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Update on Omicron. https://www.who.int/news/item/28-11-2021-update-on-omicron On 26 November 2021, WHO designated the variant B.1.1.529 a variant of concern, named Omicron, on the advice of WHO’s Technical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE). This decision was based on the evidence presented to the TAG-VE that Omicron has several mutations that may have an impact on how it behaves, for example, on how easily it spreads or the severity of illness it causes. Here is a summary of what is currently known. Current knowledge about Omicron Researchers in South Africa and around the world are conducting studies to better understand many aspects of Omicron and will continue to share the findings of these studies as they become available. Transmissibility: It is not yet clear whether Omicron is more transmissible (e.g., more easily spread from person to person) compared to other variants, including Delta. The number of people testing positive has risen in areas of South Africa affected by this variant, but epidemiologic studies are underway to understand if it is because of Omicron or other factors. Severity of disease: It is not yet clear whether infection with Omicron causes more severe disease compared to infections with other variants, including Delta. Preliminary data suggests that there are increasing rates of hospitalization in South Africa, but this may be due to increasing overall numbers of people becoming infected, rather than a result of specific infection with Omicron. There is currently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those from other variants. Initial reported infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to have more mild disease—but understanding the level of severity of the Omicron variant will take days to several weeks. All variants of COVID-19, including the Delta variant that is dominant worldwide, can cause severe disease or death, in particular for the most vulnerable people, and thus prevention is always key. Effectiveness of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection Preliminary evidence suggests there may be an increased risk of reinfection with Omicron (ie, people who have previously had COVID-19 could become reinfected more easily with Omicron), as compared to other variants of concern, but information is limited. More information on this will become available in the coming days and weeks. Effectiveness of vaccines: WHO is working with technical partners to understand the potential impact of this variant on our existing countermeasures, including vaccines. Vaccines remain critical to reducing severe disease and death, including against the dominant circulating variant, Delta. Current vaccines remain effective against severe disease and death. Effectiveness of current tests: The widely used PCR tests continue to detect infection, including infection with Omicron, as we have seen with other variants as well. Studies are ongoing to determine whether there is any impact on other types of tests, including rapid antigen detection tests. Effectiveness of current treatments: Corticosteroids and IL6 Receptor Blockers will still be effective for managing patients with severe COVID-19. Other treatments will be assessed to see if they are still as effective given the changes to parts of the virus in the Omicron variant. Studies underway At the present time, WHO is coordinating with a large number of researchers around the world to better understand Omicron. Studies currently underway or underway shortly include assessments of transmissibility, severity of infection (including symptoms), performance of vaccines and diagnostic tests, and effectiveness of treatments. WHO encourages countries to contribute the collection and sharing of hospitalized patient data through the WHO COVID-19 Clinical Data Platform to rapidly describe clinical characteristics and patient outcomes. More information will emerge in the coming days and weeks. WHO’s TAG-VE will continue to monitor and evaluate the data as it becomes available and assess how mutations in Omicron alter the behaviour of the virus. Recommended actions for countries As Omicron has been designated a Variant of Concern, there are several actions WHO recommends countries to undertake, including enhancing surveillance and sequencing of cases; sharing genome sequences on publicly available databases, such as GISAID; reporting initial cases or clusters to WHO; performing field investigations and laboratory assessments to better understand if Omicron has different transmission or disease characteristics, or impacts effectiveness of vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics or public health and social measures. More detail in the announcement from 26 November. Countries should continue to implement the effective public health measures to reduce COVID-19 circulation overall, using a risk analysis and science-based approach. They should increase some public health and medical capacities to manage an increase in cases. WHO is providing countries with support and guidance for both readiness and response. In addition, it is vitally important that inequities in access to COVID-19 vaccines are urgently addressed to ensure that vulnerable groups everywhere, including health workers and older persons, receive their first and second doses, alongside equitable access to treatment and diagnostics. Recommended actions for people The most effective steps individuals can take to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus is to keep a physical distance of at least 1 metre from others; wear a well-fitting mask; open windows to improve ventilation; avoid poorly ventilated or crowded spaces; keep hands clean; cough or sneeze into a bent elbow or tissue; and get vaccinated when it’s their turn. WHO will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available, including following meetings of the TAG-VE. In addition, information will be available on WHO’s digital and social media platforms.

https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Pharmaceuticals/WHO-backs-world-s-first-malaria-vaccine-for-Africa-s-children?utm_campaign=GL_coronavirus_latest&utm_medium=email&utm_source=NA_newsletter&utm_content=article_link&del_type=10&pub_date=20211007150000&seq_num=10&si=44594 WHO backs world's first malaria vaccine for Africa's children GlaxoSmithKline's Mosquirix could offer big breakthrough against deadly disease The WHO says 94% of the world's malaria cases and deaths occur in Africa. © Reuters October 7, 2021 10:58 JST NAIROBI (Reuters) -- The World Health Organization (WHO) said on Wednesday the only approved vaccine against malaria should be widely given to African children, potentially marking a major advance against a disease that kills hundreds of thousands of people annually. The WHO recommendation is for RTS,S -- or Mosquirix -- a vaccine developed by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline. Since 2019, 2.3 million doses of Mosquirix have been administered to infants in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi in a large-scale pilot program coordinated by the WHO. The majority of those whom the disease kills are under age five. That program followed a decade of clinical trials in seven African countries. "This is a vaccine developed in Africa by African scientists and we're very proud," said WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. "Using this vaccine in addition to existing tools to prevent malaria could save tens of thousands of young lives each year," he added, referring to anti-malaria measures like bed nets and spraying to kill mosquitoes that transmit the disease. One of the ingredients in the Mosquirix vaccine is sourced from a rare evergreen native to Chile called a Quillay tree. Reuters reported on Wednesday that the long-term supply of these trees is in question. Malaria is far more deadly than COVID-19 in Africa. It killed 386,000 Africans in 2019, according to a WHO estimate, compared with 212,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths in the past 18 months. The WHO says 94% of malaria cases and deaths occur in Africa, a continent of 1.3 billion people. The preventable disease is caused by parasites transmitted to people by the bites of infected mosquitoes. Symptoms include fever, vomiting and fatigue. The vaccine's effectiveness at preventing severe cases of malaria in children is only around 30%, but it is the only approved vaccine. The European Union's drugs regulator approved it in 2015, saying its benefits outweighed the risks. "This is how we fight malaria, layering imperfect tools on top of each other," said Ashley Birkett, who leads global malaria vaccine work at Path, a non-profit global health organization that has funded development of the vaccine with GSK and the three-country pilot. Another vaccine against malaria called R21/Matrix-M that was developed by scientists at Britain's University of Oxford showed up to 77% efficacy in a year-long study involving 450 children in Burkina Faso, researchers said in April. It is still in the trial stages. GSK welcomed the WHO recommendation. "This long-awaited landmark decision can reinvigorate the fight against malaria in the region at a time when progress on malaria control has stalled," Thomas Breuer, GSK's chief global health officer, said in a statement. GSK shares held steady in New York following the announcement, which came after the close of trading in its London-listed shares. The recommendation was jointly announced in Geneva by the WHO's top advisory bodies for malaria and immunization, the Malaria Policy Advisory Group and the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization. Experts said the challenge now would be mobilizing financing for production and distribution of the vaccine to some of the world's poorest countries. GSK has to date committed to produce 15 million doses of Mosquirix annually up to 2028 at a cost of production plus no more than 5% margin. A global market study led by the WHO this year projected demand for a malaria vaccine would be 50 to 110 million doses per year by 2030 if it is deployed in areas with moderate to high transmission of the disease. The GAVI vaccine alliance, a global public-private partnership, will consider in December whether and how to finance the vaccination program. "As we've seen from the COVID vaccine, where there is political will, there is funding available to ensure that vaccines are scaled to the level they are needed," said Kate O’Brien, director of WHO’s Department of Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals. A source familiar with planning for the vaccine’s development said the price per dose was not yet set, but would be confirmed after GAVI's funding decision and once there is a clear sense of demand. The WHO's decision had personal meaning for Dr. Rose Jalong'o, a vaccinology specialist at the Kenyan health ministry. "I suffered from malaria as a child, and during my internship, and during my clinical years I attended to children in hospital because of severe malaria who needed blood transfusion and unfortunately some of them died," she said. "It's a disease I have grown up with and, seeing all this in my lifetime, it's an exciting time."

With the situation escalating by the day and the other thread moving 2Fast2Furious, we have decided to start this thread to share / highlight critical information relating to the virus outbreak and important health tip for easy reference by all MCF readers. We urge all to post only official information and useful tips from reputable sources to maintain the "tidiness" of this thread. Any post we deem unfit for this thread will be deleted or shifted to the other thread. Thanks in advance for your cooperation. @pChou @BabyBlade @kobayashiGT Please feel free to add other criteria to this thread and we shall regulate it from time to time. As a rule of thumb, NO tcss here... Some useful websites for official information: Ministry of Health - Updates on Wuhan Coronavirus (2019-nCoV) Local Situation World Health Organization - Novel Coronavirus 2019 The Straits Times - Wuhan Virus Outbreak Channel News Asia - Wuhan Coronavirus Outbreak Singapore Government - Wuhan Coronavirus Updates Singapore Government - WhatsApp Push Notification Some useful tips for protect yourself and others from getting sick. More will be added in due course.

The Nigerian government has warned of a “strange epidemic” which has left 15 people dead and infected dozens more in less than a week. The outbreak of the mysterious disease, which causes vomiting, swelling and diarrhoea, was first recorded late last month in Benue State, southeast of the capital Abuja. By 3 February, “the number of persons affected with the strange endemic has risen to 104”, said Nigerian senator Abba Moro, according to newspaper the Daily Post. In a Senate resolution, Mr Moro, who represents a district in Benue State, named a number of victims of the disease, who all allegedly died within 48 hours of contracting the illness. The resolution urged the country’s health ministry to dispatch experts to the centre of the outbreak to find out more about the disease. It also called for the Nigeria Centres for Disease Control (NCDC) to establish surveillance measures to contain its spread, the Post reported. Osagie Ehanire, the health minister, said in a briefing on Friday the illness did not appear to be Ebola or Lassa fever – two potentially fatal viruses which occur in West Africa. Nor did it appear to be the 2019 novel coronavirus, which originated in Wuhan China and has so far killed more than 700 people. Mr Ehanire said the NCDC had now activated an emergency response operation in the affected area – with government officials suspecting chemicals used in fishing may be responsible for the sickness, according to the BBC. He advised Nigerians who may have witnessed cases of the illness to contact the agency for free using the number 0800-970000-10. The NCDC has been contacted for comment. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/nigeria-disease-mystery-virus-deaths-benue-state-abba-moro-a9325806.html

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Most would know that diesel engine exhaust emissions are more dirty compared to petrol engines. Even though diesel engines have gotten progressively cleaner in recent years due to strict emissions standards, the World Health Organisation has announced recently that they have uncovered sufficient evidence to link diesel fumes with cases of cancer in human beings. The World Health Organisation which operates under the United Nations says that diesel fumes are a known cause for lung cancer and can increase the risks of bladder cancer. Carcinogen is the term used for describing any substance that is an agent directly involved in causing cancer. As mentioned above, diesel engines are progressively getting cleaner. This is largely attributed to the usage of particulate filters, of more precise direct-injection technologies and also to the widespread use of ultra-low-sulphur diesel in some countries such as the United States. But this is not the case in many developing countries. There are still a lot of vehicles, mostly commercial vehicles, in those countries that use old fashioned diesel engines that use pre-chamber type indirect injection. To complicate the matter, the World Health Organization estimates that these vehicles will take a very long time to be replaced with cleaner ones. Chairman of the working group, Dr. Christopher Portier, explained that the scientific find was rather compelling and the group