South Africa Vision

GENEVA — The World Health Organization reports a significant drop in the number of new cases of COVID-19 in Africa for the first time since the omicron variant began widely circulating on the continent two months ago.

The coronavirus pandemic has infected nearly 10.5 million people in Africa and killed more than 234,000. World Health Organization officials say the latest figures reflect a 20 percent drop in coronavirus cases in the week up to January 16, and an 8 percent dip in deaths.

While the fourth omicron-fueled wave appears to have peaked, WHO regional director for Africa Matshidiso Moeti says the continent is not yet out of the pandemic woods. She says further monitoring is needed to determine whether the trend will be sustained.

“However, while four sub-regions reported a fall in new cases, we are closely monitoring the situation in North Africa, where cases spiked by 55 percent, and Tunisia and Morocco have both seen an exponential increase, overtaking South Africa as the countries with the most cases on the continent,” said Moeti.

The highly transmissible omicron variant triggered a sharp surge in the number of cases. But the severity of disease appears to be milder than that of previous strains. Nevertheless, Moeti says the continent has not yet turned the tide on the pandemic. She says there is no room for complacency.

She warns further pandemic waves are inevitable as long as the virus continues to circulate. She notes Africa remains particularly vulnerable because of its unequal access to life-saving vaccines. She says Africa faces similar impediments in gaining access to a full range of COVID-19 treatments.

The WHO has approved 11 therapeutics that can be used to treat COVID-19. It currently is reviewing the data on two oral antivirals, which have shown promising results in reducing the risk of hospitalization in some patients.

WHO regional director Moeti says she fears Africa once again may lose out in gaining access to those treatments because of their limited availability and high cost. For example, she notes two effective antibody treatments cost between $550 and $1,220 for a single dose.

“The deep inequity that left Africa at the back of the queue for vaccines must not be repeated with life-saving treatment,” said Moeti. “Universal access to diagnostics, vaccines, and therapeutics will pave the shortest path to the end of this pandemic.”

Moeti warns nations to prepare for the appearance of other transmissible, possibly more virulent strains of the coronavirus. She says the coronavirus will continue to mutate and pose an ongoing threat to nations if the inequitable distribution of life-saving vaccines and therapeutics between rich and poor countries is maintained.

Source: Voice of America

PRETORIA, A South African zoo is reporting that lions and pumas may have contracted COVID-19 from their handlers.

This is according to a study by researchers at the University of Pretoria who are warning of risk of new variants if the virus “establishes itself in other animal reservoirs” and is retransmitted to humans.

The study was done after the animals fell ill with symptoms that were similar to coronavirus in human beings – including breathing difficulties, runny noses and a dry cough.

Covid tests on the animals turned out positive, the research noted, with data suggesting that they contracted the virus from staff handling them.

South Africa is currently Africa’s most impacted relative to COVID-19 caseload.

Source: Nam News Network

LONDON — More than 1.2 million people are dying every year directly from bacterial infections that are resistant to several antibiotics, according to a new study, making multiresistant bacteria far deadlier than HIV/AIDS or malaria. A further 4.95 million deaths were associated with these multiresistant bacteria.

“It is estimated that if we don’t find alternatives by 2050, millions of lives will be lost and there will be $100 trillion of lost [economic] output,” Antonia Sagona, an expert on bacterial infections at England’s University of Warwick, said in an interview with VOA.

The study, published in The Lancet and led by the University of Washington in Seattle, analyzed data from 204 countries and territories. It showed that poorer nations were worst hit by antibiotic resistance, especially those in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.

“Lower respiratory infections accounted for more than 1.5 million deaths associated with [antibiotic] resistance in 2019, making it the most burdensome infectious syndrome,” the report said.

The authors cautioned there is an urgent need for more research.

“There are serious data gaps in many low-income settings, emphasizing the need to expand microbiology laboratory capacity and data collection systems to improve our understanding of this important human health threat,” they wrote.

Antibiotic misuse

Scientists say the misuse of antibiotics over decades has encouraged microorganisms to evolve into “superbugs.”

“For example, people have viral infections, and they have been prescribed antibiotics for very many years now. And this over the years has made the problem very severe, so the bacteria have become really resistant to these antibiotics,” Sagona said.

The World Health Organization last year warned that none of the 43 antibiotics in development or recently approved was enough to combat antimicrobial resistance.

New hope?

So what can be done? Sagona – along with other scientists around the world – is working on new treatments called phages.

“These are viruses that can specifically target bacteria. And they can be used in combination with antibiotics or on their own to clear bacterial infections of multiresistant strains,” she told VOA.

Despite the promising new treatments, scientists say it’s vital that existing antibiotics are not overused – to help slow down the development of the ever-deadlier superbugs.

Source: Voice of America