five Years of Age, Estimates for 2000-2003 ****(Source: World Health Organization, The World Health Report 2005)
Rank	Cause	Numbers (thousands per year)	% of all deaths
1	Neonatal causes	3,910	37
2	Acute respiratory infections	2,027	19
3	Diarrheal diseases	1,762	17
4	Malaria	853	8
5	Measles	395	4
6	HIV/AIDS	321	3
7	Injuries	305	3
	Other causes	1,022	10
	Total	10,596	100.0

Source: Center for Disease Control and Prevention

 

bod_deathbyregion.xls -- Probably unecessarily indepth stats, but pretty interesting projections based on Region.