Continental concerted efforts to control the seventh outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease in Uganda: the first 90 days of the response

On 20th September 2022, Uganda declared the 7th outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) caused by the Sudan Ebola strain following the confirmation of a case admitted at Mubende Regional Referral Hospital. Upon confirmation, the Government of Uganda immediately activated the national incident management system to initiate response activities. Additionally, a multi-country emergency stakeholder meeting was held in Kampala; convening Ministers of Health from neighbouring Member States to undertake cross-border preparedness and response actions. The outbreak spanned 69 days and recorded a total of 164 cases (142 confirmed, 22 probable), 87 recoveries and 77 deaths (case fatality ratio of 47%). Nine out of 136 districts were affected with transmission taking place in 5 districts but spilling over in 4 districts without secondary transmission. As part of the response the Government was able to galvanise robust community mobilisation and initiated assessment of medical counter measures including therapeutics, new diagnostics and vaccines. This paper highlights the response actions put in place that contributed to the containment of this outbreak in addition to the challenges faced with a special focus on key recommendations for better control of future outbreaks

On multilayer reaction-diffusion problems: A semigroup approach, Part I

We use the theory of semigroups to obtain the existence and uniqueness of solutions for multilayer diffusion models with possibly non linear  reactions terms as well as local non-homogeneous boundary conditions on the rst and the last layers. We also allow the possibility of having Dirichlet,  Newman or mixed type conditions in the rst and the last layers. We express the solutions in terms of variation of constants formula. Our approach  constitutes a rst step in order to deal  with multilayer reaction-diffusion problem with non-local boundary value conditions by using integrated semigroup theory

Comparaison des mensurations d’arcades selon le caractère obstructif des amygdales palatines

Introduction : Le rôle des amygdales palatines obstructives dans la genèse des anomalies des relations des arcades dentaires est largement évoqué dans la littérature orthodontique mais reste controversé. Les données fournies sur la probable relation entre l’hypertrophie des amygdales et l’existence de ces anomalies sont subjectives. L’objectif de cette étude est de rechercher une association entre les amygdales palatines obstructives et des anomalies des relations d’arcades. Matériels et méthodes : Il s’agit d’une étude transversale réalisée chez des enfants âgés entre 6 et 12 ans. Les sujets sont divisés en deux groupes (A et B) selon le caractère obstructif des amygdales palatines. Sur chaque enfant, des mensurations intra- et inter-arcades ont été réalisées. Un test t et un chi2 ont respectivement été réalisés pour comparer les variables quantitatives et qualitatives selon le caractère obstructif des amygdales. Lorsque le nombre de cas était faible, le chi2 a été remplacé par le test exact de Fisher. La signification est fixée à p = 0,05. Résultats : La profondeur d’arcade est significativement plus marquée dans le groupe B. Le groupe A présente les plus grands diamètres transversaux d’arcades. Le groupe B a significativement tendance aux rapports molaires de classe II, à l’infraclusion antérieure et à une occlusion croisée postérieure avec une latéro-déviation mandibulaire. Conclusion : Une évaluation précoce des enfants présentant une hypertrophie des amygdales permettrait de prévenir les effets sur les arcades dentaires. Ainsi, seront évités les traitements tardifs et plus agressifs qui ne sont pas toujours aussi efficients que lorsqu’ils sont effectués pendant l’enfance

Study of the spatial variability of marine pollution around the peninsula of Cape Verde

International audienceMarine pollution, the scourge of modern times, is due to the runoff of domestic and industrial waters as well as to various anthropogenic activities, i.e. products and objects deliberately or accidentally discharged into the sea. The samples taken from 11 sites on the Cap-Vert peninsula in Senegal, indicate the presence of certain polluting substances in varying amounts. The objective of this work is to study the correlations between the physical, microbiological and chemical parameters in order to highlight the similarities between the sites and, if possible, to determine the most relevant parameter(s) to characterize the pollution. PCA results have shown that some sites appear to be less chemically polluted than others that are more polluted with eutrophication and chemicals (e.g., copper, mercury). From a physical point of view, for example, we observe that the characteristics of sediments (large silt, clays, fine silt) are related to certain chemical parameters.The AFC performed between the overall toxicity of the sediments and the microbiological quality of the water shows that the site of Ouakam has a medium toxicity and a good microbiological quality while that of Cambérène and the Vivier are characterized respectively by bad and good quality but also by low toxicity at both sites. The two sites of Hann (Hann1 and Hann2), Soumbédioune, Ngor, Yoff Tonghor and Dakar Le Dantec are characterized by high toxicity and poor microbiological quality. Those in the Madeleine Islands and the Port of Dakar are characterized by high toxicity and bad microbiological quality. Moreover, as expected Soumbédioune appears as the most polluted sites in terms of microbiological load. The interest of the multivariate approach (ACP and AFC) is then discussed in this type of analysis

Study of the spatial variability of marine pollution around the peninsula of Cape Verde

International audienceMarine pollution, the scourge of modern times, is due to the runoff of domestic and industrial waters as well as to various anthropogenic activities, i.e. products and objects deliberately or accidentally discharged into the sea. The samples taken from 11 sites on the Cap-Vert peninsula in Senegal, indicate the presence of certain polluting substances in varying amounts. The objective of this work is to study the correlations between the physical, microbiological and chemical parameters in order to highlight the similarities between the sites and, if possible, to determine the most relevant parameter(s) to characterize the pollution. PCA results have shown that some sites appear to be less chemically polluted than others that are more polluted with eutrophication and chemicals (e.g., copper, mercury). From a physical point of view, for example, we observe that the characteristics of sediments (large silt, clays, fine silt) are related to certain chemical parameters.The AFC performed between the overall toxicity of the sediments and the microbiological quality of the water shows that the site of Ouakam has a medium toxicity and a good microbiological quality while that of Cambérène and the Vivier are characterized respectively by bad and good quality but also by low toxicity at both sites. The two sites of Hann (Hann1 and Hann2), Soumbédioune, Ngor, Yoff Tonghor and Dakar Le Dantec are characterized by high toxicity and poor microbiological quality. Those in the Madeleine Islands and the Port of Dakar are characterized by high toxicity and bad microbiological quality. Moreover, as expected Soumbédioune appears as the most polluted sites in terms of microbiological load. The interest of the multivariate approach (ACP and AFC) is then discussed in this type of analysis

Study of the spatial variability of marine pollution around the peninsula of Cape Verde

International audienceMarine pollution, the scourge of modern times, is due to the runoff of domestic and industrial waters as well as to various anthropogenic activities, i.e. products and objects deliberately or accidentally discharged into the sea. The samples taken from 11 sites on the Cap-Vert peninsula in Senegal, indicate the presence of certain polluting substances in varying amounts. The objective of this work is to study the correlations between the physical, microbiological and chemical parameters in order to highlight the similarities between the sites and, if possible, to determine the most relevant parameter(s) to characterize the pollution. PCA results have shown that some sites appear to be less chemically polluted than others that are more polluted with eutrophication and chemicals (e.g., copper, mercury). From a physical point of view, for example, we observe that the characteristics of sediments (large silt, clays, fine silt) are related to certain chemical parameters.The AFC performed between the overall toxicity of the sediments and the microbiological quality of the water shows that the site of Ouakam has a medium toxicity and a good microbiological quality while that of Cambérène and the Vivier are characterized respectively by bad and good quality but also by low toxicity at both sites. The two sites of Hann (Hann1 and Hann2), Soumbédioune, Ngor, Yoff Tonghor and Dakar Le Dantec are characterized by high toxicity and poor microbiological quality. Those in the Madeleine Islands and the Port of Dakar are characterized by high toxicity and bad microbiological quality. Moreover, as expected Soumbédioune appears as the most polluted sites in terms of microbiological load. The interest of the multivariate approach (ACP and AFC) is then discussed in this type of analysis

Strengthening COVID-19 pandemic response coordination through public health emergency operations centres (PHEOC) in Africa: Review of a multi-faceted knowledge management and sharing approach, 2020-2021.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic disrupted health security program implementation and incremental gains achieved after the West African Ebola outbreak in 2016 across Africa. Following cancellation of in-person events, a multi-faceted intervention program was established in May 2020 by Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), the World Health Organisation, and partners to strengthen national COVID-19 response coordination through public health emergency operations centres (PHEOC) utilizing continuous learning, mentorship, and networking. We present the lessons learned and reflection points. A multi-partner program coordination group was established to facilitate interventions' delivery including webinars and virtual community of practice (COP). We retrieved data from Africa CDC's program repository, synthesised major findings and describe these per thematic area. The virtual COP recorded 1,968 members and approximately 300 engagements in its initial three months. Fifty-six webinar sessions were held, providing 97 cumulative learning hours to 12,715 unique participants. Zoom data showed a return rate of 85%; 67% of webinar attendees were from Africa, and about 26 interactions occurred between participants and facilitators per session. Of 4,084 (44%) participants responding to post-session surveys, over 95% rated the topics as being relevant to their work and contributing to improving their understanding of PHEOC operationalisation. In addition, 95% agreed that the simplicity of the training delivery encouraged a greater number of public health staff to participate and spread lessons from it to their own networks. This just-in-time, progressively adaptive multi-faceted learning and knowledge management approach in Africa, with a consequential global audience at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, served its intended audience, had a high number of participants from Africa and received greatly satisfactory feedback