Tag Archives: kenya

Kenya: Nation Setting Sights on Eliminating Blinding Disease

Africa, NTDs, Trachoma, , ,

 

Woman with trachoma. Photo credit: HKI

Just recently launching a five-year plan to eliminate NTDs, Kenya is working tirelessly to ensure that the country will soon be free of these parasitic diseases. Check out what’s currently being done in the fight against trachoma, one of the seven most common NTDs, in an article recently published in All Africa (the largest online distributor of Africa-focused news) and includes a quote from Global Network Managing Director Dr. Neeraj Mistry:

“Olenarau — Had a community health worker not found him at the rural Kenyan village of Olenarau, 65-year-old Tonke Nalakiti would still be blaming his failing sight on old age.

But the health worker, who was trained to identify patients infected with trachoma, succeeded in convincing Nalakiti that his condition could be corrected through simple surgery and antibiotics.

After a swab of iodine and a jab of anesthesia to ease the pain of incision, the elder from the remote village south of the capital, Nairobi, had the infection surgically corrected in less than 15 minutes.

National surveys indicate that Nalakiti is among some 3.4 percent of patients in Kajiado County whose trachoma has reached the blinding stage, making it a serious public health problem in that region and many other similarly remote areas with little access to health care and screening.” Click here to continue reading.

New plan to eliminate NTDs in Kenya

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Mass drug administration of Albendazole in conjunction with the launch of the Kenyan national plan for NTD control and elimination.

“Africa bears 50% of the global burden of neglected tropical diseases.” Quoted from an article published in Africa Science News, neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are perpetuating the cycle of poverty,  prohibiting African populations from reaching their potential. In Kenya alone, 1 in 2 people suffer from NTDs. Recognizing this burden, the Kenyan government has launched a five-year long national plan to address NTDs such as schistosomiasis, trachoma, leishmaniasis, intestinal worms, elephantiasis and Hydatid disease. Kenya is the first African country to launch such a plan, which will bring the country closer to becoming free from preventable diseases. Eliminating NTDs in  Kenya is also in line with Millennium Development Goal 6, along with achieving Vision 2030, which aims to turn Kenya into a middle-income nation by 2030.

Read more about Kenya’s national NTD plan on Africa Science News.

A Closer Look at Neglected Tropical Diseases

Africa, Global Development, Global Health, NTDs, Public Health2010 Global Health Council Conference, , , , , , , ,

Reposted with permission from Global Health Impact, blog for Management Sciences for Health (MSH)

Photo Courtesy of http://www.wrongdiagnosis.com

By: Wendy Qin

At the Global Health Council Conference, I attended an interesting event, “Impact of Schistosomiasis and Polyparasitic Infections on Anemia, Growth and Physical Fitness in Children in Coastal Kenya” presented by  Dr. Amaya Bustinduy of Case Western Reserve University which focused on neglected tropical diseases (NTD).

Schistosomiasis remains one of the most serious and prevalent neglected tropical diseases worldwide.  According to Bustinduy, the WHO estimated that there are 235 million cases of schistosomiasis with 732 million to be at risk for contraction. 89% of  all cases live in the less-developed areas of rural sub-Saharan Africa and South America.

Schistosomiasis is associated with diseases such as anemia, growth impairment in children, and mental retardation.  The focus of Dr. Bustinduy’s ongoing study in Kenya is to “address those morbidities as part of a larger study examining the ecology of transmission of Schistosomiasis.”

The study found that the presence of schistosomiasis is associated with growth retardation and anemia, which can lead to cognition problems, decreased productivity, as well as a reduced quality of life.  The objectives of the study were to measure the prevalence of schistosomiasis and assess current trends (as related to child growth, wasting, stunting, anemia and multiple infections when compared to the WHO growth standards for children). Measurements taken included height- for- weight to assess chronic malnutrition, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) to assess acute malnutrition and a fitness test (the 20 meter shuttle run). The study found anemia was present in 50% of the children. There was a high level of co-infection for children 5 to 7 years of age, in particular with malaria and hookworm. The goal of the research is to leverage this data in order to scientifically show a link between NTDs and poverty and create a prevention program on a national level.

With the recent G-8 announcement, it is clear that donors are becoming more interested in neglected tropical diseases (NTD) as well as analyzing the links between these diseases and how they affect  overall health outcomes such as poor nutrition and anemia-underlying factors that can often affect an individual or a community’s productivity and eventual economic gains. Therefore, there is a strong potential of integrated parasite control in efforts for poverty reduction.

Wendy Qin is the Strategic Information Assistant at Management Sciences for Health.

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Reading List 6/2/2010

Africa, Global Development, Global Health, NTDs, policy, Politics, poverty, Public Health, reading list, U.S Government, Water and Sanitation, campaign, , , , , , , , , niger, , , , , , , , , water pump, , world vision

Lots of interesting happenings in the world of NTDs and global health on this warm Wednesday! Today’s reading list includes the launch of a new campaign to fight against Elephantiasis in Sierra Leone, the announcement of a $3 million research grant for schistosomiasis studies in western Kenya, World Vision’s provision of water pumps in Niger, and last but not least, a blog post about foreign aid provided by the U.S. Enjoy!

Campaign against Elephantiasis in Sierra Leone, Bampia Bundu, Awareness Times – Sierra Leone
UGA prof gets $3M to study schistosomiasis, Atlanta Business Chronicle
World Vision Gives Succor to Niger, Provides Clean, Safe Water, Success K. Uchime, All Voices
Restoring U.S. foreign aid to health, Members of the Steering Committee of the Global Health Technologies Coalition, The Hill’s Congress Blog

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