Archive for the ‘Campus Challenge’ category

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Worm of the Week – Hookworm

August 16th, 2010

This past Spring, students from Boston University put together a series of brief 1-page flyers on 8 neglected diseases (the “big 7” plus Chagas) as a resource for  raising  awareness about NTDs amongst their student body. The fact sheets were themed “Worm of the Week,” highlighting one of eight NTDs each week. Fact sheets were distributed during periodic bake sales and on student listservs, and was an effective way to connect with people and spread the word about NTDs within the students’ academic community. Below is a reprint of one of the fact sheets on hookworm:

Hookworm

Ancylostoma duodenale AND Necator americanus

Hookworm

The 2nd most common helminthic infection after ascariasis and the leading cause of anemia and protein malnutrition affecting 740 million people worldwide. Infections can be limited to the skin (cutaneous larva migrans) or involve the small intestine by passing through the lungs. Larvae penetrate skin from feces and/or soil contaminated with nematode eggs. Adult hookworms can live in the body for 1-2 years. Cutaneous infections are caused by larvae that use dogs and cats as definitive hosts.

Symptoms

Ground itch or cutaneous larva migrans presents with a pruritic serpiginous rash. Iron-deficiency anemia is the most common symptom of intestinal infection. Cardiac complications, gastrointestinal and nutritional symptoms may also occur. Respiratory symptoms may occur during pulmonary migration of the larvae. Reinfection is common.

Diagnosis

Microscopic identification of eggs in feces is evidence of infection.

Treatment

Albendazole, mebendazole or pyrantel pamoate are the drugs of choice but are considered investigational in the US.

Prevention and Control

In 2001, the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted a resolution aimed at the “deworming” of 75 percent of all at-risk school-age children by 2010, the largest public health program ever attempted to date. As with the other soil-transmitted helminths, treatment of hookworm infection is coupled with education efforts aimed at proper waste disposal and sanitation management. The Human Hookworm Vaccine Initiative currently has vaccines in Phase I and II trials.

Sources: http://www.who.int/vaccine_research/diseases/soa_parasitic/en/index2.html

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/hookworm/default.htm

Just 50 cents campaign: http://www.globalnetwork.org/just50cents

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Posted in Campus Challenge, hookworm, NTDs, Public Health

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Calling all Global Health/Development Bloggers!

July 26th, 2010

 “End the Neglect,” the official blog for the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases is looking for blog contributions from professionals and students in the global health/development field.

The Global Network launched the “End the Neglect” blog to serve as a broad, transparent platform through which we as a community can continue to raise the profile of neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) and disseminate stories from the field. End the Neglect is a vital education resource that informs readers of the devastating impact of NTDs and the simple and cost-effective interventions available.

While “End the Neglect” specifically focuses on NTDs, we are also interested in highlighting bloggers with a broader global health perspective. Success stories, personal stories/testimonials from the field, photos, and video are all welcome!

We accept submissions on a rolling basis. If you are interested in blogging for us, please send a writing sample of no more than 500 words and a brief background of your work/educational experience to Anjana.padmanabhan@sabin.org.

Our blog post submission guidelines are as follows:

  • Keep length of posts between 200-500 words
  • Include links to sites or articles that supplement your topic
  • When quoting other blogs or publications in your post, please link to the original material if possible, and denote quoted material using quotation marks.
  • Submit a brief biography (2-3 lines) and a photo for inclusion with your post.
  • We appreciate suggestions for images to accompany posts. If you have photos available for publication, please submit them along with your post and include caption information and attribution information.
  • If you don’t have images available, we will add one from our own photo stocks or from publicly available resources including Flickr or the CDC’s Public Health Image Library
  • We encourage you to email your post to colleagues and friends to encourage comment and discussion
  • Publication of posts is at the discretion of the Global Network, based on relevance of the subject matter as related to neglected tropical diseases and other global health issues.

Please review the guidelines for submissions below, and contact Anjana.Padmanabhan@sabin.org for more information. Please also visit us on Twitter and Facebook

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Posted in Africa, Campus Challenge, Global Development, Global Health, grassroots, hookworm, Just 50 Cents, NTDs, policy, Politics, poverty, Public Health

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I am “Living Proof”

July 23rd, 2010

By: Manuel Claros

The “Living Proof Project,” created by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, features true life testimonials that demonstrate the positive impact that global health/development interventions can have on individuals across the globe. The touching stories inspire us to reflect on our own experiences by connecting us to theirs.  Sharing a personal story is different than just being another statistic, another number amongst the myriad of global health facts and figures we find ourselves inundated with constantly.

My personal story has had a deep impact on my life and where it has taken me. It is also why I was interested in starting a campaign to raise money for neglected tropical diseases. I am from Popayan, a small town in the south of Colombia and come from a big family where I am the eldest of 19 cousins on my paternal side and 16 on the maternal side. Growing up in my paternal grandmother’s house was a lot of fun because there were always a lot of kids to play with.  On the weekends at any given time there would be 10-20 kids in the house. While this was very fun, it also meant that sickness traveled frequently from child to child.  Everything from chicken pox to measles traveled through us all…..and of course parasites were not an exception.

» Read more: I am “Living Proof”

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Posted in Campus Challenge, Global Development, Global Health, grassroots, hookworm, poverty, Uncategorized, Water and Sanitation

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7 Players, 7 Cures: Student Ambassador Fights NTDs One Ultimate Frisbee Tournament at a Time

May 5th, 2010

By Alex Huddell

I was moved that more than 30 college student and recent graduates came to the National Mall on April 3rd, 2010 to play in an Ultimate Frisbee tournament to benefit the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases.   We called the tournament “7 Players, 7 Cures” because each team has 7 players on the field in a game of Ultimate, and each of the Global Network’s “rapid-impact packages” treats 7 of the most common NTDs.   Everyone I talked to about the tournament was so excited that their $10 donation could treat upwards of 20 people—just 50 cents (and sometimes less!) can treat an individual for the 7 most common NTDs for an entire year.

The weather was gorgeous, the games were fun, and spirits were high.  Students mixed genders to forms teams that they do not usually play with, which made for a light-hearted day.  We took a few minutes before the championship game to congratulate ourselves on a fun day of playing and for incredible success as a group, raising $335, enough to treat 670 people for NTDs for 7 NTDs for one year!

Alex Huddell's photos

I am thrilled that the tournament was such a success, and that it may complement, in its modest way, the incredible accomplishments of the Global Network.   Studying for my Economic Development final tonight, I came across a direct reference to NTDs and the Global Network’s work in Micheal P. Todaro and Stephen C. Smith’s tenth edition of Economic Development. I could not help but giggle in excitement because NTDs have seemed to gain recognition across the global health and development fields in recent years.  Congratulations to the Global Network and its partners, and all of the advocates out there who continue to push for the eradication of NTDs as an integral strategy for development.   Policy-makers are starting to realize the vast potential of investments in treating NTDs!

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Posted in Campus Challenge, Global Health, grassroots, Just 50 Cents, NTDs, Uncategorized