Ebola Preparedness and Risk in Latin America

Until today, February 22, 2016, no confirmed Ebola cases have been diagnosed in Americas (except USA, four cases with one death). Confusion, lack of knowledge, and fear have led to quickly misclassify cases as suspected, when in fact most of them are false alarms. Nevertheless, European governments summoned to mobilize resources to attend the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. And also Latin American governments should contribute to halt this humanitarian crisis and to be prepared for the potential arrival of this deadly virus in the Caribbean, Central, and South American mainland. In this chapter, we described the experience of preparedness as well as risk assessment done in Latin America regarding the threat of Ebola for the region

Human melioidosis reported by ProMED.

OBJECTIVE: There are limited sources describing the global burden of emerging diseases. A review of human melioidosis reported by ProMED was performed and the reliability of the data retrieved assessed in comparison to published reports. The effectiveness of ProMED was evaluated as a source of epidemiological data by focusing on melioidosis. METHODS: Using the keyword 'melioidosis' in the ProMED search engine, all of the information from the reports and collected data was reviewed using a structured form, including the year, country, gender, occupation, number of infected individuals, and number of fatal cases. RESULTS: One hundred and twenty-four entries reported between January 1995 and October 2014 were identified. A total of 4630 cases were reported, with death reported in 505 cases, suggesting a misleadingly low overall case fatality rate (CFR) of 11%. Of 20 cases for which the gender was reported, 12 (60%) were male. Most of the cases were reported from Australia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, and Malaysia, with sporadic reports from other countries. CONCLUSIONS: Internet-based reporting systems such as ProMED are useful to gather information and synthesize knowledge on emerging infections. Although certain areas need to be improved, ProMED provided good information about melioidosis

Patrón de automedicación en la zona urbana de la ciudad de Pereira (Colombia) en el trimestre marzo- mayo 2013

Introduction: self-medication continues being a widely accepted practice, unrecognized by the population as an act that contributes to the detriment of health. The data of the commonness and characteristics of the population self-medicated in the city of Pereira, Colombia, for the quarter in March - May, 2013 was obtained.Objective: to characterize the profile of self-medication in the population of Pereira for the quarter on March - May, 2013. Type of study: observational of transverse court.Materials and methods: 381 surveys were applied in each stratum by their percentage representation in the districts of the city of Pereira; the instrument was made after operationalize the relevant variables and its validation was given by the score of 4 experts and pilot testing. Prevalence and behavior (mugs, reasons, core measures and association) of the variables was evaluated.Results: 694 (61.58%) people consumed any drugs in the last month, of which 276 (39.77%) had no prescription, for a total of 184(48%) self-medicated home. 131 (30.8%) people between aged 15 to 40 years old self-medicated and 197 (71.4%) and 197 (71.4%) of self-medicated unknown contraindications.Conclusions: a high prevalence of self-medication was identified in the city of Pereira. There is a sectorization demographic centers of the city: Centro, Boston, Poblado, Villavicencio, Universidad, etc.Introducción: la automedicación sigue siendo una práctica ampliamente aceptada, sin ser reconocida por la población como un acto que va en detrimento de la salud. Se obtuvo la prevalencia y características de la población automedicada en la ciudad de Pereira, Colombia, para el trimestre marzo-mayo de 2013.Objetivo: caracterizar el perfil de automedicación en la población de Pereira, para el trimestre marzo-mayo 2013.Tipo de estudio: observacional de corte transversal.Materiales y métodos: se aplicaron 381 encuestas en cada estrato según su representación porcentual en las comunas de la ciudad de Pereira; el instrumento operacionalizó las variables relevantes y su validación estuvo dada por la valoración de 4 expertos y una prueba piloto. Se evaluó la prevalencia y el comportamiento (tazas, razones, medidas centrales y asociación) de las variables.Resultados: 694 (61.58%) personas consumieron algún medicamento en el último mes, de los cuales 276 (39.77%) no tenían prescripción médica, para un total de 184 (48%) hogares automedicados. 131 (30,8%) de las personas entre 15 a 40 años de edad se automedicaron y 197 (71,4%) de los automedicados desconoce las contraindicaciones del medicamento.Conclusiones: se identificó una prevalencia alta de automedicación en la ciudad de Pereira. Existe una sectorización en focos demográficos de la ciudad: Centro, Boston, Poblado, Villavicencio y Universidad, etc