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COVID-19: Delta Government Raises Concerns Over Neighbouring States Yet To Close Borders

Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa

Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa

As the unfold of the dreaded Coronavirus illness continues, the Delta State Government has raised issues over neighbouring states but to shut their borders.
Addressing journalists over the problem on Monday, Commissioner for Information in Delta, Charles Aniagwu, stated, “Our neighbouring states are yet to close their borders and this poses a serious danger to us in Delta.

“If Anambra and Edo are but to shut their borders and Delta has performed that, it poses hazard to us.

“The Federal Government should order the shutting down of the nation to avoid more infections as far as the COVID-19 is concerned.

“We are interesting for cooperation particularly from most of the people. Let’s all comply strictly to the security measures outlined to this point.”

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April 5, 2020
Covid-19 vaccine in about a year: Health DG

PUTRAJAYA: A vaccine for Covid-19 is predicted to be obtainable in the market in about a 12 months as checks and analysis on it’s nonetheless on the early section, in line with Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

He stated the World Health Organisation (WHO) are nonetheless wanting into a few compounds and analysis to develop a vaccine for this illness.

“So it will take probably about a year or a year and a half before we can get the vaccine in the market.

“Research is ongoing and hopefully by doing the research, we can get the vaccine as soon as possible,“ he said at the daily Covid-19 media briefing, here today.

In another development, Dr Noor Hisham said the Health Ministry (MOH) had accepted several Covid-19 patients who have recovered as volunteers for research on blood plasma.

“Two or three patients who have recovered are coming forward to contribute to science and technology.

“They are donating their blood to help MOH carry out research and for science to look at the viscosity of antibodies (which will be used to treat Covid-19 patients),” he stated.

He added that MOH would earlier display blood donors (former sufferers) to make sure they’re freed from the virus and of different infections comparable to Hepatitis C and so forth.

MOH will even conduct Covid-19 take a look at on the blood donors to make sure they’re actually freed from the virus.

“After that, MOH will take blood from them and separate it into red blood cells and plasma. The plasma will later be sent to IMR (Institute for Medical Research) to study its antibody viscosity.

“The procedure will be repeated after two weeks. If the antibody viscosity is high, then MOH may use the plasma from the patient to treat other patients,” he added. – Bernama

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April 4, 2020
Chagas disease: providing free paediatric medicine can enhance diagnosis and treatment
Documentation resulting in the donation of an important antiparasitic medicine for the treatment of Chagas illness to the World Health Organization (WHO) is within the ultimate stage of preparation.

A 3-year settlement, between the Mundo Sano Foundation¹ (Brazil) and WHO, is anticipated to make obtainable 108 000 tablets of the paediatric formulation of benznidazole² – a first-line medicine towards Chagas illness. Treatment³ with benznidazole within the early levels of an infection can treatment Chagas illness.

“Making benznidazole freely obtainable for the treatment of newborns till the age of 18 might be a game-changer within the battle towards Chagas illness” mentioned Dr Mwelece Ntuli Malecela, Director, WHO Department of Control of Neglected Tropical
Diseases. “This is not going to solely save future generations from growing life-threatening and deadly issues however can even increase up diagnosis and treatment.”

Each yr, an estimated 15 000 youngsters are born from contaminated moms. A freely obtainable paediatric presentation of benznidazole with correct dosage is essentially anticipated to contribute to deal with congenital infections.

“Treating newborns and youngsters was the lacking hyperlink, as we transfer decisively to advocate for the mixing of diagnosis of an infection amongst pregnant ladies and women of child-bearing age into different surveillance programmes, together with HIV and syphilis” mentioned Dr Pedro Albajar Vinas, Medical Officer with WHO’s Department of Control of Neglected Tropical Diseases. “Diagnosing and treating ladies of this age group earlier than being pregnant can increase successfully stop congenital transmission.”

The settlement

The donation by Mundo Sano Foundation at some point of the settlement includes benznidazole:
- 105,000 tablets of 100mg
- 3,000 tablets of 12.5mg
Furthermore, the Foundation might donate funds of as much as US$100 000 at some point of the settlement to help actions related to distribution of medicines and conferences. The Foundation additionally makes provision for an extension of this settlement past
the required length of three years.

The illness

Chagas illness, often known as American trypanosomiasis, is a doubtlessly life-threatening sickness brought on by the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi (T. cruzi).

Although appreciable progress has been achieved, significantly in decreasing vector transmission and screening of blood and organ provide, reaching and diagnosing individuals most affected has been a problem.

Currently, under-diagnosis of Chagas illness instances is as excessive as 90% and under-diagnosis of congenital transmission is believed to be even greater.

Globally, an estimated 6-7 million individuals are contaminated with T. cruzi.

The illness is discovered primarily in endemic areas of 21 continental Latin American international locations⁴. But motion of individuals to city areas and to different continents has expanded its transmission by means of non vectorial routes, akin to blood transfusion, congenital
transmission, organ transplants and oral meals contamination.

Considering the illness as a rising public well being drawback in lots of international locations, the World Health Assembly – WHO’s decision-making physique – determined in May 2019 to commemorate World Chagas Disease Day on 14 April.

The inaugural celebration occurs this yr.

¹Mundo Sano is a nonprofit worldwide basis working with the general public and personal sectors, academia, and different worldwide organizations to supply options to the affected communities and generate scientific information. In 2012, it led a public-private consortium in 2012 to provide benznidazole in Argentina.

²In 2017, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted benznidazole for the treatment of kids aged 2–12, making it the primary treatment accepted within the United States for Chagas illness.

³ Nifurtimox can be 100% efficient in curing Chagas illness if given quickly after onset of an infection, together with instances of congenital an infection. It is donated by Bayer who pledged greater than 7.5 million tablets for the interval 2012-2021.

⁴ Argentina, Belize, Bolivia (Plurinational State of), Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, and Venezuela
(Bolivarian Republic of).

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April 3, 2020
Sierra Leone Records First Coronavirus Case

Sierra Leone has recorded its first case of Coronavirus, the government said on Tuesday, making it the latest African country to register an infection.

According to AFP, President Julius Maada Bio said that a 37-year-old man, who arrived in the country from France on March 16 had tested positive.

“It was not a matter of whether, but when. Ladies and gentlemen, the when is here,” the President said.

Sierra Leone had been one of the few countries in Africa to have reported zero cases despite neighbouring Guinea and Liberia having detected infections.

On Tuesday, Bio said authorities were aggressively tracing people, who may have come into contact with the infected patient and urged people to report anyone with Coronavirus symptoms to the authorities.

Land borders are closed, international flights banned and schools were shut from Tuesday until further notice, among other measures.

“The government will respond rapidly to changes in the situation by announcing additional enhanced measures,” Bio said.

Six of Africa’s 54 nations have been spared the Coronavirus to date – South Sudan, Burundi, Sao Tome and Principe, Malawi, Lesotho and Comoros.

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April 1, 2020
Muhyiddin visits MAEPS low-risk patient Quarantine & Treatment Centre

SERDANG: Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today visited the Quarantine and Treatment Centre for low-risk Covid-19 patients at the Malaysia Agro Exposition Park Serdang (MAEPS) here.

The prime minister was accompanied by Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Adham Baba, Ministry of Health (MOH) secretary-general Datuk Seri Dr Chen Chaw Min and Health director-general Datuk Dr Noor Hisham Abdullah.

Muhyiddin, who arrived at the centre at 5.45pm, spent almost an hour being briefed and touring the centre, which was successfully prepared for operations by various government agencies, under the coordination of the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma), within three days.

Met after the visit, Dr Adham told reporters that the centre was the brainchild of the prime minister himself to prepare for any possibility of a drastic surge in the number of Covid-19 infections.

“We will treat Covid-19 positive patients who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms here,” he said.

The centre has the capacity to place up to 600 patients at any one time and it will be coordinated by Nadma with the cooperation of the MOH, the Armed Forces, the Fire and Rescue Department, the Civil Defence Force, the Social Welfare Department and the Public Works Department.

Among others, it will provide clinical services, Covid-19 wards, resuscitation areas to stabilise patients during emergencies, as well as ambulance, pharmacy and pathology laboratory services.

Facilities for patients include beds, tables and chairs, lockers, television, lounges, Wifi access, computers, surau, closed-circuit television (CCTV), toilets and baths, changing rooms and rest areas.

For those on duty, there are nurse stations, treatment/resuscitation room, rest areas, changing rooms and baths, including for the ‘donning and doffing’ of personal protective equipment (PPE) as well as meeting and seminar rooms. – Bernama

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March 30, 2020
Coronavirus: Nigerian Government Evacuates Stranded NCDC Staff From Congo

The Nigerian Government has evacuated staff of the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control stranded in the Republic of Congo.

In a statement, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Republic of Congo, Deborah Iliya, commended the government and Ministry of Foreign Affairs for deploying an aircraft to airlift the stranded personnel back to Nigeria.

According to Iliya, the NCDC staff had travelled to Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, to undergo a special capacity building course by the World Health Organisation in order to expand their knowledge of Coronavirus management.

The statement reads, “The medical team had been stranded following the closure of air and land borders by the host country ostensibly for similar situation.

“In the same vein, the ambassador, on behalf of the Government of Nigeria, has commended the government and good people of the Republic of Congo for the singular act of solidarity and standing on good relations by the temporal opening of her airport to facilitate the departure of the team on March 26, 2020.

“This act has in no small measure further strengthened the bilateral harmony that exists between the two countries.

“This trying moment calls for unity, support for each other and forging a common front against Coronavirus and all that stands against peace.”

At the moment, Africa has 4,480 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and 135 deaths, with 97 infections and one death coming from Nigeria.

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March 30, 2020
EXCLUSIVE: Two Nurses, One Doctor Infected With Coronavirus In Abuja Hospital

Two nurses and a doctor have been confirmed to have tested positive for Coronavirus at a hospital in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

The health workers, who are staff of a government hospital in Abuja, were part of medical personnel that attended to an infected person brought into the hospital.

A senior medical worker at the hospital told SaharaReporters that, “The patient was rushed to the hospital and as our job demands, we have to save life first and that was what we did.

“The person was attended to and stabilised by the medical team.

“A test was soon conducted and the result came out positive.

“The hospital thereafter asked all those who attended to the patient to undergo tests to determine their status and at the end of the day, the three tested positive for the virus.

“They are currently in isolation at the Gwagwalada Specialist Hospital.”

Speaking further, the senior health worker lamented the lack of quality Personal Protective Equipment for them, adding that government must invest in the protection of health workers at the frontline of the battle against the virus.

He said, “The unfortunate thing is that the government is not providing us with what to work with. It is sad that our PPE are not up to the world standard and can be penetrated by viruses.

“Some of us (health workers) have to use our personal funds to purchase gloves as we do not trust the ones government supplied.

“Nigerians should please remember us in their prayers and government should provide us with what we really need to work.”

Nigeria currently has 81 confirmed cases of Coronavirus and one recorded death.

According to the diplomatic community, infections could rise to more than 10,000 in the coming weeks as there are at least 5,000 persons, who had come in contact with infected persons in Nigeria already.

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March 29, 2020
Lagos Government Says Coronavirus Cases May Rise To 39,000 In State

The Lagos State government on Friday said that cases of Coronavirus in the city may rise to 39,000 in the coming weeks.

Commissioner for Health in the state, Prof Akin Abayomi, made the comment on Friday during a briefing with journalists.

He said, “Our mathematical modelling shows that the worst-case scenario is that we may see up to 39,000 cases in Lagos.

“If we add social distancing to active contact tracing, then we will be able to bend the curve further.

“The figures may seem alarming at this point, but this is just to emphasise to the Lagos community to follow instructions of the incident commander to make sure that we practise social distancing.

“Looking at the same timeframe from the introduction of the index case, you can see that Lagos State is not seen anywhere near what Spain, Italy and Iran are showing.

“So, at weeks two and three of our index case, we are flat and at week four, we have 37 cases; while at the same fourth week, Italy, Iran and Spain had more than 20,000 cases.

“So, we are doing something right in the state. Then if we continue to do that, we will remain on the lower trajectory.

“It shows we are keeping the curve flat which is allowing us to keep up with the number of cases we have so far.”

Nigeria so far has 65 confirmed Coronavirus cases with Lagos having 44 confirmed infections.

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March 28, 2020
Condom shortage looms after coronavirus lockdown shuts world’s top producer

KUALA LUMPUR: A global shortage of condoms is looming, the world’s biggest producer said, after a coronavirus lockdown forced it to shut down production.

Malaysia’s Karex Bhd makes one in every five condoms globally. It has not produced a single condom from its three Malaysian factories in the past 10 days due to a lockdown imposed by the government to halt the spread of the virus.

That’s already a shortfall of 100 million condoms, normally marketed internationally by brands such as Durex, supplied to state healthcare systems such as Britain’s NHS or distributed by aid programmes such as the UN Population Fund.

“We are going to see a global shortage of condoms everywhere, which is going to be scary,” Karex Chief Executive Goh Miah Kiat told Reuters this week.

“My concern is that for a lot of humanitarian programmes deep down in Africa, the shortage will not just be two weeks or a month. That shortage can run into months.”

Malaysia is Southeast Asia’s worst affected country, with 2,161 coronavirus infections and 26 deaths. The lockdown is due to remain in place at least until April 14.

The other major condom-producing countries are China, where the coronavirus originated and led to widespread factory shutdowns, and India and Thailand, which are seeing infections spiking only now.

Makers of other critical items like medical gloves have also faced hiccups in their operations in Malaysia.

Goh said Karex was in the process of appealing to the government for an exemption to operate under specific conditions. Malaysia is approving other essential goods producers to operate with half of their workforce.

“The good thing is that the demand for condoms is still very strong because like it or not, it’s still an essential to have,“ Goh said. “Given that at this point in time people are probably not planning to have children. It’s not the time, with so much uncertainty.” — Reuters

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March 27, 2020
Covid-19: Malaysia preparing smartphone application to track movements

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia is preparing a smartphone application that can track movements of individuals in an effort to curb the spread of Covid-19, according to Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti) Khairy Jamaluddin.

He said a similar application had been launched in Singapore which has managed to successfully trace infections through the detection of close contacts.

“A few days ago, Singapore launched a mobile phone app called ‘TraceTogether’ that can track the movements of people so that in a positive case, they can look at the individual’s movement history and warn others who have been near the patient to be screened,“ he said while appearing as moderator of an online forum on Mosti’s official Facebook page today.

The forum entitled Adapting to the Challenges of Covid-19 was attended by three panelists who are fellows of the Academy of Sciences Malaysia, namely Prof Datuk Dr Awang Bulgiba Awang Mahmud (epidemiologist); Prof Shamala Devi Sekaran (immunology and virology); and Prof Dr Mahendhiran Sangaran Nair (scientific and statistical data).

Launched on March 20, the TraceTogether app can identify people who have been within 2m of Covid-19 patients for at least 30 minutes, using wireless Bluetooth technology. Its developers say the app is useful when those infected cannot recall whom they had been in close proximity with for an extended duration.

Meanwhile, Mahendhiran said the implementation of such an application must be in line with robust regulation as well as educating the public on the importance of technology and data usage in the wellness industry.

“It’s about educating the population on how the data is used, a lot of awareness, and having regulatory framework on who gets to see and use the data, on what circumstances,“ he added. – Bernama

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March 26, 2020