Journal articles on the topic 'Ebola virus disease – Political aspects'
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Stellmach, Darryl, Isabel Beshar, Juliet Bedford, Philipp du Cros, and Beverley Stringer. "Anthropology in public health emergencies:what is anthropology good for?" BMJ Global Health 3, no. 2 (March 2018): e000534. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2017-000534.
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Recent outbreaks of Ebola virus disease (2013–2016) and Zika virus (2015–2016) bring renewed recognition of the need to understand social pathways of disease transmission and barriers to care. Social scientists, anthropologists in particular, have been recognised as important players in disease outbreak response because of their ability to assess social, economic and political factors in local contexts. However, in emergency public health response, as with any interdisciplinary setting, different professions may disagree over methods, ethics and the nature of evidence itself. A disease outbreak is no place to begin to negotiate disciplinary differences. Given increasing demand for anthropologists to work alongside epidemiologists, clinicians and public health professionals in health crises, this paper gives a basic introduction to anthropological methods and seeks to bridge the gap in disciplinary expectations within emergencies. It asks: ‘What can anthropologists do in a public health crisis and how do they do it?’ It argues for an interdisciplinary conception of emergency and the recognition that social, psychological and institutional factors influence all aspects of care.
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Saxena, Abha, Paul André Bouvier, Ehsan Shamsi-Gooshki, Johannes Köhler, and Lisa J. Schwartz. "WHO guidance on ethics in outbreaks and the COVID-19 pandemic: a critical appraisal." Journal of Medical Ethics 47, no. 6 (March 31, 2021): 367–73. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/medethics-2020-106959.
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In 2016, following pandemic influenza threats and the 2014–2016 Ebola virus disease outbreaks, the WHO developed a guidance document for managing ethical issues in infectious disease outbreaks. In this article, we analyse some ethical issues that have had a predominant role in decision making in response to the current COVID-19 pandemic but were absent or not addressed in the same ways in the 2016 guidance document. A pandemic results in a health crisis and social and political crises both nationally and globally. The ethical implications of these global effects should be properly identified so that appropriate actions can be taken globally and not just in national isolation. Our analysis, which is a starting point to test the broader relevance of the 2016 WHO document that remains the only available guidance document applicable globally, concludes that the WHO guidance should be updated to provide reasoned and thoughtful comprehensive ethics advice for the sound management of the current and future pandemics.
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Obeng-Odoom, Franklin, and Matthew Marke Beckhio Bockarie. "The Political Economy of the Ebola Virus Disease." Social Change 48, no. 1 (March 2018): 18–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0049085717743832.
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Public health has much to contribute to the global understanding and action on the past, present and future of Ebola but it is currently constrained by the construction of the ‘risk’ of catching Ebola. There has been a consequential emphasis on ‘health systems’, which has deflected attention from social alienation and implosion of social ties at the family, community, national and regional levels, instead justifying a colonial top-down response strategy. Indeed, that neglects class and social relations. It follows that the response strategy has reinforced social barriers that stand in the way of the development of social medicine, collective self-reliance in Africa, empowering social ties, social protection and socially inclusive development. What is needed, then, is not public health but critical postcolonial public health to pull down these impediments and develop socially sensitive alternatives that prioritise social relations and ties, inclusivity of diversity and complexity in African societies.
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Knežević, Darija, and Duška Jović. "Ebola 2014 - unprecedented epidemic / Ebola 2014 – epidemija bez presedana." SESTRINSKI ŽURNAL 2, no. 2 (October 21, 2015): 11. http://dx.doi.org/10.7251/sez0215011k.
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Ebola, previously known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with one of the Ebola virus strains. Starting from February 2014, the Ebola virus outbreak had spread across West African countries within a few months and caused great concerns of the World Health Organization. Currently there are no effective vaccines and drugs that are available for the prevention and treatment of infection with Ebola virus. Medical personnel caring for patients with suspect or confirmed Ebola viral disease is particularly exposed to the risk of suffering from this dangerous disease. It is important for frontline medical providers to understand key aspects of Ebola virus disease to quickly recognize an imported case, provide appropriate medical care, and prevent transmission. This paper gives a brief overview of the epidemics and pandemics, the biological characteristics of Ebola virus, the potential antiviral drugs and vaccines, as well as preventive measures.* 31 . July 2015, is said to have discovered an effective vaccine against Ebola virus http://www.thelancet.com/pb/assets/raw/Lancet/pdfs/S0140673615611175.pdf (note editor).
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Gilbert, Gwendolyn Lesley, and Ian Kerridge. "Communication and Communicable Disease Control: Lessons From Ebola Virus Disease." American Journal of Bioethics 15, no. 4 (April 3, 2015): 62–65. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2015.1009564.
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Jain, Sahil, Ekaterina Martynova, Albert Rizvanov, Svetlana Khaiboullina, and Manoj Baranwal. "Structural and Functional Aspects of Ebola Virus Proteins." Pathogens 10, no. 10 (October 15, 2021): 1330. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pathogens10101330.
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Ebola virus (EBOV), member of genus Ebolavirus, family Filoviridae, have a non-segmented, single-stranded RNA that contains seven genes: (a) nucleoprotein (NP), (b) viral protein 35 (VP35), (c) VP40, (d) glycoprotein (GP), (e) VP30, (f) VP24, and (g) RNA polymerase (L). All genes encode for one protein each except GP, producing three pre-proteins due to the transcriptional editing. These pre-proteins are translated into four products, namely: (a) soluble secreted glycoprotein (sGP), (b) Δ-peptide, (c) full-length transmembrane spike glycoprotein (GP), and (d) soluble small secreted glycoprotein (ssGP). Further, shed GP is released from infected cells due to cleavage of GP by tumor necrosis factor α-converting enzyme (TACE). This review presents a detailed discussion on various functional aspects of all EBOV proteins and their residues. An introduction to ebolaviruses and their life cycle is also provided for clarity of the available analysis. We believe that this review will help understand the roles played by different EBOV proteins in the pathogenesis of the disease. It will help in targeting significant protein residues for therapeutic and multi-protein/peptide vaccine development.
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Jaskaran Singh, Thapa Komal, Sandeep Arora, Amarjot Kaur, and Thakur Gurjeet Singh. "Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever: Recent Update On Disease Status, Current Therapies And Advances In Treatment." Journal of Pharmaceutical Technology, Research and Management 5, no. 2 (November 2, 2017): 217–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.15415/jptrm.2017.52013.
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Swiftly growing viruses are a major intimidation to human health. Such viruses are extremely pathogenic like Ebola virus, influenza virus, HIV virus, Zika virus etc . Ebola virus, a type of Filovirus, is an extremely infectious, single-stranded ribonucleic acid virus that infects both humans and apes, prompting acute fever with hemorrhagic syndrome. The high infectivity, severity and mortality of Ebola has plagued the world for the past fifty years with its first outbreak in 1976 in Marburg, Germany, and Frankfurt along with Belgrade and Serbia. The world has perceived about 28,000 cases and over 11,000 losses. The high lethality of Ebola makes it a candidate for use in bioterrorism thereby arising more concern. New guidelines have been framed for providing best possible care to the patients suffering from Ebola virus i.e Grading of Recommendation Assessment, Development And Evaluation (GRADE) methodology to develop evidence-based strategy for the treatment in future outbreak of Ebola virus. No drugs have been approved, while many potent drugs like rVSV-EBOV, Favipiravir, ZMapp are on clinical test for human safety. In this review we will discover and discuss perspective aspects that lead to the evolution of different Ebola variants as well as advances in various drugs and vaccines for treatment of the disease.
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Kozak, Robert, Shihua He, Andrea Kroeker, Marc-Antoine de La Vega, Jonathan Audet, Gary Wong, Chantel Urfano, et al. "Ferrets Infected with Bundibugyo Virus or Ebola Virus Recapitulate Important Aspects of Human Filovirus Disease." Journal of Virology 90, no. 20 (August 3, 2016): 9209–23. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jvi.01033-16.
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ABSTRACTBundibugyo virus (BDBV) is the etiological agent of a severe hemorrhagic fever in humans with a case-fatality rate ranging from 25 to 36%. Despite having been known to the scientific and medical communities for almost 1 decade, there is a dearth of studies on this pathogen due to the lack of a small animal model. Domestic ferrets are commonly used to study other RNA viruses, including members of the orderMononegavirales. To investigate whether ferrets were susceptible to filovirus infections, ferrets were challenged with a clinical isolate of BDBV. Animals became viremic within 4 days and succumbed to infection between 8 and 9 days, and a petechial rash was observed with moribund ferrets. Furthermore, several hallmarks of human filoviral disease were recapitulated in the ferret model, including substantial decreases in lymphocyte and platelet counts and dysregulation of key biochemical markers related to hepatic/renal function, as well as coagulation abnormalities. Virological, histopathological, and immunohistochemical analyses confirmed uncontrolled BDBV replication in the major organs. Ferrets were also infected with Ebola virus (EBOV) to confirm their susceptibility to another filovirus species and to potentially establish a virus transmission model. Similar to what was seen with BDBV, important hallmarks of human filoviral disease were observed in EBOV-infected ferrets. This study demonstrates the potential of this small animal model for studying BDBV and EBOV using wild-type isolates and will accelerate efforts to understand filovirus pathogenesis and transmission as well as the development of specific vaccines and antivirals.IMPORTANCEThe 2013-2016 outbreak of Ebola virus in West Africa has highlighted the threat posed by filoviruses to global public health. Bundibugyo virus (BDBV) is a member of the genusEbolavirusand has caused outbreaks in the past but is relatively understudied, likely due to the lack of a suitable small animal model. Such a model for BDBV is crucial to evaluating vaccines and therapies and potentially understanding transmission. To address this, we demonstrated that ferrets are susceptible models to BDBV infection as well as to Ebola virus infection and that no virus adaptation is required. Moreover, these animals develop a disease that is similar to that seen in humans and nonhuman primates. We believe that this will improve the ability to study BDBV and provide a platform to test vaccines and therapeutics.
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Lambe, Teresa, Georgina Bowyer, and Katie J. Ewer. "A review of Phase I trials of Ebola virus vaccines: what can we learn from the race to develop novel vaccines?" Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 372, no. 1721 (April 10, 2017): 20160295. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2016.0295.
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Sporadic outbreaks of Ebola virus infection have been documented since the mid-Seventies and viral exposure can lead to lethal haemorrhagic fever with case fatalities as high as 90%. There is now a comprehensive body of data from both ongoing and completed clinical trials assessing various vaccine strategies, which were rapidly advanced through clinical trials in response to the 2013–2016 Ebola virus disease (EVD) public health emergency. Careful consideration of immunogenicity post vaccination is essential but has been somewhat stifled because of the wide array of immunological assays and outputs that have been used in the numerous clinical trials. We discuss here the different aspects of the immune assays currently used in the Phase I clinical trials for Ebola virus vaccines, and draw comparisons across the immune outputs where possible; various trials have examined both cellular and humoral immunity in European and African cohorts. Assessment of the safety data, the immunological outputs and the ease of field deployment for the various vaccine modalities will help both the scientific community and policy-makers prioritize and potentially license vaccine candidates. If this can be achieved, the next outbreak of Ebola virus, or other emerging pathogen, can be more readily contained and will not have such widespread and devastating consequences. This article is part of the themed issue ‘The 2013–2016 West African Ebola epidemic: data, decision-making and disease control’.
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Dhanya, Chandrasekharan Rajalekshmi, Aswathy Shailaja, Aarcha Shanmugha Mary, Sumodan Padikkala Kandiyil, Ambili Savithri, Vishnu Sasidharan Lathakumari, Jayakrishnan Therthala Veettil, Jiji Joseph Vandanamthadathil, and Maya Madhavan. "RNA Viruses, Pregnancy and Vaccination: Emerging Lessons from COVID-19 and Ebola Virus Disease." Pathogens 11, no. 7 (July 15, 2022): 800. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pathogens11070800.
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Pathogenic viruses with an RNA genome represent a challenge for global human health since they have the tremendous potential to develop into devastating pandemics/epidemics. The management of the recent COVID-19 pandemic was possible to a certain extent only because of the strong foundations laid by the research on previous viral outbreaks, especially Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). A clear understanding of the mechanisms of the host immune response generated upon viral infections is a prime requisite for the development of new therapeutic strategies. Hence, we present here a comparative study of alterations in immune response upon SARS-CoV-2 and Ebola virus infections that illustrate many common features. Vaccination and pregnancy are two important aspects that need to be studied from an immunological perspective. So, we summarize the outcomes and immune responses in vaccinated and pregnant individuals in the context of COVID-19 and EVD. Considering the significance of immunomodulatory approaches in combating both these diseases, we have also presented the state of the art of such therapeutics and prophylactics. Currently, several vaccines against these viruses have been approved or are under clinical trials in various parts of the world. Therefore, we also recapitulate the latest developments in these which would inspire researchers to look for possibilities of developing vaccines against many other RNA viruses. We hope that the similar aspects in COVID-19 and EVD open up new avenues for the development of pan-viral therapies.
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Ververs, Mija, and Puneet Anantharam. "Nutritional Care for Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in Ebola Treatment Units – Past and Current Experiences from Practitioners." International Journal of Nutrition 4, no. 4 (November 16, 2019): 9–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.14302/issn.2379-7835.ijn-19-3083.
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Background In November 2014, the World health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and the World Food Programme, produced interim guidelines (iGL) on providing nutritional support to patients in Ebola treatment units (ETUs). They have been translated into French and issued by the Ministry of Health, UNICEF and WHO in adapted versions to be used in the current outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This paper evaluates the use and usefulness of the 2014 iGL in the West Africa and current DRC Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreaks and identifies experiences and lessons learned from practitioners on the operational aspects of nutritional care and support in ETUs. Methods Key-informants (n=26), from 12 organizations (Non-Governmental Organizations, United Nations, Red Cross Red Crescent Movement) were interviewed who were actively engaged in the nutritional and/or clinical care of EVD patients. Results There was a consensus among key informants that the 2014 iGL initially served a guiding purpose. However, the vast amount of learning from the 2014-2016 and current EVD outbreaks indicates that the interim guidelines need to be revised. Practitioners struggled to find operational solutions for nutritional care, and the challenges were plentiful, especially regarding 1) the different perceptions of the importance of nutritional care among ETU staff; 2) the difficulties around food preparation and distribution for EVD patients; 3) how to take into account the patients’ dietary preferences; 4) the nutritional care needed in relation to specific EVD symptoms; 5) who assumed roles in nutritional care in ETUs; 6) if and how feeding support was organized; 7) whether malnutrition needed to be addressed and how; and 8) whether the intake of specific nutrients could contribute to improved treatment outcomes. Information from the key-informants interviews resulted in numerous lessons learned and recommendations for nutritional support during current and future outbreaks. Conclusions This investigation underscored the importance of documenting experiences of practitioners on nutritional care in emerging infectious diseases for which limited scientific evidence exists and for which interim guidelines are produced to fill in knowledge gaps. It also emphasized the importance of nutritional care in ETUs during treatment.
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Arcos González, Pedro, Ángel Fernández Camporro, Anneli Eriksson, and Carmen Alonso Llada. "The Epidemiological Presentation Pattern of Ebola Virus Disease Outbreaks: Changes from 1976 to 2019." Prehospital and Disaster Medicine 35, no. 3 (March 18, 2020): 247–53. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1049023x20000333.
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AbstractIntroduction:Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is the international health emergency paradigm due to its epidemiological presentation pattern, impact on public health, resources necessary for its control, and need for a national and international response.Study Objective:The objective of this work is to study the evolution and progression of the epidemiological presentation profile of Ebola disease outbreaks since its discovery in 1976 to the present, and to explore the possible reasons for this evolution from different perspectives.Methods:Retrospective observational study of 38 outbreaks of Ebola disease occurred from 1976 through 2019, excluding laboratory accidents. United Nations agencies and programs; Ministries of Health; the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); ReliefWeb; emergency nongovernmental organizations; and publications indexed in PubMed, EmBase, and Clinical Key have been used as sources of data. Information on the year of the outbreak, date of beginning and end, duration of the outbreak in days, number of cases, number of deaths, population at risk, geographic extension affected in Km2, and time of notification of the first cases to the World Health Organization (WHO) have been searched and analyzed.Results:Populations at risk have increased (P = .024) and the geographical extent of Ebola outbreaks has grown (P = .004). Reporting time of the first cases of Ebola to WHO has been reduced (P = .017) and case fatality (P = .028) has gone from 88% to 62% in the period studied. There have been differences (P = .04) between the outbreaks produced by the Sudan and Zaire strains of the virus, both in terms of duration and case fatality ratio (Sudan strain 74.5 days on average and 62.7% of case fatality ratio versus Zaire strain with 150 days on average and 55.4% case fatality ratio).Conclusion:There has been a change in the epidemiological profile of the Ebola outbreaks from 1976 through 2019 with an increase in the geographical extent of the outbreaks and the population at risk, as well as a significant decrease in the outbreaks case fatality rate. There have been advances in the detection and management capacity of outbreaks, and the notification time to the WHO has been reduced. However, there are social, economic, cultural, and political obstacles that continue to greatly hinder a more efficient epidemiological approach to Ebola disease, mainly in Central Africa.
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Hartman, Amy L., Ling Ling, Stuart T. Nichol, and Martin L. Hibberd. "Whole-Genome Expression Profiling Reveals That Inhibition of Host Innate Immune Response Pathways by Ebola Virus Can Be Reversed by a Single Amino Acid Change in the VP35 Protein." Journal of Virology 82, no. 11 (March 19, 2008): 5348–58. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jvi.00215-08.
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ABSTRACT Ebola hemorrhagic fever is a rapidly progressing acute febrile illness characterized by high virus replication, severe immunosuppression, and case fatalities of ca. 80%. Inhibition of phosphorylation of interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF-3) by the Ebola VP35 protein may block the host innate immune response and play an important role in the severity of disease. We used two precisely defined reverse genetics-generated Ebola viruses to investigate global host cell responses resulting from the inhibition of IRF-3 phosphorylation. The two viruses encoded either wild-type (WT) VP35 protein (recEbo-VP35/WT) or VP35 with an arginine (R)-to-alanine (A) amino acid substitution at position 312 (recEbo-VP35/R312A) within a previously defined IRF-3 inhibitory domain. When sucrose-gradient purified virus was used for infection, host cell whole-genome expression profiling revealed striking differences in human liver cell responses to these viruses differing by a single amino acid. The inhibition of host innate immune responses by WT Ebola virus was so potent that little difference in interferon and antiviral gene expression could be discerned between cells infected with purified WT, inactivated virus, or mock-infected cells. However, infection with recEbo-VP35/R312A virus resulted in a strong innate immune response including increased expression of MDA-5, RIG-I, RANTES, MCP-1, ISG-15, ISG-54, ISG-56, ISG-60, STAT1, IRF-9, OAS, and Mx1. The clear gene expression differences were obscured if unpurified virus stocks were used to initiate infection, presumably due to soluble factors present in virus-infected cell supernatant preparations. Ebola virus VP35 protein clearly plays a pivotal role in the potent inhibition of the host innate immune responses, and the present study indicates that VP35 has a wider effect on host cell responses than previously shown. The ability to eliminate this inhibitory effect with a single amino acid change in VP35 demonstrates the critical role this protein must play in the severe aspects this highly fatal disease.
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Richards, Paul. "Ebola and COVID-19 in Sierra Leone: comparative lessons of epidemics for society." Journal of Global History 15, no. 3 (November 2020): 493–507. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1740022820000303.
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AbstractThis case study focuses on two epidemic diseases in Sierra Leone. Ebola in 2014–15 drew international response, but was contained within the Upper West African region. COVID-19 reached Sierra Leone in April 2020 as part of a global pandemic. Local social knowledge has been an important factor in shaping responses to both diseases. In the case of Ebola, infection was concentrated in families, and responders needed a good knowledge of family interactional dynamics. COVID-19 is a more public disease. Responders have to assess risk factors in workplaces, markets, and places of worship. Comparing and contrasting the two cases also draws attention to different aspects of the historical context. Ebola response indexes Sierra Leone’s history as a humanitarian project associated with the abolition of the slave trade. The pandemic challenge of COVID-19 draws attention to Sierra Leone’s nodal position within a global diaspora rooted in Atlantic slavery and emancipation. Responders are forced to consider the ways in which the two infections articulate different aspects of calls for global social justice.
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Hodge, James G., Matthew S. Penn, Montrece Ransom, and Jane E. Jordan. "Domestic Legal Preparedness and Response to Ebola." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 43, S1 (2015): 15–18. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jlme.12207.
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While the global threat of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in 2014 was concentrated in several West African countries, its effects have been felt in many developed countries including the United States. Initial, select patients with EVD, largely among American health care workers (HCWs) volunteering in affected regions, were subsequently transported back to the states for isolation and treatment in high-level medical facilities. This included Emory University Hospital, which sits adjacent to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.The first domestic case of EVD occurred in late September in Dallas, Texas. Additional exposures of two HCWs generated an array of legal issues for state and local public health authorities, hospitals, and providers. Consideration of these issues led to extensive discussion among lawyers, public health practitioners, and other attendees at a late-breaking session on EVD and Legal Preparedness at the 2014 National Public Health Law conference. In this commentary, session presenters from CDC and Emory University share their expert perspectives on legal and policy issues underlying state and local powers to quarantine and isolate persons exposed to or infected with Ebola, as well as facets of hospital preparedness underlying the successful treatment of patients with EVD.
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Ververs, Mija, and Cecilia Vorfeld. "Guidance materials from 2014 to 2019 on nutritional care for Ebola patients in Ebola Treatment Units: an analysis." Public Health Nutrition 24, no. 1 (August 20, 2020): 139–45. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s136898002000261x.
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AbstractObjective:To evaluate the inclusion and exclusion of nutritional content in guidance materials related to nutritional care for hospitalised Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) patients of any age with the aim to provide recommendations for future revised nutritional care guidelines in Ebola Treatment Units (ETU).Design:Qualitative and quantitative analyses of ETU protocols and other guidance materials were conducted. Materials were obtained from practitioners, their organisations and governments active in EVD outbreaks since 2014.Setting:Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Democratic Republic of Congo.Results:Guidance materials showed a wide variety of topics. Most contained information on different feeding phases during illness, the use of specialised products, what and how to feed children aged 0–23 months, and meal and snack frequency for different age groups. Most materials lacked guidance on how to assess or accommodate patients’ dietary preferences, how to obtain feedback on nutritional care from patients or how to assess whether patients need feeding support. These aspects are particularly relevant to prevent deterioration of the patients’ nutritional status. There was limited guidance on operational aspects of food preparation and provision.Conclusions:Since 2014, numerous materials have been developed by organisations and governments on nutritional support in ETU. Although every EVD outbreak response must be contextualised because of the complexity of EVD and its case management, it is important to resolve technical differences and to provide comprehensive and more practical guidance. The findings of this study may inform future revised guidelines from normative UN organisations and governments of countries affected by EVD.
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Beitzel, Brett F., Sheli R. Radoshitzky, Nicholas Di Paola, Jennifer M. Brannan, David Kimmel, Katie Caviness, Veronica Soloveva, et al. "On-Demand Patient-Specific Phenotype-to-Genotype Ebola Virus Characterization." Viruses 13, no. 10 (October 6, 2021): 2010. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/v13102010.
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Biosafety, biosecurity, logistical, political, and technical considerations can delay or prevent the wide dissemination of source material containing viable virus from the geographic origin of an outbreak to laboratories involved in developing medical countermeasures (MCMs). However, once virus genome sequence information is available from clinical samples, reverse-genetics systems can be used to generate virus stocks de novo to initiate MCM development. In this study, we developed a reverse-genetics system for natural isolates of Ebola virus (EBOV) variants Makona, Tumba, and Ituri, which have been challenging to obtain. These systems were generated starting solely with in silico genome sequence information and have been used successfully to produce recombinant stocks of each of the viruses for use in MCM testing. The antiviral activity of MCMs targeting viral entry varied depending on the recombinant virus isolate used. Collectively, selecting and synthetically engineering emerging EBOV variants and demonstrating their efficacy against available MCMs will be crucial for answering pressing public health and biosecurity concerns during Ebola disease (EBOD) outbreaks.
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Wenham, Clare, and Deborah BL Farias. "Securitizing Zika: The case of Brazil." Security Dialogue 50, no. 5 (July 10, 2019): 398–415. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0967010619856458.
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Brazil’s Zika virus crisis (2015–17), following hot on the heels of the Ebola outbreak (2014–15), dominated newsfeeds and high-level discussions amid governments, the UN system and beyond, with emerging fears relating to Congenital Zika Syndrome (CZS), embodied by microcephaly. However, beyond the ensuing panic in Latin America facing a generation of Zika babies, the outbreak demonstrates key developments in our understanding of the interaction between health and security, based on the Copenhagen School’s securitization approach. It suggests that unlike previous diseases that were securitized, it was not the virus that was the cause of the security threat, nor how many people were affected, but a combined concern over where (in Brazil at a time of domestic political crisis), when (immediately post-Ebola), who (foetuses and babies), how (unknown disease characteristics) and what was the existential threat (the vectorized unknown). This article shows these developments for global health security through empirical analysis of the multiple securitization processes that occurred within Brazil for the Zika virus, at the subnational and federal levels.
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Idowu, Omobolanle E., Adegoke O. Adefolalu, and Dayanithee Chetty. "Knowledge, Attitude and Preparedness of Healthcare Workers Toward an Outbreak of Ebola Viral Disease." European Journal of Medical and Health Sciences 3, no. 3 (June 28, 2021): 122–27. http://dx.doi.org/10.24018/ejmed.2021.3.3.911.
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Background: Preparedness is key in terms of the healthcare system capacity to react appropriately to an outbreak of any infectious disease in epidemic proportion. Following the Ebola viral disease outbreak that started in West Africa around 2014, which subsequently spread to the DR Congo, with high mortality rates largely attributed to unpreparedness among the healthcare workers, the need for getting all stakeholders involved in healthcare services to be prepared for possible disease outbreaks can never be overemphasized and has since been recognized in many countries including South Africa. This study was conducted to describe the knowledge, attitude and preparedness of healthcare workers towards a possible outbreak of Ebola viral disease at a large private health institution in Pretoria.
Method: We conducted a cross-sectional study using self-administered questionnaires among a conveniently sampled 150 healthcare workers at a large private hospital. A total of 133 valid questionnaires were collected (response rate = 89%). The data was analyzed with SPSS and results presented using percentages, proportions, and frequency tables.
Results: The finding revealed more female (93%) than male, modal age-group was 31-40yr (37%), and most were African (89%). The perceived lack clinical experts who could manage EVD and the fear of contracting the disease were the main concerns of these health professionals. Majority of the participants demonstrated only basic knowledge of EVD but acknowledged the readiness of the nation’s health system to deal with any outbreaks.
Conclusion: The participants’ insufficient understanding of some aspects of the EVD showed the gaps in their knowledge and the apparent unpreparedness for possible Ebola outbreaks. Therefore, there is need for further education and training among the healthcare workers about how EVD is transmitted and the appropriate measures of disease control and prevention applicable to Ebola virus disease.
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Paillard-Borg, Stéphanie, Jessica Holmgren, Panu Saaristo, and Eva von Strauss. "Nurses in an Ebola Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Outbreak: Facing and Preparing for Psychosocial Challenges." SAGE Open 10, no. 2 (April 2020): 215824402092065. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2158244020920658.
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The purpose of this study was to describe the psychosocial experience of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ nurses upon their return from deployment at an Ebola Treatment Center during an Ebola virus disease outbreak in Kenema, Sierra Leone, between 2014 and 2015. The following three psychosocial aspects related to pre-, during, and postdeployment were explored: stress management, sociocultural exposure, and attitudes from others. This is a descriptive qualitative study with a cross-sectional design. Questionnaires were administered to 50 nurses, of which 44 responded. Eight themes were identified in relation to the three psychosocial aspects of interest: professional- and self-confidence, pragmatism, wellness activities, human contact, cultural competency, professionalism, pariah, and/or hero. One of the most important findings in this article relates to the essential mental health support pre- and during deployment with an emphasis upon return when the risk of isolation and stigmatization is greater. In conclusion, more research is needed about the psychosocial challenges met by nurses to prepare and support them as increasing threat of emerging infectious diseases puts pressure on global health systems.
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Trčková, Dita. "Representations of Ebola and its victims in liberal American newspapers." Topics in Linguistics 16, no. 1 (December 1, 2015): 29–41. http://dx.doi.org/10.2478/topling-2015-0009.
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Abstract Combining critical discourse analysis and the cognitive theory of metaphor, the study analyses hard news on Ebola from two American newspapers of a liberal political orientation, The New York Times and The New York Daily News, to investigate metaphoric representations of the disease and portrayals of its victims. It is revealed that both newspapers heavily rely on a single conceptual metaphor of EBOLA AS WAR, with only two alternative metaphors of EBOLA AS AN ANIMATE/HUMAN BEING and EBOLA AS A NATURAL CATASTROPHE employed. All three metaphoric themes assign the role of a culprit solely to the virus, which stands in contrast to non-metaphoric discursive allocations of blame for the situation in Africa, assigning responsibility mainly to man-made factors. African victims tend to be impersonalized and portrayed as voiceless and agentless, rarely occupying the role of a “fighter” in the military metaphoric representation of the disease, which runs counter to the findings of recent studies detecting a change towards a more positive image of Africa in the media. Both newspapers fail to represent infected ordinary Africans as sovereign agents, hindering readers from reflexively identifying with them.
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Wolfe, Daniel N., Carol L. Sabourin, Michael J. Merchlinsky, William C. Florence, Larry A. Wolfraim, Kimberly L. Taylor, and Lucy A. Ward. "Selection of Filovirus Isolates for Vaccine Development Programs." Vaccines 9, no. 9 (September 19, 2021): 1045. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/vaccines9091045.
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The continuing outbreaks of ebola virus disease highlight the ongoing threat posed by filoviruses. Fortunately, licensed vaccines and therapeutics are now available for Zaire ebolavirus. However, effective medical countermeasures, such as vaccines for other filoviruses such as Sudan ebolavirus and the Marburg virus, are presently in early stages of development and, in the absence of a large outbreak, would require regulatory approval via the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Animal Rule. The selection of an appropriate animal model and virus challenge isolates for nonclinical studies are critical aspects of the development program. Here, we have focused on the recommendation of challenge isolates for Sudan ebolavirus and Marburg virus. Based on analyses led by the Filovirus Animal and Nonclinical Group (FANG) and considerations for strain selection under the FDA Guidance for the Animal Rule, we propose prototype virus isolates for use in nonclinical challenge studies.
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Bodmer, Bianca S., Josephin Greßler, Marie L. Schmidt, Julia Holzerland, Janine Brandt, Stefanie Braun, Allison Groseth, and Thomas Hoenen. "Differences in Viral RNA Synthesis but Not Budding or Entry Contribute to the In Vitro Attenuation of Reston Virus Compared to Ebola Virus." Microorganisms 8, no. 8 (August 11, 2020): 1215. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms8081215.
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Most filoviruses cause severe disease in humans. For example, Ebola virus (EBOV) is responsible for the two most extensive outbreaks of filovirus disease to date, with case fatality rates of 66% and 40%, respectively. In contrast, Reston virus (RESTV) is apparently apathogenic in humans, and while transmission of RESTV from domestic pigs to people results in seroconversion, no signs of disease have been reported in such cases. The determinants leading to these differences in pathogenicity are not well understood, but such information is needed in order to better evaluate the risks posed by the repeated spillover of RESTV into the human population and to perform risk assessments for newly emerging filoviruses with unknown pathogenic potential. Interestingly, RESTV and EBOV already show marked differences in their growth in vitro, with RESTV growing slower and reaching lower end titers. In order to understand the basis for this in vitro attenuation of RESTV, we used various life cycle modeling systems mimicking different aspects of the virus life cycle. Our results showed that viral RNA synthesis was markedly slower when using the ribonucleoprotein (RNP) components from RESTV, rather than those for EBOV. In contrast, the kinetics of budding and entry were indistinguishable between these two viruses. These data contribute to our understanding of the molecular basis for filovirus pathogenicity by showing that it is primarily differences in the robustness of RNA synthesis by the viral RNP complex that are responsible for the impaired growth of RESTV in tissue culture.
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Gholizadeh, Pourya, Moussa Sanogo, Amadou Oumarou, Maad Nasser Mohamed, Yacouba Cissoko, Mamadou Saliou Sow, Pasquale Pagliano, et al. "Fighting COVID-19 in the West Africa after experiencing the Ebola epidemic." Health Promotion Perspectives 11, no. 1 (February 7, 2021): 5–11. http://dx.doi.org/10.34172/hpp.2021.02.
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Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) dissemination occurred from December 2019 and quickly spread to all countries. Infected patients with COVID-19 have had a wide range of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe illness. The most mortality was observed in patients with underlying disease and over 45 years. World statistics have shown that the COVID-19 outbreak is most expanded in Middle Eastern, West Asian, European, North, and South American countries, and is least expanded in African countries. Therefore, the aim of the paper was the evaluation of six African countries including Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Guinea, Togo, and Djibouti to find why this disease is least expanded in African countries. Study was conducted by Questioner for countries health organizers to define their different aspect exposure and fight with COVID-19 including epidemiology, clinical aspects of the disease, case definitions, diagnosis laboratory confirmation, and referral of cases by the portal of entry, case management, and disease prevention in these countries. According to this opinion review, due to the low international flights and low domestic travel, the spread, and prevalence of COVID-19 was low and the return of the immigrants of these countries has caused the spread of COVID-19 among these countries. Experience, preparation, and impact of previous infections epidemic such as the Ebola virus epidemic would have beneficial, which have promoted certain reflexes among people that cause low dissemination in these countries.
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Allgaier, Joachim, and Anna Lydia Svalastog. "The communication aspects of the Ebola virus disease outbreak in Western Africa – do we need to counter one, two, or many epidemics?" Croatian Medical Journal 56, no. 5 (October 2015): 496–99. http://dx.doi.org/10.3325/cmj.2015.56.496.
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Onoma, Ato Kwamena. "The Making of Dangerous Communities: The “Peul-Fouta” in Ebola-Weary Senegal." Africa Spectrum 52, no. 2 (August 2017): 29–51. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/000203971705200202.
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Epidemics of contagious diseases often motivate the social constitution of “dangerous communities.” These communities are defined as having a high potential to further spread the diseases involved to a wider public. Migrant communities' links with sick people in places of origin that are badly affected by such diseases ostensibly justify the construction of these communities as epidemic dangers to their places of residence. But this depiction of certain groups as health threats is always grounded in other long-standing narratives about the populations targeted. Such narratives often portray those targeted as radically different from the wider body politic and stigmatise them in multiple ways. The situation of the Peul of Guinean origin in Senegal at the height of the Ebola virus disease outbreak in the Mano River Basin sheds light on these processes of sociogenesis and their implications for epidemic control and prevention.
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Davidson, Brent, Susan Sherman, Leila Barraza, and Maria Julia Marinissen. "Legal Challenges to the International Deployment of Government Public Health and Medical Personnel during Public Health Emergencies: Impact on National and Global Health Security." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 43, S1 (2015): 103–6. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jlme.12229.
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In an increasingly interconnected global community, severe disasters or disease outbreaks in one country or region may rapidly impact global health security. As seen during the responses to the earthquakes in Haiti and Japan, Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines, and the current Ebola outbreak in West Africa, local response capacities can be rapidly overwhelmed and international assistance may be necessary to support the affected region to respond and recover and to protect other countries from the spread of disease. For example, President Obama stated on September 16, 2014, that “if the [Ebola] outbreak is not stopped now, we could be looking at hundreds of thousands of people infected, with profound political and economic and security implications for all of us…. [T]his…is not just a threat to regional security — it’s a potential threat to global security if these countries break down…. And that’s why…I directed my team to make this a national security priority.”
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Tambo, Ernest, Clarence S. Yah, Chidiebere E. Ugwu, Oluwasogo A. Olalubi, Isatta Wurie, Jeannetta K. Jonhson, and Jeanne Y. Ngogang. "Fostering prevention and care delivery services capability on HIV pandemic and Ebola outbreak symbiosis in Africa." Journal of Infection in Developing Countries 10, no. 01 (January 31, 2016): 1–12. http://dx.doi.org/10.3855/jidc.6875.
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Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the re-emerging Ebola virus disease (EVD) are closely intertwined and remain a persistent public health threat and global challenge. Their origin and rapid transmission and spread have similar boundaries and share overlapping impact characteristics, including related symptoms and other interactions. The controversies and global threat of these viruses require rapid response policy and evidence-based implementation findings. The constraints and dual burden inflicted by Ebola and HIV infections are highly characterized by similar socio-demographics, socio-economic and political factors. EVD has similar effects and burdens to HIV infection. This study seeks to understand EVD in the context of HIV epidemic despite the challenges in developing an effective vaccine against HIV and EVD. Our findings show that early understanding, prevention and treatment of these diseases a global health threat mainly in Africa is important and valuable. The lessons learned so far from HIV and Ebola epidemics are crucial in health programming and execution of rapid response interventions and continued vigilance against EVD before it become another worldwide health menace. Therefore, the current regional West Africa EVD requires strengthening healthcare systems and building preparedness and response capacity. Importantly, appropriate community participation, health education and resilience coupled with deployment of effective novel diagnostic approaches in early warning and surveillance of threats and emerging diseases. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop novel key strategies are crucial in curbing the constant viral resurgence, persistence transmission dynamics and spread, as well in accelerating Ebola vaccines regimen (immunization) development and national implementation plans in achieving sustained control, and eventual elimination.
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Baelen, Jef, Karolien Coolen, Benoit Deforche, Hanne-Lise Frateur, Joachim Langeraet, Imogen Van Oystaeyen, Tony Wawina-Bokalanga, and Anne-Mieke Vandamme. "A Transdisciplinary Approach to Get a Deeper Insight in the Context of Ebola Virus Outbreaks in War-torn Regions: A Comprehensive Guide for NGOs." Transdisciplinary Insights 4, no. 1 (December 28, 2020): 48–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.11116/tdi2020.4.3.
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Ebola virus disease is a deadly disease with mortality rates ranging from 25% to 90%. The previous outbreak in the north-eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) posed extra challenges since it took place in a war-torn region. The roots of this conflict can be traced back to the beginning of colonization (at the end of the 19th century) and have led to struggles concerning land tenure and local identity. The political and socioeconomic situation further complicated an adequate Ebola virus outbreak response. Early efforts and control strategies taken by the DRC Ministry of Health, supported by the WHO, UN peacekeepers and a number of humanitarian aid organizations eventually resulted in the tenth Congolese outbreak being controlled. However, medical NGOs encountered many obstacles, ranging from mistrust by the local population, to an unsafe working environment, lack of infrastructure, etc. This paper identifies building trust as one of the key ele ments for NGOs to optimize cooperation with the local population. Our data, gathered from semi-structured interviews, showed that establishing a relationship of trust with affected people and their communities is a crucial step in the Ebola virus outbreak response. This includes building a better comprehension by medical care workers of the local dynamics and cultural affinities. Therefore, we created a questionnaire to be used by medical aid organizations to increase their understanding of the local situation from an anthropological perspective. Such an understanding will contribute to building trust between the local community and medical aid organizations working in the field. This will hopefully enable them to anticipate future problems, and do their job in a more profound and comprehensive way, incorporating the local community as a partner for success. We have summarized our conclusions in a small 10-minute video.
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Shantha, Jessica G., Ian Crozier, Colleen S. Kraft, Donald G. Grant, Augustine Goba, Brent R. Hayek, Caleb Hartley, et al. "Implementation of the Ebola Virus Persistence in Ocular Tissues and Fluids (EVICT) study: Lessons learned for vision health systems strengthening in Sierra Leone." PLOS ONE 16, no. 7 (July 9, 2021): e0252905. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0252905.
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Background Following the West African Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak of 2013–2016 and more recent EVD outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo, thousands of EVD survivors are at-risk for sequelae including uveitis, which can lead to unremitting inflammation and vision loss from cataract. Because of the known risk of Ebola virus persistence in ocular fluid and the need to provide vision-restorative, safe cataract surgery, the Ebola Virus Persistence in Ocular Tissues and Fluids (EVICT) Study was implemented in Sierra Leone. During implementation of this multi-national study, challenges included regulatory approvals, mobilization, community engagement, infection prevention and control, and collaboration between multiple disciplines. In this report, we address the multifacted approach to address these challenges and the impact of implementation science research to address an urgent clinical subspecialty need in an outbreak setting. Methodology/Principal findings Given the patient care need to develop a protocol to evaluate ocular fluid for Ebola virus RNA persistence prior to cataract surgery, as well as protocols to provide reassurance to ophthalmologists caring for EVD survivors with cataracts, the EVICT study was designed and implemented through the work of the Ministry of Health, Sierra Leone National Eye Programme, and international partnerships. The EVICT study showed that all 50 patients who underwent ocular fluid sampling at 19 and 34 months, respectively, tested negative for Ebola virus RNA. Thirty-four patients underwent successful cataract surgery with visual acuity improvement. Here we describe the methodology for study implementation, challenges encountered, and key issues that impacted EVD vision care in the immediate aftermath of the EVD outbreak. Key aspects of the EVICT study included defining the pertinent questions and clinical need, partnership alignment with key stakeholders, community engagement with EVD survivor associations, in-country and international regulatory approvals, study site design for infection prevention and control, and thorough plans for EVD survivor follow-up care and monitoring. Challenges encountered included patient mobilization owing to transportation routes and distance of patients in rural districts. Strong in-country partnerships and multiple international organizations overcame these challenges so that lessons learned could be applied for future EVD outbreaks in West and Central Africa including EVD outbreaks that are ongoing in Guinea and Democratic Republic of Congo. Conclusions/Significance The EVICT Study showed that cataract surgery with a protocol-driven approach was safe and vision-restorative for EVD survivors, which provided guidance for EVD ophthalmic surgical care. Ophthalmologic care remains a key aspect of the public health response for EVD outbreaks but requires a meticulous, yet partnered approach with international and local in-country partners. Future efforts may build on this framework for clinical care and to improve our understanding of ophthalmic sequelae, develop treatment paradigms for EVD survivors, and strengthen vision health systems in resource-limited settings.
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O’Brien, Melanie, and Maria Ximena Tolosa. "The effect of the 2014 West Africa Ebola virus disease epidemic on multi-level violence against women." International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare 9, no. 3 (September 19, 2016): 151–60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/ijhrh-09-2015-0027.
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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide an analysis of the disproportionate impact of the 2014 West Africa Ebola virus disease (EVD) epidemic on women, presenting an assessment of how this impact in particular is linked with violence against women and women’s right to health, and a critique of improvements that could avoid discrimination against women in healthcare crises. Design/methodology/approach This paper covers conceptual understandings of, and utilises a human rights law and public health lens to analyse how the EVD epidemic in West Africa both directly and indirectly caused greater harm to women and girls. All these factors which represent intersectional violations of the human rights of women are examined with a focus on violence against women and the right to health. Findings There are multiple reasons why the EVD outbreak harmed women disproportionately, and this intersectionality of discrimination must be considered in any response to a public health crisis. Addressing the vulnerability of women and girls to all forms of violence involves the coordinated efforts of public health, legal and political actors to empower women. Originality/value Specific issues of the 2014 West Africa EVD outbreak have been examined in medical journals, but there have been no academic studies that present a cross-disciplinary analysis of the gender concerns. This paper combines a public health perspective with a human rights law viewpoint in order to consider the impact of the EVD outbreak on women and provide suggestions as to how discrimination and disadvantage of women in such health crises can be avoided.
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Obilade, Titilola. "The Political Economy of the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD); Taking Individual and Community Ownership in the Prevention and Control of EVD." Healthcare 3, no. 1 (January 28, 2015): 36–49. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/healthcare3010036.
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Zheng, Ye, Yunshan Jiang, and Kexin Qin. "Public Health Institutions and Major Epidemic Prevention and Control—Narrative Analysis Based on American CDC Control of Ebola Virus." Journal of Public Administration and Governance 10, no. 4 (December 7, 2020): 278. http://dx.doi.org/10.5296/jpag.v10i4.17844.
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In the past 10 years, various sudden public outbreaks of diseases worldwide have posed great threats to the economic and social development of countries. However, there is a lack of case studies and empirical studies on the fight against major outbreaks in foreign public health institutions. Based on a review of classical materials and narrative research methods, this study combs the institutional profile, function allocation, and funding input of the American Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and focuses on the CDC’s important measures and experiences in preventing and controlling the Ebola virus in West Africa during 2014–2015. According to the research, the main characteristics of CDC’s epidemic prevention and control in the United States are effective organizational structure and system, as well as the abilities of emergency management of rapid response. Furthermore, these two advantages and characteristics have penetrated the construction of the incident management system, adoption of specialized technical means and tools, and wide cooperation network and organizational coordination. Accordingly, the enlightenment of public health institutions regarding “epidemic prevention” and “anti-epidemic” is proposed from two aspects: system construction and ability enhancement.
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Kamara, Foday, Gelejimah Alfred Mokuwa, and Paul Richards. "Keeping Ebola at bay: public authority and ceremonial competence in rural Sierra Leone." Journal of Modern African Studies 60, no. 1 (March 2022): 65–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0022278x21000422.
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AbstractEbola Virus Disease struck Sierra Leone in May 2014. An international response was instrumental in ending the epidemic by December 2015 and has been extensively documented. Less attention has been paid to local responses. Here, we focus on a case in which there was no infection despite high infection in neighbouring areas. This brings into focus the role of customary public authority in implementing successful controls. We pay particular attention to the activities of a chiefdom Ebola Task force committee chaired by the Paramount Chief. Meetings were characterised by protocol and ceremony, but ‘face time’ served to reinforce, in ritual terms, important messages about quarantine and social distancing. The committee's pronouncements had illocutionary force. Local volunteers translated this ceremonial message into practical action to block imported cases. The analysis of ceremonial competence, we conclude, opens a window into how public authority addresses developmental shocks in Africa.
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Ellenberg, Susan S., and Steven Joffe. "Studying Effects of Medical Treatments: Randomized Clinical Trials and the Alternatives." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 45, no. 3 (2017): 375–81. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1073110517737538.
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The random]ized clinical trial is widely accepted as the optimal approach to evaluating the safety and efficacy of medical treatments. Resistance to randomized treatment assignment arises regularly, most commonly in situations where the disease is life-threatening and treatments are either unavailable or unsatisfactory. Historical control designs, in which all participants receive the experimental treatment with results compared to a prior cohort, are advocated by some as more ethical in such circumstances; however, such studies are often highly biased in favor of the new treatment and frequently yield misleading results. Alternative controlled designs motivated by the desire to maximize the number of patients with the treatment ultimately determined to be superior have been proposed, but have been challenged on both methodological and ethical grounds. Debates about appropriate and ethical study designs recurred during the recent Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) epidemic in West Africa. Despite its devastating nature, the EVD epidemic showed the ongoing necessity of conducting randomized trials to obtain convincing evidence of the safety and efficacy of therapeutic interventions.
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Schuklenk, Udo, and Ricardo Smalling. "The Moral Case for Granting Catastrophically Ill Patients the Right to Access Unregistered Medical Interventions." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics 45, no. 3 (2017): 382–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1073110517737539.
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Using the case of Ebola Virus Disease as an example, this paper shows why patients at high risk for death have a defensible moral claim to access unregistered medical interventions (UMI), without having to enrol in randomized placebo controlled trials.A number of jurisdictions permit and facilitate such access under emergency circumstances. One controversial question is whether patients should only be permitted access to UMI after trials investigating the interventions are fully recruited. It is argued that regulatory regimes should not prioritise trial recruitment over patient access, even if this results in drug research and development delays.We describe how the moral duty to rescue impacts on others' duties to oblige patients seeking emergency access to unregistered medical interventions. The view that eligible patients are owed the provision of access to UMI regardless of their willingness to enrol in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) is defended.
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Nwafor, Gloria C., and Anthony O. Nwafor. "The Healthcare Providers-Patients Relationship and State Obligations in Times of Public Health Emergency." African Journal of Legal Studies 9, no. 4 (August 18, 2016): 268–98. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/17087384-12340012.
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The recent outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (evd) in the West African sub-region sprung challenges on the healthcare providers in the observance of their ethical rules in dealing with their patients and the State in fulfilling its obligations to ensure that the rights of patients are respected in times of public health emergency. The ethical rules of medical practice demand that the healthcare providers prefer the interests of their patients to the preservation of self. The State is by law under obligation to protect and respect the rights of the patients in all situations. The paper argues that the responses by the healthcare providers and the States in the West African sub region in the wake of the public health emergency fell short of the demands of the ethical rules of the medical profession and the obligation to ensure that the rights of the patients are respected.
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De-Graft Aikins, Ama, and Bernard Akoi-Jackson. "“Colonial Virus”: COVID-19, creative arts and public health communication in Ghana." Ghana Medical Journal 54, no. 4s (December 31, 2020): 86–96. http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/gmj.v54i4s.13.
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Since March 2020, Ghana’s creative arts communities have tracked the complex facets of the COVID-19 pandemic through various art forms. This paper reports a study that analysed selected ‘COVID art forms’ through arts and health and critical health psychology frameworks. Art forms produced between March and July 2020, and available in the public sphere - traditional media, social media and public spaces - were collated. The data consisted of comedy, cartoons, songs, murals and textile designs. Three key functions emerged from analysis: health promotion (comedy, cartoons, songs); disease prevention (masks); and improving the aesthetics of the healthcare environment (murals). Textile designs performed broader socio-cultural functions of memorialising and political advocacy. Similar to earlier HIV/AIDS and Ebola arts interventions in other African countries, these Ghanaian COVID art forms translated public health information on COVID-19 in ways that connected emotionally, created social awareness and improved public understanding. However, some art forms had limitations: for example, songs that edutained using fear-based strategies or promoting conspiracy theories on the origins and treatment of COVID-19, and state-sponsored visual art that representedpublic health messaging decoupled from socio-economic barriers to health protection. These were likely to undermine the public health communication goals of behaviour modification. We outline concrete approaches to incorporate creative arts into COVID-19 public health interventions and post-pandemic health systems strengthening in Ghana.
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Kesten, Joanna May, Suzanne Audrey, Maya Holding, Caroline Coope, Nick Young, Colin S. Brown, Jenny Harries, Matthew Hickman, and Isabel Oliver. "Qualitative study of Ebola screening at ports of entry to the UK." BMJ Global Health 3, no. 3 (June 2018): e000788. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2018-000788.
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IntroductionIn response to the 2013–2016 West African outbreak of the Ebola virus disease (EVD), Public Health England introduced enhanced screening at major UK ports of entry. Our aim was to explore screeners’ and screened travellers’ perceptions of screening as part of an evaluation of the screening programme.MethodsWe undertook qualitative focus groups and semistructured interviews with screeners and travellers who had returned from affected countries before and after the introduction of screening in England. The study was conducted in two airports: one international rail terminal and one military airport. Research topic guides explored perceptions of the purpose and implementation of the process, potential improvements and reactions to screening. The data were analysed using the framework method.ResultsTwenty-four screeners participated in 4 focus groups (one for each port of entry) and 23 travellers participated in interviews. Three themes are presented: ‘Context’, ‘Screeners’ experience of the programme’ and ‘Screening purpose and experiences’. The programme was implemented rapidly, refined over time and adapted to individual ports. Screeners reported diverse experiences of screening including negative impacts on their normal roles, difficult interactions with passengers and pressure to identify positive EVD cases. Screening was considered unlikely to identify individuals with symptoms of EVD, and some participants suggested it was driven by political concerns rather than empirical evidence. The screening process was valued for its provision of information and reassurance.ConclusionThis qualitative study found that the UK EVD screening process was perceived to be acceptable to assess individual risk and provide information and advice to travellers. Future programmes should have clear objectives and streamlined processes to minimise disruption, tailored to the nature of the threat and developed with the needs of humanitarian workers as well as general travellers in mind.
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Mansi, Egbo Walamam. "Environmental Health Aspect of The Novel Corona Virus Disease and Its Global Impact." Journal of Applied Science, Engineering, Technology, and Education 3, no. 2 (July 21, 2020): 151–59. http://dx.doi.org/10.35877/454ri.asci131.
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Covid-19 is a severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) caused by a zoonotic virus in which bats have been identified as carriers. The disease outbreak was first reported on 1 December 2019, in Wuhan city in the Hubei province of China. It has infected more than eleven million persons worldwide and hundreds of thousands have died from the disease complications. It has spread across over 213 countries and territories globally. The global economic impact of the disease has been monumental. The impact cuts across global stock markets, aviation, tourism, entertainment and sports industries. Politics and governments have equally been impacted upon by the disease as legislative businesses have been suspended as a result of the disease. Many political leaders have tested positive and have got to undergone self quarantine and treatment. This paper have equally identified and itemized environmental health aspects of the disease which include: sneeze, cough, talk, touch and covid-19 control waste materials such as face mask, disposable hand glove, medical apron, used tissue papers. Conclusively, it is recommended that face mask should be produced with materials that will be comfortable to people in order to encourage the use. Disused materials should be disposing of properly and promptly.
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Kant, Romitesh, and Rufino Varea. "Spreading (dis)trust in Fiji? Exploring COVID-19 misinformation on Facebook forums." Pacific Journalism Review : Te Koakoa 27, no. 1and2 (September 30, 2021): 63–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.24135/pjr.v27i1and2.1166.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has caused significant challenges for the health system across the globe and fueled the surge of numerous rumours, hoaxes, and misinformation regarding outcomes, prevention and cure of the virus. The COVID-19 pandemic has also had severe political, economic and societal effects and affected media and communication systems in unprecedented ways. While traditional journalism has tried to adapt to the rapidly evolving situation, alternative news media on the internet have given the events an ideological spin. These voices have been criticised for furthering societal confusion and spreading potentially dangerous ‘fake news’ or conspiracy theories via social media and other online channels. The impact of the disease and the lack of information associated with it have allowed medical misinformation to rapidly surface and propagate on various social media platforms. Previous studies have highlighted a similar trend during recent public health emergencies, mainly the Ebola and Zika outbreaks. Such a phenomenon is alarming on both individual and public health levels to the extent that governments are realising the gravity and attempting to limit its effects. This article offers a unique perspective because it provides data-driven qualitative insights into Fijian Facebook posts related to infectious disease outbreaks. This study aims to understand public views and opinions on Fijian social media during the height of the pandemic in 2020 and to outline potential implications for health information.
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Policarpo, Deborah Araujo, Eduarda Cristina Alves Lourenzatto, Talita Costa e. Silva Brito, Daise Aparecida Rossi, and Roberta Torres de Melo. "Epidemiological Aspects of the Initial Evolution of COVID-19 in Microregion of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais (MG), Brazil." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 10 (May 14, 2021): 5245. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18105245.
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COVID-19 is considered by the World Health Organization to be a global public health emergency, which presents regional divergences that affect the epidemiological profile of the disease and are associated with political, economic, social and behavioral aspects. We aimed to analyze the epidemiological characteristics of the disease in the microregion of Uberlândia, Brazil, in order to determine risk factors that contributed to progression of SARS-CoV-2 virus. A cross-sectional study was conducted about micro- and macro-determinants combined with the significance analysis of suspected and confirmed cases in 18 municipalities during the epidemiological weeks (EW) 9 to 26. There were 34,046 notifications, of which 4935 (14.49%) people were diagnosed with COVID-19. Of these, 282 (5.71%) required hospital care and 40 (0.81%) died. Age and presence of associated comorbidities were decisive in the variations of incidence and lethality rates. In general, young people were the most affected and the elderly people, the most exposed to the serious and lethal form (p < 0.0001). Comorbidities such as diabetes and cardiopathies increased 33.5 times the death risk. The dispersion of the virus was centrifugal, in the inter as well as in the intra-municipal level. The disorderly implementation of municipal decrees applied in a decentralized manner in the municipalities seems to have contributed for the incidence rates increasing in the EW 25 and 26.
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Kumala, Ratna Desinta Mega. "Legal Analysis of Government Policy on Large Scale Social Restrictions in Handling Covid-19." Indonesian Journal of International Clinical Legal Education 2, no. 2 (June 5, 2020): 181–200. http://dx.doi.org/10.15294/ijicle.v2i2.38326.
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Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a pandemic so prevention efforts need to be made to avoid an increase in cases. In the context of prevention efforts carried out the implementation of health quarantine as regulated in Act Number 6 of 2018 concerning Health Quarantine. The implementation of health quarantine is a joint responsibility of the Central Government and Regional Governments as a form of protection of public health from diseases and / or public health risk factors that have the potential to cause public health emergencies. Health quarantine is carried out through disease observation activities and public health risk factors for transportation, people, goods, and or the environment, as well as responses to public health emergencies in the form of Health quarantine measures. One of the acts of health quarantine is in the form of large-scale social restrictions. The spread of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Indonesia is now increasing and expanding across regions and across countries accompanied by the number of cases and / or the number of deaths. The increase has an impact on political, economic, social, cultural, defense and security aspects, as well as the welfare of the people in Indonesia, so it is necessary to accelerate the handling of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the form of large-scale social restrictions in order to reduce the spread of Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is expanding.
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Gahlawat, Dheeraj. "ISSUES AND CHALLENGES ON CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC- COVID 19." Psychology and Education Journal 58, no. 2 (February 10, 2021): 5626–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.17762/pae.v58i2.2983.
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Since the time immemorial, the disease and the Man have lived cheek by Jowl. Where there is a man, there has always been diseases. These diseases have been in different forms, lingering on the mankind either in the form of ordinary diseases or as lethal pandemics or epidemics such as SARS, MERS, EBOLA, H1N1, HIV etc. Covid-19 or Coronavirus is one of them, which is a formidable challenge before the world today. In these days, it is ready to engulf the whole world in a jiffy, if precautionary measures as suggested by the WHO are not taken. As of May 08, 2020, the corona virus outbreak has infected more than 39 lakh people and taken 2.71 Lakh lives across the world. Out of these, 76,000 people in USA, 30,000 people in UK, 29,000 people in Italy, 26,000 people in Spain and 25,000 people in France have lost their lives due to this pandemic with no fault on their part. Today about 212 countries in the world are in the grip of coronavirus disease. This disease has put scientists to the test: it is a test of political leadership, of national health systems, of social care services, of solidarity, of the social contract- a test of our very own fabric. Although the world has tried its best to harness over this pandemic and is trying its best to prepare the vaccine for its treatment but still no vaccine in fighting against coronavirus. We are in very early stages and have not made ourselves capable to find out any way to fight against this disease.
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Albzeirat, Malek, Nik Zulkepli, and Haitham Qaralleh. "A Vision to Face Covid-19 pandemic and Future Risks Through Artificial Intelligence." Journal of Basic and Applied Research in Biomedicine 6, no. 1 (April 10, 2020): 15–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.51152/jbarbiomed.v6i1.3.
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Coved-19 pandemic is spreading fear among the world in several aspects such as health, economic, international relations, political stability, and social stability. It emerged suddenly and attacked the world in a short period without warning. Details about the virus such as the source, symptoms, transmission, diagnosis and treatment are still incomplete. Subsequently, more than one million people have died and huge economic losses. In order to avoid this issue in future, this paper aims to focus on artificial intelligence in predicting and tracking viral pandemic Disease and to control similar future risks using artificial intelligence, algorithms and cognitive fission theory.
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Khan, Afroza, Nayeema Talukder Ema, Nadira Naznin Rakhi, Otun Saha, Tamer Ahamed, and Md Mizanur Rahaman. "Parallel Outbreaks of Deadly Pathogens (SARS-CoV-2, H5N8, EVD, Black Fungi) around East Africa and Asia in 2021: Priorities for Outbreak Management with Socio-Economic and Public Health Impact." COVID 1, no. 1 (August 13, 2021): 203–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/covid1010017.
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Concurrent waves of coronavirus disease, Ebola virus disease, avian influenza A, and black fungus are jeopardizing lives in some parts of Africa and Asia. From this point of view, this review aims to summarize both the socio-economic and public health implications of these parallel outbreaks along with their best possible management approaches. Online databases (PubMed/PMC/Medline, Publons, ResearchGate, Scopus, Google Scholar, etc.) were used to collect the necessary information regarding these outbreaks. Based on the reports published and analyses performed so far, the long-lasting impacts caused by these simultaneous outbreaks on global socio-economical and public health status can be conceived from the past experiences of outbreaks, especially the COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, prolonged restrictions by the local government may lead to food insecurity, global recession, and an enormous impact on the mental health of people of all ages, specifically in developing countries. Such overwhelming effects have already been reported to be declining the national growth of the economy as well as increasing political insecurity and shortage of basic needs. Although various actions have already been taken, including vaccination, clinical management and further research, social distancing, lockdown, etc., to improve the situation, the emerging variants and associated genetic mutations may make containment difficult, worsening the situation again. So, considering the current mutational dynamics of the pathogens and past experiences, perpetual preparedness along with updated clinical management backed by epidemiological studies and innovative scientific effort are inevitable to combat the simultaneous waves of multiple infectious diseases.
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Hidayat, Mahyuni, Bambang Adi Wijaya, Bayu Lintang Samudro, and Muzahid Akbar Hayat. "THE IMPORTANCE OF PUBLIC TRUST IN GOVERNMENT POLICIES IN EFFORTS TO ACCELERATE THE MANAGEMENT OF THE COVID 19 PLAGUE." DIA Jurnal Ilmiah Administrasi Publik 18, no. 2 (December 1, 2020): 179–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.30996/dia.v18i2.4411.
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Corona Virus Disease 2019 (Covid-19) is a pandemic that is being felt by almost all countries, including Indonesia. Apart from having an impact on the safety of people's lives, it also has an impact on the political and economic aspects. There have been many efforts and policies taken by the central and regional governments to date, but it is still felt that they have not given the public hope when this pandemic will end soon. This has the potential to harm public trust (Trust Public) in the performance of the government to handle the covid-19 outbreak. The purpose of this paper is to describe the alternatives that the government should try to do to increase public trust.
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Stenfeldt, Carolina, Michael Eschbaumer, Steven I. Rekant, Juan M. Pacheco, George R. Smoliga, Ethan J. Hartwig, Luis L. Rodriguez, and Jonathan Arzt. "The Foot-and-Mouth Disease Carrier State Divergence in Cattle." Journal of Virology 90, no. 14 (May 4, 2016): 6344–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jvi.00388-16.
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ABSTRACTThe pathogenesis of persistent foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) infection was investigated in 46 cattle that were either naive or had been vaccinated using a recombinant, adenovirus-vectored vaccine 2 weeks before challenge. The prevalence of FMDV persistence was similar in both groups (62% in vaccinated cattle, 67% in nonvaccinated cattle), despite vaccinated cattle having been protected from clinical disease. Analysis of antemortem infection dynamics demonstrated that the subclinical divergence between FMDV carriers and animals that cleared the infection had occurred by 10 days postinfection (dpi) in vaccinated cattle and by 21 dpi in nonvaccinated animals. The anatomic distribution of virus in subclinically infected, vaccinated cattle was restricted to the pharynx throughout both the early and the persistent phases of infection. In nonvaccinated cattle, systemically disseminated virus was cleared from peripheral sites by 10 dpi, while virus selectively persisted within the nasopharynx of a subset of animals. The quantities of viral RNA shed in oropharyngeal fluid during FMDV persistence were similar in vaccinated and nonvaccinated cattle. FMDV structural and nonstructural proteins were localized to follicle-associated epithelium of the dorsal soft palate and dorsal nasopharynx in persistently infected cattle. Host transcriptome analysis of tissue samples processed by laser capture microdissection indicated suppression of antiviral host factors (interferon regulatory factor 7, CXCL10 [gamma interferon-inducible protein 10], gamma interferon, and lambda interferon) in association with persistent FMDV. In contrast, during the transitional phase of infection, the level of expression of IFN-λ mRNA was higher in follicle-associated epithelium of animals that had cleared the infection. This work provides novel insights into the intricate mechanisms of FMDV persistence and contributes to further understanding of this critical aspect of FMDV pathogenesis.IMPORTANCEThe existence of a prolonged, asymptomatic carrier state is a political impediment for control and potential eradication of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). When FMD outbreaks occur, they are often extinguished by massive depopulation of livestock due to the fear that some animals may have undiagnosed subclinical infection, despite uncertainty over the biological relevance of FMD virus (FMDV) persistence. The work described here elucidates aspects of the FMDV carrier state in cattle which may facilitate identification and/or abrogation of asymptomatic FMDV infection. The divergence between animals that clear infection and those that develop persistent infection was demonstrated to occur earlier than previously established. The host antiviral response in tissues maintaining persistent FMDV was downregulated, whereas upregulation of IFN-λ mRNA was found in the epithelium of cattle that had recently cleared the infection. This suggests that the clearing of FMDV infection is associated with an enhanced mucosal antiviral response, whereas FMDV persistence is associated with suppression of the host antiviral response.
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Mohamed, Nura A., Haissam Abou-Saleh, Hana A. Mohamed, Mohammad A. Al-Ghouti, Sergio Crovella, and Luisa Zupin. "Think like a Virus: Toward Improving Nanovaccine Development against SARS-CoV-2." Viruses 14, no. 7 (July 15, 2022): 1553. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/v14071553.
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There is no doubt that infectious diseases present global impact on the economy, society, health, mental state, and even political aspects, causing a long-lasting dent, and the situation will surely worsen if and when the viral spread becomes out of control, as seen during the still ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite the considerable achievements made in viral prevention and treatment, there are still significant challenges that can be overcome through careful understanding of the viral mechanism of action to establish common ground for innovating new preventative and treatment strategies. Viruses can be regarded as devil nanomachines, and one innovative approach to face and stop the spread of viral infections is the development of nanoparticles that can act similar to them as drug/vaccine carriers. Moreover, we can use the properties that different viruses have in designing nanoparticles that reassemble the virus conformational structures but that do not present the detrimental threats to human health that native viruses possess. This review discusses the current preventative strategies (i.e., vaccination) used in facing viral infections and the associated limitations, highlighting the importance of innovating new approaches to face viral infectious diseases and discussing the current nanoapplications in vaccine development and the challenges that still face the nanovaccine field.
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Carslake, David, Wyn Grant, Laura E. Green, Jonathan Cave, Justin Greaves, Matt Keeling, John McEldowney, Habtu Weldegebriel, and Graham F. Medley. "Endemic cattle diseases: comparative epidemiology and governance." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 366, no. 1573 (July 12, 2011): 1975–86. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2010.0396.
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Cattle are infected by a community of endemic pathogens with different epidemiological properties that invoke different managerial and governmental responses. We present characteristics of pathogens that influence their ability to persist in the UK, and describe a qualitative framework of factors that influence the political response to a livestock disease. We develop simple transmission models for three pathogens (bovine viral diarrhoea virus, bovine herpesvirus and Mycobacterium avium spp. paratuberculosis ) using observed cattle movements, and compare the outcomes to an extensive dataset. The results demonstrate that the epidemiology of the three pathogens is determined by different aspects of within- and between-farm processes, which has economic, legal and political implications for control. We consider how these pathogens, and Mycobacterium bovis (the agent of bovine tuberculosis), may be classified by the process by which they persist and by their political profile. We further consider the dynamic interaction of these classifications with pathogen prevalence and with the action taken by the government.