South African Measles Outbreak Update 2023 ( 23 FEBRUARY )
The NICD has tested 4019 serum samples for measles since epidemiological week 40, 2022, of which 615 (15.3%) were confirmed positive
The NICD has tested 4019 serum samples for measles since epidemiological week 40, 2022, of which 615 (15.3%) were confirmed positive
The National Institute for Communicable Disease alerts the National Department of Health and the Western Cape province about the increase in laboratory-confirmed measles cases. Four laboratory-confirmed measles have been reported in the City of Cape Town from 24 January 2023 to 17 February 2023. Even though all the lab-confirmed measles were investigated, no epidemiological link …
Measles Outbreak Alert Western Cape province, City of Cape Town (20 February 2023) Read More »
South Africa is a water-scarce country. Changing rainfall patterns and the escalating electricity crisis are making the situation worse. Treating and distributing water requires electricity. Some of the country’s biggest cities have had to impose water restrictions and residents in other parts have gone months without a regular water supply. Unfortunately, health facilities have not …
The Omicron variant of concern has given rise to many new sublineages, including the BA.1 and BA.2 that were predominant in South Africa from November 2021 through March 2022. BA.4 and BA.5 became predominant in April 2022 and remained the predominant circulating sublineages throughout 2022. As of 9 January 2023, more than 650 sublineages of …
An increase in pertussis cases has been reported in South Africa among children younger than five years of age, particularly among infants younger than three months of age. The current increases have mostly been reported in the Western Cape Province. Pertussis, commonly known as ‘whooping cough’, is a vaccine-preventable disease caused by Bordetella pertussis and …
In total, 137 cases of laboratory-confirmed measles have been reported from the declaration of the outbreak in Limpopo province from the 11th of October up until the 6th of December 2022. Figure 1 displays an epidemiological curve from week 30, 2022 for South Africa, by province. Limpopo and Mpumalanga have reported 89 and 40 cases, …
South African Measles Outbreak 2022 | Measles Outbreak in four provinces (8 Dec 2022) Read More »
The World Health Organisation (WHO)’s monitoring and evaluation framework for implementation of International Health Regulations (IHR-2005) recommends that every member state should attain a target of at least one field-trained epidemiologist per 200 000 population, as one of the crucial workforce development indicators to ensure optimal public health security. Field Epidemiology Training Programs (FETPs) have been …
The National Institute for Communicable Diseases partners in a new NIHR-funded Global Health Research Group on HIV-associated Fungal Infections Serious fungal infections are a global threat to human health. Many of these severe infections occur in people living with HIV. Four HIV-associated fungal infections – cryptococcal meningitis, histoplasmosis, Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) and talaromycosis – are …
A new research group to fight deadly AIDS-related fungal Diseases Read More »
The National Institute for Communicable (NICD), commemorates World Antimicrobial Awareness Week (WAAW) between 18-25 November. Led by the World Health Organization (WHO), the theme of WAAW 2022 is “Preventing antimicrobial resistance together”, a call to raise awareness of Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), a condition that is cross-sectoral and poses serious public health concerns. The overall slogan …
World Antimicrobial Awareness Week under the spotlight Read More »
Malaria remains one of the most devastating parasitic diseases affecting humans. In 2020 there were around 241 million cases and 672,000 malaria-related deaths. This is a sharp increase from 2019. One reason it’s so persistent is that the malaria parasite has a very complex life cycle. It involves many different developmental stages and multiple hosts …
Malaria in Africa: why most countries haven’t beaten it yet Read More »