Archive for May, 2017
Helping hands across a war-torn border: the Israeli medical effort treating casualties of the Syrian Civil War
Sunday, May 14th, 2017
The son of 9/11 mastermind Osama Bin Laden is encouraging lone-wolf attacks against Americans and other enemies of Al Qaeda and vowing to avenge his father’s death
Sunday, May 14th, 2017Amtrak Engineer Charged In Deadly Philadelphia Crash
Sunday, May 14th, 2017- “…..Bostian has been charged with eight counts of manslaughter among other offenses…
- National Transportation Safety Board investigators said the train was traveling at 105 miles (170 kilometers) an hour, twice the speed limit, when the driver slammed on the emergency brakes just before the crash.
- The NTSB said it found no evidence that Bostian was impaired or using a cellphone during the Washington-to-New York run……
- Amtrak has taken responsibility for the crash and agreed to pay $265 million to settle claims filed by victims and their families.
- The company has since installed positive train control systems in its trains, which automatically slow a speeding train.
- Train engineer Bostian told federal investigators that he had been listening to the radio and became distracted by a report about a train engineer who was sprayed with glass from a windshield that had been struck by an object……”
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A novel retinal sign that appears to be specific to Ebola survivors.
Sunday, May 14th, 2017Citation: Steptoe PJ, Scott JT, Baxter JM, Parkes CK, Dwivedi R, Czanner G, et al. Novel retinal lesion in Ebola survivors, Sierra Leone, 2016. Emerg Infect Dis. 2017 Jul [date cited]. https://dx.doi.org/10.3201/eid2307.161608
Abstract: We conducted a case–control study in Freetown, Sierra Leone, to investigate ocular signs in Ebola virus disease (EVD) survivors. A total of 82 EVD survivors with ocular symptoms and 105 controls from asymptomatic civilian and military personnel and symptomatic eye clinic attendees underwent ophthalmic examination, including widefield retinal imaging. Snellen visual acuity was <6/7.5 in 75.6% (97.5% CI 63%–85.7%) of EVD survivors and 75.5% (97.5% CI 59.1%–87.9%) of controls. Unilateral white cataracts were present in 7.4% (97.5% CI 2.4%–16.7%) of EVD survivors and no controls. Aqueous humor from 2 EVD survivors with cataract but no anterior chamber inflammation were PCR-negative for Zaire Ebola virus, permitting cataract surgery. A novel retinal lesion following the anatomic distribution of the optic nerve axons occurred in 14.6% (97.5% CI 7.1%–25.6%) of EVD survivors and no controls, suggesting neuronal transmission as a route of ocular entry.
Volume 23, Number 7—July 2017
Research
Novel Retinal Lesion in Ebola Survivors, Sierra Leone, 2016
, Janet T. Scott, Julia M. Baxter, Craig K. Parkes, Rahul Dwivedi, Gabriela Czanner, Matthew J. Vandy, Fayiah Momorie, Alimamy D. Fornah, Patrick Komba, Jade Richards, Foday Sahr, Nicholas A.V. Beare, and Malcolm G. SempleFigure 2
Figure 2. Composite scanning laser ophthalmoscope retinal images showing type 6 Ebola peripapillary or peripheral lesions, observed following the anatomic distribution of the ganglion cell axon (retinal nerve fiber layer), in a case–control study of ocular signs in Ebola virus disease survivors, Sierra Leone, 2016. A) Example 1, right eye. B) Illustration of the ganglion cell axon anatomic distribution. Courtesy of W.L.M. Alward. C) Example 2, right eye. Asterisks indicate curvilinear lesions distinct from the retinal vasculature. White arrowhead indicates retinal nerve fiber wedge defect.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Characteristic features of lesions observed in a case–control study of ocular signs in Ebola virus disease survivors, Sierra Leone, 2016. A) Composite scanning laser ophthalmoscope retinal image, left eye. Arrow indicates direction of the optical coherence tomography scan. B) Optical coherence tomography. White, long, dashed line indicates cross-sectional plane; white arrowhead indicates Ebola lesion limited to the retinal layers with an intact retinal pigment epithelium. Magnified 1.5× from original image (panel A). C) Examples of straight-edged, sharp angulated lesions (magnified from panel A). D) Example of tangential section through the human fovea with illustrative highlighting of a triangular photoreceptor matrix corresponding to Ebola lesional shape. Courtesy of Ahnelt et al. (17).
Another major cyber-attack could be imminent after Friday’s global hit that infected more than 125,000 computer systems in 100 countries.
Sunday, May 14th, 2017The Telegraph: “….The UK security expert, who was hailed an “accidental hero” for halting the spread of Friday’s virus, predicted that a further attack could come on Monday…..”
Reducing speed to save lives by Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General, and Michael R. Bloomberg, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs)
Sunday, May 14th, 2017Reducing speed to save lives
Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General, and
Michael R. Bloomberg, WHO Global Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs)
We can save so many lives around the world if we just slow down. Each year, more than 1.25 million people – many of them young people – die in automobile crashes. And a large proportion of these deaths are preventable: about one third are due to vehicles traveling at excessive speeds. In low- and middle-income countries, that figure is closer to half.
Regardless of where one lives, speeding is a lethal problem. Studies show that on most roads, in most countries, 40–50% of all cars travel above the posted speed limit. And whether or not a car is speeding can be the difference between life and death. For example, someone who is hit by a vehicle traveling at 50 miles (80 kilometers) per hour has a 3 times higher risk of dying than if they had been hit by a vehicle moving at 30 miles (48 kilometers) per hour.
This means that just setting urban speed limits at 30 miles per hour or less, and allowing local authorities to reduce speed limits further around schools and other areas with high pedestrian traffic, would save many lives. It is encouraging that 47 countries around the world are already implementing these commonsense practices. But we must do far more to expand the reach of such measures, and to ensure that more governments adopt them.
Success through a comprehensive approach
Not surprisingly, countries that have embraced a comprehensive approach to road safety, such as the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, have had the most success in reducing their rates of death and injury from automobile accidents. These countries have made it a high priority to reduce rates of speeding, and they have taken steps to improve the safety of their roads, vehicles, drivers, and all others who use roads, including pedestrians and motorcyclists.
For example, proactive countries have built their roads to include features that calm traffic, such as roundabouts. They have also established speed limits tailored to local road conditions, while stepping up enforcement to deter traffic violations. And they have begun to require that all new cars include life-saving technologies such as autonomous emergency braking.
Safer streets, healthier cities
Municipal leaders worldwide – from Addis Ababa to Mumbai to Bangkok – have played a key role in implementing these measures, which are not just saving lives, but also making their cities healthier in other ways. Safer streets encourage more people to walk and cycle, helping to reduce air pollution, which has been linked to chronic respiratory disease, cancer, and other noncommunicable diseases.
To build on these achievements, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the World Health Organization, and other partners are working with municipal leaders to help them gather the data needed to identify problem areas more effectively. They can then determine where to target their limited resources to make the biggest improvements. We are also providing support for local authorities to stage public-awareness campaigns that will help build grassroots support for new road-safety legislation and stronger penalties.
Improving road safety is one of the biggest opportunities we have to save lives around the world. And the good news is that, starting with the solutions outlined above, we already know how to do it.
The fourth annual United Nations Global Road Safety Week, May 8-14, provides a chance to draw more attention to these solutions. Over the course of the week, community events are being held in cities around the world, to help raise awareness of the problem and advance more solutions. These events will take many forms: street traffic will be slowed down, campaigns will be launched in many schools, and roundtable discussions will be held to explore how we can ensure that smart policies continue to spread.
All of these events and initiatives will bring together local and national leaders in government, civil society, business, law enforcement, and other sectors. To learn more about the week’s events, and how every community can take steps to reduce speeding, we encourage readers to visit the Road Safety Week website.
A world in which far fewer lives are lost to automobile accidents is possible and entirely within our reach. It is up to all of us to make it a reality.
Thousands of men, women, and children in northern Nigeria have been affected by a meningitis C outbreak, reportedly the largest to hit the country in the past nine years.
Friday, May 12th, 2017“…..MSF set up a 200-bed treatment centre in Sokoto Town, followed by a 20-bed facility in Anka, Zamfara. In these locations, MSF’s Nigeria Emergency Response Unit (NERU) works intensively to provide free, high-quality medical care and reduce mortality rates as much as possible.
These teams treat challenging cases in a difficult environment.
“A few days ago a nine-year-old boy was brought in unconsciousness and with severe meningitis,” recalls Caroline Riefthuis, an MSF nurse in Sokoto. “He received treatment for five days and recovered, but unfortunately we found out that he had become deaf and blind— complications of severe meningitis.”
This little boy is one of 614 patients treated in Sokoto Mutalah Mohamad Hospital since April, when MSF took over the management of the centre from the MoH due to a lack of supplies and qualified staff to run it. In Anka General Hospital, 137 patients were admitted since the beginning of the outbreak. Most are between five and 20 years old….”
A global cyberattack disrupted Britain’s health system and infected computers in dozens of other countries.
Friday, May 12th, 2017They warned the sum would be doubled if it was not paid within three days.
Pictures posted on social media showed screens of NHS computers with images demanding payment of 300 US dollars worth of the online currency Bitcoin, saying: “Ooops, your files have been encrypted!”
It adds: “Maybe you are looking for a way to recover your files, but do not waste your time.”
It demands payment in three days or the price is doubled, and if none is received in seven days the files will be deleted – but there is evidence patient details have been accessed…..”
Breaking News: Cyberattack in U.K. Hits 16 Health Institutions
Friday, May 12th, 2017- blocking doctors from gaining access to patient files,
- causing emergency rooms to divert patients
- stoking fears about hackers’ ability to wreak havoc on vital public services.
Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week
Friday, May 12th, 2017Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week 2017
8-14 May 2017
Save Lives: #SlowDown
The UN Road Safety Collaboration is pleased to announce that the Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week will be held from 8-14 May 2017. The Week will focus on speed and what can be done to address this key risk factor for road traffic deaths and injuries. Speed contributes to around one-third of all fatal road traffic crashes in high-income countries, and up to half in low- and middle-income countries.
Countries successfully reducing road traffic deaths have done so by prioritizing safety when managing speed. Among the proven strategies to address speed include:
- Building or modifying roads to include features that calm traffic
- Establishing speed limits to the function of each road
- Enforcing speed limits
- Installing in-vehicle technologies
- Raising awareness about the dangers of speeding.
The Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week seeks to increase understanding of the dangers of speed and generate action on measures to address speed, thereby saving lives on the roads.
Fourth UN Global Road Safety Week web site