Approximately 80% of the 463 million adults worldwide with diabetes live in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). A major obstacle to designing evidence-based policies to improve diabetes outcomes in LMICs is the scarce availability ...class="attribute-to-highlight medbox">of nationally representative data on the current patterns of treatment coverage. The objectives of this study were to estimate the proportion of adults with diabetes in LMICs who receive coverage of recommended pharmacological and non-pharmacological diabetes treatment; and to describe country-level and individual-level characteristics that are associated with treatment.
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At the global, national, and regional levels, there are several guidelines and guides regarding the preparedness, prevention, surveillance, and control of diseases caused by respiratory viruses; most initiatives focus on specific virus events or cas...es. During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, it has been found that even when there are strategies designed and planned for pandemics, it is necessary to strengthen and improve them. Planning for imminent threats, including those posed by respiratory viruses, contributes to strengthening the core capacities of the International Health Regulations (IHR [2005])
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Hypertension is the number one health related risk factor in India, with the largest contribution to burden of disease and mortality. It contributes to an estimated 1.6 million deaths, due to ischemic heart disease and stroke, out ...bute-to-highlight medbox">of a total of about 10 million deaths annually in India. Fifty seven percent of deaths related to stroke and 24% of deaths related to coronary heart disease are related to hypertension. Hypertension is one of the commonest non-communicable diseases in India, with an overall prevalence of 29.8% among the adult population, and a higher prevalence in urban areas (33.8% vs. 27.6%)
according to recent estimates.
Awareness of hypertension in India is low while appropriate treatment and control among those with hypertension is even lower: Hypertension is a chronic, persistent, largely asymptomatic disease. A majority of the patients with hypertension in India are unaware of their condition. This is because of low levels of awareness and the lack of screening for hypertension in adults-either as a systematic programme or as an opportunistic exercise during visits to healthcare providers.
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The Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases 2013-2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO) outlines a comprehensive strategy to address the global rise in noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), including cardiovascu...lar diseases, cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, and diabetes.
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The article "Barriers and determinants of asthma control in children and adolescents in Africa: a systematic review" analyzes factors contributing to poor asthma control in African youth. Based on studies conducted between 2014 and 2019 in Nigeria, ...Uganda, and South Africa, the review identifies key challenges such as limited access to asthma diagnosis, inadequate use of inhaled corticosteroids, and environmental and socio-economic factors. It finds that urban living, older age, and concurrent allergic conditions significantly affect asthma management. The study emphasizes the need for improved diagnostic tools, better access to treatment, and tailored public health interventions to enhance asthma outcomes in African children.
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The European Respiratory Society (ERS)/American Thoracic Society (ATS) Task Force on severe asthma includes an updated definition of severe asthma, a discussion of severe asthma phenotypes in relati...on to genetics, natural history, pathobiology and physiology, as well as sections on evaluation and treatment of severe asthma where specific recommendations for practice are made. See the unabridged online version of the document for detailed discussion of the definition of severe asthma, phenotypes and recommendations for practice.
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Globally, there is increased advocacy for community-based health insurance (CBHI) schemes. Like other low and middle-income countries (LMICs), Tanzania officially established the Community Health Fund (CHF) in 2001 for rural areas; and Tiba Kwa Kadi (TIKA) for urban population since 2009. This study... investigated the implementation of TIKA scheme in urban districts of Tanzania.
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Technical brief by the H4+ (UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women, WHO and the World Bank)
Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) – chief among them, cardiovascular diseases (heart disease and stroke), cancer, diabetes and chronic respiratory diseases – along with mental health, cause nearly three quarters of deaths in the world. Their drive...rs are social, environmental, commercial and genetic, and their presence is global. Every year 17 million people under the age of 70 die of NCDs, and 86% of them live in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).
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Report of a WHO technical consultation meeting
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Save the Children in collaboration with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and the state National Health Mission (NHM) undertook this study in the urban slums of Pune City to generate learnings for designing a city-specific public health approach ...to improve MNH services for the urban poor.
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On Sunday 16th December 2018, some villages in the Province of Mai-Nambiar, Democratic Republic of Congo, neighboring the district of Makotimpoko i...n the Republic of Congo (CongoBrazzaville) were affected by inter-ethnic conflict between the Banunu and the Batende. The fighting has resulted in 400 fatalities and the destruction of property. A large number of the population of the conflict affected areas were forced to cross the river Congo and find refuge in several localities in the Cuvette (Konda and Youmba) and Plateaux (Makotimpoko, Bouemba, Patrick) areas in Congo-Brazzaville.
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(Advance unedited version)
Legislative and Policy analysis and recommendations for reform
Summary of the main report: Direct and indirect effects of COVID-19 pandemic and response in South Asia .
It uses a series of exercises based o...n actual observed changes in services and intervention coverage to model impacts on mortality, hospitalizations, and ICU admissions due to COVID-19. It also models the impact of nationwide stay-at-home orders to curb the spread of COVID-19 on maternal and child mortality, educational attainment of children, and the region’s economy. The study focuses on South Asia’s six most populous countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka and makes the case for interventions and strategies to minimise these indirect consequences.
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