Post Reply - New flu kills 143 in the Congo

Helen Branswell 
@HelenBranswell
·
7h
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The lab results from Panzi, DRC still aren't in — for completely understandable reasons — so it's not yet known what is causing the outbreak there. But an update from @WHO
 suggests known diseases exacerbated by severe malnutrition could be the cause.

link; https://www.statnews.com/2024/12/08/drc-outbreak-who-investigation/ or https://www.statnews.com/2024/12/08/drc-outbreak-who-investigation/ ;

Though it did not rule out the possibility of a novel disease, the WHO statement leaned heavily into the likelihood that one or more known diseases — malaria, pneumonia, influenza, Covid-19, or measles — exacerbated by severe malnutrition may be behind the outbreak and the high number of deaths attributed to it.
“The area experienced deterioration in food insecurity in recent months, has low vaccination coverage and very limited access to diagnostics and quality case management,” the Geneva-based global health agency said. “There is a lack of supplies and transportation means and shortage of health staff in the area. Malaria control measures are very limited.”
DJ, One could claim the "new disease" in fact is poverty...

https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/africa/emerging-diseases-other-health-threats-ah/1001427-drc-kwango-at-least-31-confirmed-deaths-due-to-an-epidemic-of-unknown-origin-reported-in-panzi-november-30-2024?view=stream or https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/africa/emerging-diseases-other-health-threats-ah/1001427-drc-kwango-at-least-31-confirmed-deaths-due-to-an-epidemic-of-unknown-origin-reported-in-panzi-november-30-2024?view=stream ;

64%. That’s the share of cases among children under the age of 14, according to the WHO, which also reported 60% of cases are among females.
DJ, Underlining social issues; in "primitive" societies men are put above women (in part linked to family name..."Real men" produce a lot of children with lots of women...). 

https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/the-pandemic-discussion-forum/1002020-discussion-drc-at-least-31-confirmed-deaths-in-an-undiagnosed-outbreak-november-30-2024?view=stream or https://flutrackers.com/forum/forum/the-pandemic-discussion-forum/1002020-discussion-drc-at-least-31-confirmed-deaths-in-an-undiagnosed-outbreak-november-30-2024?view=stream ; I don't think they have any test results yet. Maybe they got bad samples or maybe they haven't been able to get the samples to a lab yet. I feel that we'd have gotten announcements even if nothing was detected, because they're going to test for Ebola and Marburg (and DRC is very good at detecting those) and get negative results because this doesn't look anything like those outbreaks, which they'll announce to try to reduce the fear, even if they don't have any positives.

In terms of what you bring to fight this outbreak without diagnosis, I'd assume we're talking things like antibiotics, vitamins, perhaps anti-malarials, maybe measles or flu vaccines if that's suspect.
DJ, The basic-socio-economic-problem; keeping billions of people poor to keep 0,1% "claiming they own the planet"....In many ways one may claim socio-economic inequality NEVER was this bad in all of human history...