The World Health Organisation estimates that 124,000 people died of TB in South Africa in 2016 (about 330 daily). It is the country’s leading cause of death, and has been made much worse by the HIV epidemic: over 80% of people who died of TB in 2016 were also infected with HIV. People with compromised […]
Sr JM McAnerney, Dr S Walaza, Dr C Cohen Centre for Respiratory Diseases and Meningitis National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) As in other temperate Southern and Northern Hemisphere countries, South Africa experiences seasonal influenza epidemics every winter. Although the timing of the influenza season varies from year
Flu season is around the corner… Read More »
The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) is the national public health institute for South Africa. It provides reference microbiology, virology, epidemiology, surveillance and public health research to support the government’s response to communicable disease threats. Take a look at what Communicable diseases are, what causes them and how they are transmitted.
Communicable Diseases Overview Read More »
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are a serious public health issue. It’s estimated that globally, more than a million people are diagnosed with one or more sexually transmitted infections like gonorrhoea, chlamydia or syphilis every day. What’s more concerning is that the prevalence of infection with chlamydia for example, have remained unchanged over the past 10
Preventing sexually transmitted infections: why South Africa isn’t winning Read More »
Surviving Polio is a documentary film about the success story of Polio survivors from South Africa and the leaps that the Polio vaccine has made to date
Surviving Polio Documentary Read More »
Although mefloquine is given as an option for chemoprophylaxis, there are currently no mefloquine-containing products available in South Africa – Lariam® has been discontinued in this country and Cipla have manufacturing issues regarding Mefliam® that will take a while to be resolved. This means that there is currently no product that can be used for
Vaccines are recognised as one of the most powerful tools in controlling and preventing infectious diseases. This despite strong anti-vaccination movements around the globe. It was with vaccine in hand that one of the most dreaded diseases of the last two centuries, smallpox, was eradicated. Likewise, the eradication of vaccine preventable diseases such as poliomyelitis
Ebola vaccine is key in ongoing efforts to contain the DRC outbreak Read More »
The second largest Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak recorded to date, is being reported from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The country was affected by EVD earlier in 2018, when 54 cases of EVD with 33 deaths were reported from the Équateur Province, located towards the western border of the country. Shortly after the
Ebola virus disease outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo Read More »
The second largest Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak recorded to date, is being reported from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The country was affected by EVD earlier in 2018, when 54 cases of EVD with 33 deaths were reported from the Équateur Province, located towards the western border of the country. Shortly after the
Ebola virus disease outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo Read More »
The end of year festive season is a popular time for many people to travel, visiting friends and family. Health care providers and travellers returning from within the southern Africa region and further afield should be aware of the infectious disease risks related to travel. Travellers returning from the southern African region should be aware
Alert for returning travellers Read More »
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The Public Health Bulletin South Africa (PHBSA) website is hosted by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) and the National Institute for Occupational Health (NIOH), divisions of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS). The PHBSA website is funded jointly by the NICD, the US CDC Foundation, and the Bloomberg Philanthropies Data for Health Initiative.
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