Ενδιαφέρουσες εκπαιδευτικές δράσεις

ΕΛΟΝΟΣΙΑ : ΠΟΥ ΒΡΙΣΚΟΜΑΣΤΕ ΣΗΜΕΡΑ;

Malaria Vaccine

Source: AlertNet By Ben Hirschler, European Pharmaceuticals Correspondent.LONDON, Oct 14 2006(Reuters) A pioneering vaccine can protect a significant proportion of African children against malaria, scientists said on Thursday, boosting hopes that the mosquito-borne disease may one day be conquered. An effective vaccine is the "holy grail" in the battle against malaria, which makes up to 500 million people sick each year and kills between 1 and 3 million, most of them African children under five. "This is a really huge breakthrough," said Melinda Moree, director of the non-profit Malaria Vaccine Initiative, one of the groups behind the clinical trials programme. "It shows you can impact on disease in kids in Africa. This is the first vaccine that has ever shown that and that is what makes us really sit up and take notice." The goal is to give GlaxoSmithKline Plc's RTS,S/AS02A shot to babies alongside other childhood immunisations. But it is not a miracle cure and the need for further tests means it will not reach the market before 2010. "The results of this trial indicate that an effective vaccine against malaria that could potentially save the lives of millions of children is possible," Dr Marie-Paule Kieny, of the World Health Organisation, said in a statement. In a study involving more than 2,000 children in Mozambique aged one to four, the vaccine proved 30 percent effective in preventing all cases of malaria. However, it reduced the risk of getting life-threatening forms of the disease, needing hospital treatment, by 58 percent -- enough to save many lives. Results from the intermediate Phase II study were published in The Lancet medical journal, based on six months follow-up after administration of three monthly injections. Longer studies are now needed to prove the effect does not wear off and that there is no interference with other childhood shots, before final Phase III trials in infants get under way. Those pivotal tests are likely to be conducted in six to eight African countries. GENETIC COMPLEXITY GSK's vaccine is against Plasmodium falciparum, the most severe form of the disease which dominates in Africa. It is the most advanced of some 80 candidates in development. The shot targets just one stage in the parasite's life cycle and its success in stopping damage to the liver and red blood cells has taken some scientists by surprise. Because of the parasite's genetic complexity, many had doubted a vaccine based on a single antigen would work. The fact it does suggests a multiple shot might be even more effective. Economically, the new vaccine also breaks new ground because it is the fruit of a new kind of public-private partnership. Until now, pharmaceutical companies have had little incentive to develop vaccines for diseases that affect only the poor, since they do not provide significant profits. Under the new model, however, charitable groups such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provide cash while industry offers help "in kind" in the form of staff and facilities. A precondition of the arrangement is that any resulting products are sold at low prices in poor countries. If the right balance is struck, however, GSK may still make money. "We are confident that now all donors are committed to making this vaccine available as soon as possible and also to guarantee a reasonable return to GlaxoSmithKline," Jean Stephenne, head of GSK's vaccines business, told reporters. Each vaccine is likely to cost "a few dollars", he added. GSK is not expecting to sell its vaccine to travellers from developed countries since it will not be able to compete with prophylactic drugs that offer almost 100 percent protection. ((editing by Steve Addison))

ΔΙΑΚΟΜΙΔΗ ΤΡΑΥΜΑΤΙΑ

ΑΝΑΔΗΜΟΣΊΕΥΣΗ ΑΠΟ in gr 10/8/07

"...17χρονος τραυματίστηκε σε τροχαίο και αμέσως μεταφέρθηκε στο Κέντρο Υγείας Δικαίων Έβρου και από εκεί στο νοσοκομείο Διδυμοτείχου. Εκεί διαπιστώθηκε ότι έπρεπε να μεταφερθεί στην Αλεξανδρούπολη, ωστόσο η μεταφορά του καθυστέρησε, καθώς δεν υπήρχε συνοδός γιατρός.

Όταν με καθυστέρηση έφτασε στο νοσοκομείο Αλεξανδρούπολης διαπιστώθηκε πως και οι τέσσερις αγγειοχειρουργοί έλειπαν με άδεια.

Με 12 ώρες καθυστέρηση ο 17χρονος μεταφέρθηκε στο νοσοκομείο Παπαγεωργίου της Θεσσαλονίκης, όπου ύστερα από πολύωρη επέμβαση οι γιατροί διαπίστωσαν ότι ήταν πλέον πολύ αργά, με αποτέλεσμα το αγόρι να χάσει το πόδι του."

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Asia floods show climate change risks ahead-UN

By Simon Gardner COLOMBO, Aug 8 (Reuters) - Climate change threatens to bring further flooding, droughts, fires and landslides and the world must invest now to mitigate damage from natural disasters, the UN's top aid official said on Wednesday. With tens of millions of people displaced in India and Bangladesh after severe flooding, nations should examine ways to protect vulnerable populations, John Holmes, UN Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs said in an interview. "It's the worst we've seen for 50, 60, 70 years and we're beginning to see a pattern of flooding around the world," Holmes told Reuters during a visit to war-torn Sri Lanka. "There is an enormous problem because climate change is a reality already... We need to anticipate it and not just respond to it." "Floods, droughts, fires, landslides, these are already happening in larger numbers than ever before, and I think the link with climate change is well proven." Sri Lanka has escaped the floodwaters choking its South Asian neighbours, but is grappling with its own aid problems. Renewed civil war between the state and Tamil Tiger rebels is hindering delivery of aid to tens of thousands displaced by the conflict and 2004 tsunami. The latest bout of monsoon flooding in India, which began about three weeks ago, is said to be the worst in living memory in parts of the impoverished state of Bihar, where around 10 million people have been affected alone. About 545 people have been killed in the floods, mostly by drowning, disease and snakebites. More than 50,000 people are suffering from diarrhoea in the flood-hit districts of Bangladesh, authorities said. The United Nations is encouraging governments to set up disaster management authorities as well as education campaigns to ensure measures are in place for future disasters. "I think if you invest in disaster risk reduction, and what that means is not building on flood plains, having shelters for people to go to, recognising the problems before they happen and anticipating them, that investment is one of the best investments you can make," he added. Holmes fears that climate change-related natural disasters will pile increasing pressure on a world already short of funding to cope with existing humanitarian disasters. "I think there will be a problem in the future about the scale of the resources," he said. "We never have enough money for the humanitarian crises we have already."

Φόβοι για πιθανή εξάπλωση του ιού

Λονδίνο, Θανάσης Γκαβός, ΑΠΕ - 07/08/2007

Στο χώρο του ερευνητικού κέντρου βρίσκονται ένα ιδιωτικό φαρμακευτικό εργαστήριο

Εξαιρετικά πιθανό χαρακτήρισαν οι βρετανοί επιθεωρητές υγείας το ενδεχόμενο ο ιός του αφθώδους πυρετού στο Σάρεϊ να ξέφυγε από το βιολογικό εργαστήριο Περ Μπραϊτ, που βρίσκεται στην περιοχή Μετά από διήμερους ελέγχους οι επιθεωρητές δεν κατάφεραν να εντοπίσουν την ακριβή εστία της ασθένειας μέσα στο εργαστήριο, ωστόσο τόνισαν ότι υπάρχει μεγάλη πιθανότητα ο ιός να μεταφέρθηκε από το εργαστήριο μέσω κάποιου εργαζόμενου. Το πρωί επιβεβαιώθηκε και δεύτερο κρούσμα αφθώδους πυρετού σε αγρόκτημα επίσης κοντά στο εργαστήριο

Φόβοι για πιθανή εξάπλωση

Χαρακτήρισαν αμελητέα την πιθανότητα ο ιός να μεταφέρθηκε μέσω αέρα ή νερού Υπάρχει μία "πολύ μεγάλη πιθανότητα" η "πηγή" της επιζωοτίας αφθώδους πυρετού, που εκδηλώθηκε προ ημερών στη νοτιοδυτική Αγγλία, να προήλθε απο τον χώρο του κέντρου ερευνών για τις επιζωοτίες στο Πάιρμπράιτ (50 χλμ. νοτιοδυτικώς από το Λονδίνο), το οποίο βρίσκεται πολύ κοντά στα δύο αγροκτήματα, όπου εκδηλώθηκε σε πρώτη χρονική φάση η επιζωοτία αφθώδους πυρετού, αναφέρθηκε στο Λονδίνο από την κρατική Υγειονομική Υπηρεσία. Στο χώρο του ερευνητικού κέντρου βρίσκονται ένα ιδιωτικό φαρμακευτικό εργαστήριο, το Merial Animal Health, το οποίο είναι ειδικευμένο στην παρασκευή εμβολίων, αλλά και ένα δημόσιο κέντρο ερευνών. Ωστόσο, ακόμα δεν είναι διακριβωμένο, από πού ακριβώς προήλθε αρχικώς η επιζωοτία αφθώδους πυρετού, που εκδηλώθηκε σε δύο βρετανικά αγροκτήματα σε απόσταση μόλις πέντε χιλιομέτρων από εκεί και γίνεται πλέον αγώνας, να μην επεκταθεί και εκτός Βρετανίας

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ΠΟΣΟ "ΑΘΩΑ " ΕΙΝΑΙ ΤΑ ΚΡΟΥΣΜΑΤΑ ΤΟΥ ΑΦΘΩΔΟΥΣ ΠΥΡΕΤΟΥ ΣΤΗ ΒΡΕΤΑΝΙΑ;

Μάθετε περισότερα για τον αφθώδη πυρετό

Φυματίωση: Πρόοδος στην πρόληψη;

ΑΝΑΔΗΜΟΣΊΕΥΣΗ ΑΠΟ GLOBAL HEALTH REPORTING KAI REUTERS Tuberculosis Experimental TB Vaccine Using Weakened Strain of Bacterium Might Be More Effective Than BCG Vaccine, Study Says [August 2, 2007]

An experimental tuberculosis vaccine that uses a live, weakened strain of the bacterium that causes TB in humans might be more effective than the standard BCG TB vaccine, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Reuters reports. The existing BCG vaccine is based on a weakened strain of the bacterium that causes TB in cattle. Steven Porcelli of the Albert Einstein College of Medicinein New York and colleagues are researching a potential vaccine that uses a weakened version of the bacterium that causes TB in people.For the study, researchers identified a gene found in the TB bacterium that helps the disease go undetected by the human immune system. They then removed the gene from the bacterium and used the modified version to create the vaccine. The experimental vaccine was tested against the BCGvaccine in mice and guinea pigs, and the scientists found that the new one extended the lives of and stimulated stronger immune responses in the animals than the BCG vaccine.Porcelli is working with researchers to remove additional genes from the vaccine so that it will be safer for humans. He said the vaccine is "still probably too infectious to give to humans," adding, "It's only partially attenuated, or weakened, for virulence." The next step is to test the vaccine in monkeys, and if results continue to be positive, human studies might be possible in two to three years, Porcelli said. "We're very excited because this is the first vaccine strain we've ever seen that is significantly better than BCG," William Jacobs, a study researcher from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute,said. Porcelli added that the vaccine "seems to be translating directly into something that might be of great benefit to humanity. So I feel energized and quite optimistic about where this project is leading"(Dunham, Reuters, 8/1).

The study is available online.