96 Global Health NOW: Famine Looms in Gaza; Pandemic Pact Nears Finish Line; and Hard Lines Over CDC Guidelines View this email in your browser March 19, 2024 Forward Share Post Palestinians hold out containers to be filled with food distributed by charity organizations in Rafah, Gaza on February 25. Abed Zagout/Anadolu via Getty Famine Looms in Gaza
Northern Gaza is on the brink of famine, as much of the population moves from “acute food insecurity” into “catastrophic levels of hunger,” UN News reports. 

• Famine may happen by the end of May, barring the immediate cessation of hostilities and delivery of food and supplies, per a UN Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report published yesterday.


• 1.1 million people—half of the Gaza Strip’s population—will endure catastrophic conditions between now and mid-July, assuming the conflict escalates and Israeli forces launch a ground offensive in Rafah.


• People in nearly two-thirds of northern Gaza households didn’t eat for entire days and nights at least 10 times in the previous 30 days.

Crisis: “People in Gaza are starving to death right now. The speed at which this man-made hunger and malnutrition crisis has ripped through Gaza is terrifying,” Cindy McCain, World Food Programme executive director, told The Telegraph.
 
Urgent need: “There is a very small window left to prevent an outright famine and to do that we need immediate and full access to the north,” McCain said. “If we wait until famine has been declared, it’s too late. Thousands more will be dead.” GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Legislators in The Gambia referred a repeal of the country’s 2015 ban on female genital mutilation to a national committee for further debate; enforcement has been weak since the ban’s passage, with just two cases prosecuted. AP

The EPA finalized a rule to ban chrysotile asbestos (the only form of asbestos currently in use in the U.S.); the substance, linked to multiple types of cancer, has been banned in 50 other countries. CNN

NIH researchers turned up no physical evidence of brain injury in “Havana syndrome” cases, per a study published in JAMA yesterday; a companion commentary, however, cautioned against dismissing earlier findings that supported a connection. Reuters

Nearly 130,000 children in Chicago are exposed to lead in their drinking water; in a JAMA Pediatrics study published yesterday, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health researchers determined that the 19% of kids using unfiltered tap water have about 2X as much lead in their blood as they would otherwise—and that Black and Latino residents are more likely to have contaminated water via lead pipes. The Guardian GLOBAL HEALTH SECURITY Pandemic Pact Nears Finish Line
Negotiations on the draft for the international “pandemic treaty” entered a final round yesterday—setting the stage for a vote on the pact at the World Health Assembly in May, reports Science.

Background: The treaty, which has been in the works since December 2021, has been drafted to “strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness and response”—with an emphasis on equity after the staggered international COVID-19 response, reports Axios. 

What’s covered (among other points): 

• Pathogen surveillance.


• Antimicrobial resistance management.


• Health care system and capacity improvements.

Sticking points: Currently, the pact calls for nations to share pathogen information—with the expectation that they will benefit from related research in the form of access to drugs and vaccines.

• But pharmaceutical companies say that could violate intellectual property rights.

The bottom line: “Compromises in the final text must uphold principles on equity. Otherwise, we may continue to sow seeds of plagues and count the dead when the next pandemic hits,” said Nelson Aghogho Evaborhene, a vaccine specialist at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES INFECTIOUS DISEASES Hard Lines Over CDC Guidelines 
As the CDC revisits its “foundational” set of guidelines for preventing infectious disease spread at health facilities, critics say the agency is at risk of downplaying airborne threats, reports Amy Maxmen. 

Repeating past mistakes? The guidelines, which are being revisited after nearly two decades, have already prompted outcry in earlier drafts over a more lax response to airborne transmission—with critics saying it sets up the potential for another COVID-19 scenario. 

And opponents contend that if the final guidelines don’t spell out the need for masks and air filtration, hospitals won’t invest in such tools. 

The Quote: “The people in charge of these decisions should be the ones forced to take those risks,” said New York city emergency physician Sonya Stokes. 

NBC REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH RIGHTS Abortion Barriers Persist in Thailand
The unearthing of 2,000+ decomposing fetuses awaiting cremation in a Bangkok temple—part of an underground abortion network—in 2010 forced Thailand to rethink the laws driving women to risk death for unsafe abortions. But it wasn’t until 2020 that the procedure was decriminalized.
 
Today, hospitals in just 39 of Thailand’s 77 provinces are officially registered as abortion providers; none of Bangkok’s 22 public hospitals provide subsidized abortions.

• Only women able to travel to hospitals providing subsidized procedures, or with the money for private care, can access services.

Stigma is another barrier: Many from the nation’s conservative Theravada Buddhist majority believe abortion contradicts teachings. The nation’s abortion laws do not require doctors who object to abortion to carry out the procedure.

The Telegraph QUICK HITS Supreme Court questions restricting government efforts to limit Covid-19 misinformation – STAT

CDC measles alert urges MMR vaccine for youngest international travelers – CIDRAP

Mexico Is Flooded With American Guns. Could a $10 Billion Lawsuit Change Things? – Slate 

Many hospitals in China stop newborn delivery services as birth rate drops – Reuters

DNA tests are uncovering the true prevalence of incest – The Atlantic

‘It feels like a mountain you never get done climbing’: Covid isn’t over for disabled and older adults – The 19th 

Towards authentic institutional allyship by global health funders – PLOS Global Public Health (commentary) Issue No. 2498
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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96 Global Health NOW: Haiti’s Health Care Collapse; Why Are Cancer Patients Getting Younger?; and Prioritizing Pedestrians View this email in your browser March 18, 2024 Forward Share Post Haiti’s Health Care Collapse
Desperation is mounting for patients in Haiti, as gang warfare paralyzes the nation’s hospitals and health workers flee the violence, reports The Guardian. 

Last legs: In the last two weeks, hospitals have been ransacked and set on fire. Others are shutting their doors, unable to access medical supplies or power.

• A single public hospital in Haiti’s capital now remains operational—and is expected to close soon. 

Health workers targeted: Doctors and nurses are being increasingly attacked and kidnapped, reports NPR Goats and Soda. Many now stay home, while others have fled the country in what one doctor mourned as an “exodus of the best and brightest.” 

Dwindling supplies: Blockades and raids have left hospitals and clinics without basic medical supplies, leaving patients in medical limbo, reports CNN.

• 260 shipping containers of humanitarian supplies in Port-Au-Prince’s main port are now under gang control. 

Bigger picture: 360,000 Haitians have now been internally displaced. 

The Quote: “We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe, and there is little time left to reverse it,”  said UNICEF representative Bruno Maes. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Iran’s Medical Council warned of rising emigration of pediatric heart surgeons in a report Friday, leaving hundreds of sick children without care. Iran International Newsroom
 
Higher levels of social vulnerability—including socioeconomic and racial minority status—may increase the likelihood of having drug-resistant pneumococcal infections, per a new Clinical Infectious Diseases study. CIDRAP 

The FDA approved the first U.S. drug—resmetirom—to treat metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH)—an obesity-linked liver disease that affects 5% of the world’s adults. Nature

Brazil will expand the release of Wolbachia bacteria-infected mosquitoes to combat dengue fever to six more cities, following the apparent success of a pilot initiative in five cities—including Niterói, where the method was credited with a 69% decrease in dengue. The Guardian NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES Why Are Cancer Patients Getting Younger? 
The rates of more than a dozen cancers are increasing among adults under the age of 50.

• Current models predict that early-onset cancer cases will increase by ~30% between 2019 and 2030. 

Scientists are rushing to understand why. Contributors like rising obesity and early-cancer screening do not fully account for the increase, say researchers who are seeking clues in multiple directions, including:

• Gut microbiome composition. 


• The genomes of tumors. 


• Potential exposures to hormones or stressors while in utero. 

The Quote: “If it had been a single smoking gun, our studies would have at least pointed to one factor,” says gastroenterologist Sonia Kupfer. “But it doesn’t seem to be that — it seems to be a combination of many different factors.”

Nature GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ROAD SAFETY Prioritizing Pedestrians in NYC
Last year was the safest year for pedestrians in New York City since record-keeping began 114 years ago (barring pandemic shutdowns in 2020).

• The city recorded 101 deaths in the city of 8.5 million people, per Bloomberg CityLab.

What changed? City officials point to more rigorous adoption of Vision Zero—the policy goal of zero traffic fatalities.

• New York City was the first U.S. city to implement Vision Zero in 2014. The city reduced its speed limit to 25 miles per hour, set up speed cameras, and invested in education campaigns. 


• The city has also completed hundreds of intersection redesigns: extending red light lengths for pedestrians; creating raised crosswalks; and “daylighting”— a safety measure that removes parked cars near crosswalks. 

But: 30 cyclists were killed on city streets in 2023, a 23-year high. OPPORTUNITY Coursera: New Data-Use Course
The Center for Global Digital Health Innovation has launched a new Coursera course on population health data use, created with its Data for Health partners at Bloomberg Philanthropies.

• The course covers the data generation lifecycle, how data can inform health policy, and more. 


• Modules feature 18 instructors from around the world, including faculty from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and experts from the WHO, CDC Foundation, and Vital Strategies.


• Enroll in the Coursera Course

QUICK HITS Vaccines cut risk of post-COVID heart failure, blood clots for at least 6 months, data suggest – CIDRAP

First Person: Southern Madagascar, where girls are sold into marriage before they are born – UN News

More Chinese tied the knot in 2023, lifting marriage rates for first time in nine years – Reuters

Cigarette smoking behaviors and nicotine dependence at the intersection of sexual identity and sex in the United States: Findings from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health – Preventive Medicine Reports

More than 4,000 plastic chemicals are hazardous, report finds – Nature

Biden to sign executive order aimed at advancing study of women’s health – AP

Doing Well by Doing Good: Why Investing in Global Health R&D Benefits the United States and the World – GHTC (news release)

The harms of adverse childhood experiences are well-known. But positive experiences can affect future health, too – STAT

Q&A: Author of 'Bottled: How Coca-Cola Became African' on Coke's surprising history – NPR Goats and Soda Issue No. 2497
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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The UN World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday called for a funding boost in tuberculosis (TB) screening and prevention programmes to protect vulnerable populations and achieve key health goals.

Amid growing global concerns over alarming hunger spikes in conflict-affected communities and talk of intensifying levels of food insecurity possibly leading to famine, we looked into how – and when – a famine is classified.

96 Global Health NOW: A Possible Game-Changer Against Ebola Sudan Infections; Newborn Crisis in the Western Cape; and Outfoxing a Fox View this email in your browser March 15, 2024 Forward Share Post Jane Apunyo, head nurse of the Mubende referral hospital, during night supervision at the Ebola treatment center in Mubende, Uganda, on October 27, 2022. Badru Katumba/AFP via Getty A Possible Game-Changer Against Ebola Sudan Infections  
The antiviral drug obeldesivir showed promise in curbing Ebola Sudan infections—which currently have no approved vaccines or treatments—in a small study of primates published yesterday in Science.

How they did it: Five monkeys given obeldesivir, an oral pill, 24 hours after being injected with what should have been a lethal injection of Sudan ebolavirus all survived, STAT reports; two control monkeys that got a placebo died.
 
Why it’s exciting: An oral pill would be a huge advantage in the remote, resource-poor areas where filoviruses usually strike, per Science.

• Unlike monoclonal antibodies—the only approved treatments, for the Ebola Zaire species of the virus—obeldesivir is easy to administer, can be stored at room temperature, and is relatively inexpensive, STAT notes.

And: In in vitro studies, obeldesivir shows promise against all known species of Ebola and the related virus, Marburg, though that will require testing in animal and human models to confirm.
 
The Quote: “I think you could really, really control these outbreaks quicker if you have something like this … I think it can definitely be a game-changer,” said the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston’s Tom Geisbert, a senior author of the study.
 
STAT GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Typhoid fever’s high incidence in sub-Saharan Africa and the growing threat of antibiotic-resistant typhoid strains underscore the need for typhoid conjugate vaccines, according to a hospital-based surveillance study in The Lancet Global Health. CIDRAP

A range of neurological conditions—from strokes and dementia to migraines—are now the leading cause of ill health worldwide, affecting 3.4 billion people and causing 11.1 million deaths in 2021, finds a new study in The Lancet Neurology. The Guardian

The toll of tuberculosis among adolescents and young adults—as measured in incidence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years—decreased from 1990 to 2019; but the incidence of drug-resistant TB increased. Pediatrics 

Finland has confirmed a record 92 hepatitis E cases so far this year (compared to 33 cases for all of 2023), and 42 people have been hospitalized in the outbreak linked to a batch of mettwurst, a cold cut similar to salami. Yle SUBSTANCE USE Newborn Crisis
In the Western Cape of South Africa, extensive alcohol use during pregnancy has led to the highest rate of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) in the world. 

The numbers: 

• FASD rates are as high as 31% in the Western Cape. (The global average is 0.7%.)

Symptoms include learning disabilities and behavioral issues. In more severe cases, FASD can cause organ damage, facial deformities, vision and hearing problems, and reduced lifespan.

• People with FASD are 19X more likely to end up in jail.

Why are the rates so high? Contributors include binge drinking, easy access to alcohol, and unplanned pregnancies in the Western Cape. 

The Telegraph DAILY DIVERSION Outfoxing a Fox
To care for an orphan red fox kit, a wildlife rehabilitation center in Richmond, Virginia, has adopted some sly moves. 

In a now-viral video posted to the Richmond Wildlife Center’s Facebook page, executive director Melissa Stanley wears a red fox mask as she feeds a tiny fox kit from a syringe. 

Vulpine veneer: The disguise is one measure staff use to keep the fox from associating care with humans so she can be reintroduced into the wild, Stanley told USA Today.

• The tactic is common in caring for birds of prey—and recalls other viral footage of workers in China wearing panda suits to tend cubs.

Fantastic Little Fox: The kit was found in an alley by a man walking his dog, reports the AP. Less than 24 hours old, she weighed 80 grams, and her umbilical stump was still attached. She is believed to be the “sole survivor” of a family of foxes trapped and removed from a nearby den site. 

A different kind of fox hunt: The center found another group of fox kits at a facility in northern Virginia—where the orphan will soon be transferred and hopefully integrated. 

“It's really important that we get them together as soon as possible so that she knows that she's a fox,” Stanley said. OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Reductions in new HIV infections in several Global HIV Prevention Coalition countries, but global progress needs to be accelerated – UNAIDS (news release)

A spotlight on the stark imbalances of global health research – Nature

New research sets trap for potentially deadly sandfly – University of Nottingham via ScienceDaily

Reforming oral health policy to contain noma – Punch

Budget constraints limit foreign affairs funding in Biden proposal – Devex

What to know about another dangerous amoeba linked to neti pots and nasal rinsing – PBS NewsHour

Wake up: Sleeplessness is a public health crisis – Bhekisisa

Dutch supermarket decides to stop meat promotions – The Brussels Times Issue No. 2496
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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96 Global Health NOW: A ‘Darker Future’ for Human Development?; Phones’ Gigantic Toll on Gen Z; and Interrupting Parental Poverty View this email in your browser March 14, 2024 Forward Share Post A woman buys fruit ahead of Ramadan, at the Lagos Island market in Lagos, Nigeria, on March 8. Benson Ibeabuchi/AFP via Getty A ‘Darker Future’ for Human Development? 
Only half of the world’s least developed countries have recovered from a host of pandemic-related economic shocks, according to a new UN report on key health and human development indicators.
 
Why is this a serious issue? While affluent countries have bounced back to pre-pandemic levels in the Human Development Index, dozens of poor countries haven’t, and they risk falling off a trajectory of improvement sustained for two decades, The Washington Post reports (gift link).

• “The gap between the richest and the poorest in our world has widened,” principal author Pedro Conceição told the Post. “We face the risk of having permanent losses in human development unless we change course.”

What’s behind the problem? Report authors blame “mismanaged” globalization and militarization.

• Vaccine inequality during the pandemic is a prime example of globalization gone awry, UNDP administrator Achim Steiner told The Guardian. The rapidly expanding pandemic quickly had “a social and economic set of ripple effects,” leading to a loss of confidence in governments and radicalized politics.


• While defense budgets grow, development budgets are being cut, Steiner said. “This is a recipe for a much darker future,” he said.

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   ​A blood test for colon cancer performed well—catching 83% of the cancers, although very few of the precancerous growths found by “gold standard” colonoscopies—per results published in The New England Journal of Medicine yesterday; researchers say easier testing options could increase the number of people screened. AP
 
The Supreme Court of India has temporarily banned Patanjali—a billion-dollar ayurvedic company—from advertising some of its traditional ayurvedic products, in a case brought by the Indian Medical Association; a judge in the case said the company has taken the public “for a ride.” NPR Goats and Soda
 
Although air quality in Europe showed significant improvement since 2003, per a 35-nation study in Nature led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), more than 98% of Europeans live in areas exceeding WHO-recommended annual levels for pollutants associated with premature mortality. Health Policy Watch
 
The likelihood of in-hospital deaths rose significantly for six time-sensitive, non-COVID conditions—heart attack, hip fracture, gastrointestinal bleeding, pneumonia, sepsis, and stroke—during COVID-19-related disruptions to health care, according to a JAMA Network Open study published yesterday. CIDRAP MENTAL HEALTH Phones’ Gigantic Toll on Gen Z 
More than a decade since the dual-emergence of smartphones and social media, studies continue to unpack the effects of a “phone-based childhood,” as social psychologist Jonathan Haidt terms it in his new essay. 

Taking an exhaustive view of the research, Haidt concludes that this screen-filled adolescence “is making young people sick and blocking their progress to flourishing in adulthood.” 

Data points: 

• Rates of teen depression and anxiety in the U.S. rose by more than 50% in many studies from 2010 to 2019. 


• The suicide rate among adolescents rose 48%. 


• Loneliness among American teens began to surge around 2012.


• Adolescents’ sleeping and exercising declined in the early 2010s.


• Members of Gen Z are dating less, having less sex, and showing less interest in having children than prior generations. 

The Atlantic GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES MATERNAL/CHILD HEALTH Interrupting Parental Poverty  
Cash aid will be soon distributed to every new mother in Flint, Michigan—with the hope of improving early childhood outcomes. 

Why: Flint has one of the highest rates of child poverty in the U.S.—at more than 50%. 

• Research has found that stress related to childhood poverty can harm brain development and mental health. 


• “What happens in that first year of life can really portend your entire life course trajectory,” said pediatrician Mona Hanna-Attisha. 

The details: The cash transfer program, Rx Kids, will begin payouts during pregnancy to encourage prenatal care; $7,500 in cash aid will be distributed over the course a year.

NPR OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Mpox continues to spread in Africa and threatens global health security – Nature Medicine

The tropical disease that’s suddenly everywhere – Vox

Lack of iodin and folic acid in table salt in Israel leads to birth defects, study shows – The Jerusalem Post 

New York trusted this company to care for the sick and elderly. Instead, it left people confused and alone – ProPublica

Reduce the Use of Incubators to Address Infant Mortality – Undark (commentary)

The U.S. Syphilis Spike Has Been Brewing for Decades – Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Dangers of Polio explained as Paul Alexander, 78, dies after 70 years in 'iron lung' – Wales Online

Olivia Rodrigo hands out Plan B pills in Missouri, where abortion is banned – NPR Issue No. 2495
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on X @GHN_News.

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96 Global Health NOW: Early Childhood Deaths Drop—But Not Fast Enough; The Years COVID-19 Cut Short; and HIV Status: Criminal View this email in your browser March 13, 2024 Forward Share Post A baby sleeps in her mother's arms after arriving in an IDP settlement. January 10, 2023, Doolow, Somalia. Giles Clarke for The New York Times via Getty Early Childhood Deaths Drop—But Not Fast Enough
The number of children worldwide who died before age 5 dropped to a record low of 4.9 million in 2022, a new UN report finds—but that still represents one death every six seconds, Reuters reports.

Perspective: The mortality rate for young children has fallen more than 50% since 2000—a “historic milestone,” a UN news release stated.

• But the world is still off-track to meet 2030 goals to reduce preventable child deaths to 25 per 1,000 live births—and progress is at risk of “stagnation or reversal,” warns the report, jointly produced by UNICEF, the WHO, and the World Bank. 

Regions in focus:

• Deaths were concentrated in sub-Saharan Africa. Countries like Chad, Nigeria, and Somalia see 80X more deaths than countries with low rates, reports DW. 


• Meanwhile, Cambodia, Malawi, Rwanda, and Mongolia have reduced under-5 mortality rates by more than 75% since 2000.

Factors and causes: Deaths were largely caused by preventable or treatable causes, including preterm birth, respiratory diseases, and diarrhea. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Escalation of fighting in eastern DRC has forced some ~270,000 to flee to South Kivu and Goma since February, exacerbating an already critical health situation and increasing the risk of cholera and other epidemics amid overcrowded, unsanitary living conditions. MSF
 
U.K. children with gender dysphoria will no longer be given puberty-suppressing hormones, NHS England has said, citing a review that found there was “not enough evidence” they are safe or effective. BBC 

High and rising U.S. maternal mortality rates may be overestimates, according to a new study that suggests the addition of the “pregnancy checkbox,” indicating whether a person was pregnant or postpartum at time of death, was behind a spike in those rates in 2018–21. CNN

~11% of U.S. high school seniors have used Delta 8 THC—a quasi-legal psychoactive version of cannabis—per a new survey in JAMA; a legal loophole allows the products to be sold online, at gas stations and smoke shops, and in many states where traditional marijuana is fully illegal—with no federal minimum age to purchase. STAT GLOBAL LIFE EXPECTANCY The Years COVID-19 Cut Short
For the first time in 30 years, global life expectancy has declined—due in large part to the devastating impact of COVID-19, a new study published in The Lancet finds. 

The details: The study found a 1.6-year drop in life expectancy between 2019 and 2021. 

The COVID-19 factor: Researchers found that 15.9 million additional people died who would have survived had COVID-19 not occurred.

• Excess deaths were not just from the virus itself: Overall mortality rates also increased during this time, likely due to delayed medical care, researchers say. 

Think Global Health GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES INFECTIOUS DISEASES HIV Status: Criminal
With modern treatments, a person living with HIV has a similar life expectancy as someone who is HIV-negative.
 
Yet in the U.S., 34 states still have HIV criminalization laws—punishing a person for exposing someone to the virus, regardless of whether the virus was transmitted, for example—policies that largely arose in the 1980s and ’90s, driven by fear and homophobia.

• In Tennessee, Louisiana, Ohio, and South Dakota, those convicted of an HIV crime may not only face prison time—but also must join a sex offender registry.

Critics say these laws have become another tool to criminalize Black people, LGBTQ+ people, and sex workers—groups that already face discrimination.
 
The 19th

Related: He’s in an Ohio Prison for Exposing Someone to HIV - Even Though He Couldn’t Transmit the Virus – The Marshall Project

Social workers bridge the gap in HIV care for hospitalized patients in Tanzania – News Medical CHILD MARRIAGE Iraqi Religious Leaders Sidestep Laws  
Human Rights Watch has called for Iraqi leaders to halt the practice of “unregistered marriages” as rates of child marriage increase.
 
Many unregistered marriages are officiated by religious leaders, circumventing Iraq’s laws aimed at preventing child marriage, per HRW’s new report.

• 28% of girls in Iraq are married before age 18. 


• 22% of unregistered marriages involve girls under age 14.

Risks to brides: Without official documentation, women and girls are denied access to critical government services, including health care, forcing many to give birth at home and risk dangerous complications. 
 
Human Rights Watch OPPORTUNITY QUICK HITS Visa system forces care workers to stay silent on rape and abuse – The Bureau of Investigative Journalism

Public health emergencies in war and armed conflicts in Africa: What is expected from the global health community? – Africa CDC

Rotten food given to asylum seekers charity finds – BBC

WHO report reveals gender inequalities at the root of global crisis in health and care work – WHO

After Legionnaires’ outbreak, Grand Rapids will consider chlorinating water – Minnesota Public Radio

A new $16,000 postpartum depression drug is here. How will insurers handle it? – KFF Health News

Severe dzud in Mongolia hinders access to health care for thousands – WHO

Call to revive play at UK schools to tackle ‘escalating crisis’ in child health – The Guardian Issue No. 2494
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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96 Global Health NOW: Entering Year 5 of COVID; The Multi-pronged Threat of ‘Monkey Laundering’; and India Doubles Down on Vaccine Defenses The pandemic’s impact continues to evolve—and still captivates scientists bent on cracking COVID’19’s mysteries. View this email in your browser March 12, 2024 Forward Share Post A medical staff member sprays disinfectant at a residential area in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province on March 11, 2020. STR/AFP via Getty Entering Year 5 of COVID 
The four-year anniversary of the WHO declaration of COVID-19 as a pandemic passed yesterday under circumstances once unimaginable in the terrifying spring of 2020: 

• The crisis is no longer defined by WHO as a global health emergency, vaccines are released seasonally, the CDC no longer tracks cases—and has just relaxed isolation guidance, outlines ABC News. 

But COVID’s impact continues to evolve—and still captivates scientists bent on cracking some of COVID’19’s mysteries. Some key breakthroughs, per The New York Times (gift article): 

• The nature of spread: Research shows that the virus is becoming better at traveling through the air. 

• Its strange effects: People who have lost their sense of smell likely experience an immune reaction that changes the genetic activity of their nerves.

• Its seasonality: COVID has not yet settled into a predictable seasonal pattern like other respiratory viruses—but scientists expect it eventually will. 

Meanwhile, long COVID is becoming better understood as an immune reaction “gone awry”—but resources are still paltry for people who are affected, reports U.S. News. 

Related: Why Covid Patients Who Could Most Benefit From Paxlovid Still Aren’t Getting It – KFF Health News GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
People with HIV could benefit from anti-obesity drugs—as researchers have found that semaglutide could reduce certain metabolic conditions and fat accumulation that can be caused by anti-HIV medications. Nature

The U.K. government has barred emigrating health and care workers from entering the country with dependents in an effort to “cut migration and tackle care worker visa abuse,” saying that last year 120,000 dependents accompanied 100,000 workers to the country. Premium Times

Chinese officials have announced new pandemic prevention measures including boosting the number of infectious disease response teams, and pledging to improve outbreak early warning systems and revise laws on infectious disease prevention and control. Straits Times

The CDC updated guidance for investigating and responding to suicide clusters for the first time since 1988; the recommendations factor in new tools for response to suicide clusters, like social media. Healio RESEARCH The Multi-pronged Threat of ‘Monkey Laundering’ 
Long-tailed macaques have a 93% overlap in DNA with humans, which has led to their widespread usage in drug and vaccine testing—and their high monetary value. 

Monkeys used in this testing are supposed to be domestically bred. But increasingly, poachers are capturing wild macaques to sell on the black market, with U.S. pharmaceutical buyers as a frequent endpoint. 

Added dangers: Almost all adult wild macaques host a strain of a herpes B virus called “monkey B” that has killed at least 23 lab employees and 5 monkey workers. While domestic breeding centers have created monkey B-free colonies, the mixing of wild-caught monkeys introduces new fears of an outbreak. 

Bloomberg GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES VACCINES India Doubles Down on Defenses
As countries’ COVID-era resolutions to bolster vaccine-making capacities begin to fade, India has seen staggering growth in that sector. 

Looking to the past and the future: Companies like Serum Institute of India have been rapidly expanding their facilities and manufacturing capacities, with a dual strategy: 

• Stockpile vaccines that can be rapidly adapted to fight new pathogens.

• Have facilities primed to manufacture such new shots. 

The goal: Have a vaccine ready within 100 days of a new pathogen’s emergence. 

The Quote: “The more you sweat in peacetime, the less you bleed in wartime,” said Umesh Shaligram, Serum’s head of research and development.

The Telegraph QUICK HITS ‘Damning’ FDA inspection report undermines positive trial results of possible Alzheimer’s drug – Science

Overdose or Poisoning? A New Debate Over What to Call a Drug Death. – New York Times

Oropouche virus cases rise in parts of Brazil, Peru – CIDRAP

The Cystic-Fibrosis Breakthrough That Changed Everything – The Atlantic

People in East Palestine were told their homes were clear of toxins last year. That might not have been the case – CNN

Trump’s vaccine rhetoric sends chills through public health circles – The Hill Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner!

The science of Oppenheimer: meet the Oscar-winning movie’s specialist advisers – Nature Issue No. 2493
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

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The fight against child mortality has reached an historic milestone the UN announced on Wednesday with latest estimates revealing the number of children dying prematurely before their fifth birthday fell to 4.9 million in 2022.

96 Global Health NOW: Europe’s ‘Catastrophic’ Climate Outlook; Pitting Parents Against Public Health; and Fingerprinting Pain Dire forecast from European Environment Agency first climate report View this email in your browser March 11, 2024 Forward Share Post A view of the wildfire that broke out in Sicily, Italy, on August 27, 2023. Alberto Lo Bianco/Anadolu Agency via Getty Europe’s ‘Catastrophic’ Climate Outlook 
Europe is unprepared for escalating climate risks—and is staring down “critical or catastrophic” consequences by the end of this century if leaders fail to take action now, warns the first climate report from the EU’s European Environment Agency. 

The fastest-warming continent: “Extreme heat, drought, wildfires, and flooding, as experienced in recent years, will worsen in Europe even under optimistic global warming scenarios and affect living conditions throughout the continent,” the report cautioned. 

Southern Europe is most vulnerable, with growing potential for widespread fires, water shortages, and erosion, reports France24. 

Human health risks are also growing in the south, reports Politico, including: 

• Heatwaves that could claim “hundreds of thousands” of lives.

• Respiratory distress from frequent smoke. 

• Mosquito-borne diseases. 

Megadroughts could lead to crop production failures and food shortages—further endangering people’s health. 

And yet: Europe’s policies are “not keeping pace” with mounting risks, the report says. 

Related:

The U.S. just had its hottest winter on record – Axios

Olympic athletes could face a tough opponent: Brutal Paris heat – NBC News EDITORS' NOTE Welcome New Readers from CUGH!
A big GHN welcome to all the new GHN subscribers from the Consortium of Universities for Global Health 2024 conference that just wrapped up yesterday in Los Angeles, California. We’re so pleased to add new readers from countries including Canada, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Kenya, Malawi, Mexico, Mongolia, Mozambique, Nigeria, Peru, Suriname, Sweden, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, the U.K., and the U.S. to the GHN community. Please share GHN with your colleagues and friends—and drop us a line to let us know what you think. —Brian and Dayna  GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
Vaccine-derived polio has been reported in five African countries, per the latest update from the Global Polio Eradication Initiative; Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Chad, and Somalia all reported circulation of this form of the virus. CIDRAP

The ALS drug Relyvrio has failed its large phase 3 clinical trial, and it may be withdrawn from market after results did not show significant benefit in participants’ functions, the drugmaker Amylyx Pharmaceuticals has announced. CNN

Repurposed antiviral drugs are being evaluated as potential treatments for dengue—including a drug used to treat hepatitis C. The Star

The cost of contraceptives has spiked in Nigeria amid the country’s economic crisis, leading to fears of increased STIs, unplanned pregnancies, and unsafe abortions. Vanguard News VACCINES Pitting Parents Against Public Health 
A growing number of Tennessee children are at risk of missing key vaccinations after a new “medical freedom” law took effect in the state. 

The law requires every childhood vaccination to be given only with the direct consent of birth parents or legal guardians. 

Which means: Foster parents, social workers, grandparents, and other caregivers who take babies and children to routine appointments have no authority to get them vaccinated. 

The law is one of a dozen recently-introduced pieces of legislation in the U.S. which put parental freedom up against public health—and which “seed doubt about vaccine safety,” writes Amy Maxmen for KFF News. 

The Quote: “People who promote parental rights on vaccines tend to downplay the rights of children,” said Dorit Reiss, a vaccine policy researcher at the University of California Law-San Francisco.

NBC News GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES RESEARCH Fingerprinting Pain  
By some estimates, 20% to over 50% of patients will struggle with chronic postsurgical pain—which can be both debilitating and difficult to manage.
 
The research consortium Acute to Chronic Pain Signatures (A2CPS) aims to develop tools to identify these patients before surgery in order to customize treatment and minimize chronic pain risk.

• A2CPS will study nearly 3,000 participants scheduled to undergo either knee replacement or a thoracic surgery intervention.

The project will collect functional and structural brain imaging data before and after surgery, investigate molecular markers of gene expression and metabolism, and explore clinical histories and biographic data from patient surveys.
 
The goal: Combine these data to identify multidimensional “fingerprints” that reliably predict the risk of acute postsurgical pain becoming chronic.

Hopkins Bloomberg Public Health OPPORTUNITY Webinar: IAS-Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights  
Coinciding with the release of the International AIDS Society-Lancet Commission on Health and Human Rights’ final report, this webinar will explore the deterioration of human rights over the past 20 years in many parts of the globe, and the dire implications of this trend for human health, particularly the health of the most vulnerable.
 
Featuring remarks by Richard Horton, editor-in-chief of The Lancet, the event will include a short overview of the commission’s findings and a panel discussion with health and human rights experts to offer reflections on the report and possible actions to renew the global commitment to human rights and dignity.
 
The event is co-sponsored by The Lancet, the IAS, and the Duke Global Health Institute.
 
When: March 25, 2024, 9–10:30 a.m. EDT / 1–2:30 p.m. UK, online event
Register here. QUICK HITS Chlamydia-like 'parrot fever' won't be the next bird flu pandemic, experts say – BBC

Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy wins FDA approval for cutting heart disease risks, in move that could expand insurance coverage – CNBC

FDA delays Alzheimer’s drug for further review in surprise move – Washington Post

New Pandemic Agreement Draft Lands – And Finally, Text-Based Negotiations Can Begin – Health Policy Watch

Urinary Incontinence in Sub-Saharan Africa: Experiences of Women and Healthcare Workers in Nigeria and Kenya and Opportunities for Expanding Care – Axena Health

‘I’m never going to be Tony’: Jeanne Marrazzo, Anthony Fauci’s successor, vows a new direction at NIAID – Science Issue No. 2492
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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Nous devrons nous souvenir des soignants qui sont au service de la population assiégée de Gaza.

96 Global Health NOW: The ‘Persistent, Constant’ Threat of FGM; Abortion Rights in the Spotlight; and Dance Dance Evolution There are now 230 million+ FGM survivors worldwide—an increase of 30 million over eight years, UNICEF report finds. View this email in your browser March 8, 2024 Forward Share Post Girls from the Sebei tribe in Kapchorwa, northeast Uganda, reenact the ceremony they'd go through before circumcision, or FGM. Sally Hayden/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty FGM: A ‘Persistent, Constant’ Threat
The number of women and girls subjected to female genital mutilation has continued to grow despite prevention efforts—with new global estimates from UNICEF showing a 15% increase in women affected since 2016, reports France24. 

Unpacking the report: There are now an estimated 230 million+ survivors of FGM worldwide—an increase of 30 million over eight years. 

• The overall increase is largely due to population growth—making anti-FGM efforts “far off-pace” to meet the SDG goals to eliminate the practice by 2030.

• The report also reveals the “worrying trend” that more girls are subjected to FGM at younger ages.

At highest risk: Somalia, where 99% of women between 15-49 have been cut. 

• “It’s persistent, it’s constant,” Somali anti-cutting advocate Mariam Dahir told The New York Times.

• Other countries with high prevalence include Guinea (95%), Djibouti (90%), and Mali (89%). 

The good news: Other countries have reported steady progress toward ending FGM, including: 

• Sierra Leone, where prevalence has fallen from 95% to 61% over 30 years.

• Kenya, Ethiopia, and Burkina Faso also reported strong declines.

Related: Envisioning an End to FGM/C – Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
A new RSV monoclonal antibody, Beyfortus, was 90% effective at preventing small children from being hospitalized with the virus, new CDC data show. STAT

Heterosexual mpox transmission appears to be a key contributor to an ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to preprint research published this week that found female sex workers and their clients “may be at higher risk.” CIDRAP

The CDC has issued a warning about melatonin after finding that 11,000 infants and young kids were hospitalized from 2019 to 2022 after accidentally ingesting the sleep aid without supervision; the increase coincides with a “major uptick in adult use.” Axios

The WHO today published new diagnostic guidance, the ICD-11 CDDR, for mental, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders, including recent additions to the ICD-11 such as PTSD, prolonged grief disorder, and gaming disorder. WHO (news release) STATE OF THE UNION Abortion Rights in the Spotlight 
Reproductive rights took center stage in U.S. President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address last night—signaling the issue will be a key focus of his and fellow Democrats’ 2024 campaigns. 

Describing recent rulings against reproductive rights as an “assault on freedom,” Biden promised to “restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again” if he and other abortion rights candidates prevail. 

But the question of access continues to be in flux, with the Supreme Court expected to decide two key abortion rights cases before the election, reports STAT.

Abortion is the top issue for 1 in 8 U.S. voters, a new KFF survey finds—with the majority of those voters saying it should be legal in all or most cases, reports CNN.


Related: Alabama IVF clinics plan to restart operations – Axios  GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES TECH & INNOVATION A Feat for Fetal Disease Research  
For the first time, researchers have grown 3D organoids—mini lung, kidney, and small intestines—from fetal cells in amniotic fluid.
 
These tiny cells are a big deal: “We can actually access the fetus without touching the fetus,” says the study’s first author Mattia Gerli. 
 
The only other way to create these organoid models—key to studying fetal development—is by using postmortem fetal tissue from terminated pregnancies. That’s controversial and limits the types of tissue available.
 
Looking ahead: The models aren’t ready for clinical use but could be used in the future to study personalized therapies for congenital diseases.
 
STAT FRIDAY DIVERSION Dance Dance Evolution
Forget the hottest clubs or TikTok trends: Today’s most aspirational dance moves were inspired by an ecologist's doctoral thesis on the social adaptations of the eastern kangaroo. 

In his winning submission for the annual “Dance Your Ph.D.” contest, Weliton Menário Costa crafted a bouncy single—“Kangaroo Time”—based on the field research conducted for his ecology degree from Australian National University, reports Ars Technica. Kangaroos, he found, have distinct and diverse social personalities, but modify their behaviors to adapt to the group. 

Chor-roo-ography: To illustrate this social flux, Menário Costa recruited dancers skilled in a range of styles—from classical ballet to Brazilian funk to goofy-dad-moves.

• Dancers were instructed to “do as the ’roos do”—freely improvising their mishmash of steps, leaps, twirls, and twerks while gradually responding to each others’ styles, reports Science. 

Bonus: Menário Costa scored the $2,750 prize and perhaps more importantly, his grandmother’s praise. After years of head-scratching over her grandson’s academic pursuits, she watched the video and told him: “I get it now!”  QUICK HITS What makes a pathogen antibiotic-resistant? – EurekAlert

‘Failure at every level’: How science sleuths exposed massive ethics violations at a famed French institute – Science

Meet the public health researchers trying to rein in America's gun violence crisis – NPR Shots

Is COVID-19 a Seasonal Virus Yet? – TIME

Why Daylight Saving Time Messes With Your Brain – Atlas Obscura Issue No. 2491
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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ABOUT
SUPPORT US
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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96 Global Health NOW: The ‘Persistent, Constant’ Threat of FGM; Abortion Rights in the Spotlight; and Dance Dance Evolution There are now 230 million+ FGM survivors worldwide—an increase of 30 million over eight years, UNICEF report finds. View this email in your browser March 8, 2024 Forward Share Post Girls from the Sebei tribe in Kapchorwa, northeast Uganda, reenact the ceremony they'd go through before circumcision, or FGM. Sally Hayden/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty FGM: A ‘Persistent, Constant’ Threat
The number of women and girls subjected to female genital mutilation has continued to grow despite prevention efforts—with new global estimates from UNICEF showing a 15% increase in women affected since 2016, reports France24. 

Unpacking the report: There are now an estimated 230 million+ survivors of FGM worldwide—an increase of 30 million over eight years. 

• The overall increase is largely due to population growth—making anti-FGM efforts “far off-pace” to meet the SDG goals to eliminate the practice by 2030.

• The report also reveals the “worrying trend” that more girls are subjected to FGM at younger ages.

At highest risk: Somalia, where 99% of women between 15-49 have been cut. 

• “It’s persistent, it’s constant,” Somali anti-cutting advocate Mariam Dahir told The New York Times.

• Other countries with high prevalence include Guinea (95%), Djibouti (90%), and Mali (89%). 

The good news: Other countries have reported steady progress toward ending FGM, including: 

• Sierra Leone, where prevalence has fallen from 95% to 61% over 30 years.

• Kenya, Ethiopia, and Burkina Faso also reported strong declines.

Related: Envisioning an End to FGM/C – Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
A new RSV monoclonal antibody, Beyfortus, was 90% effective at preventing small children from being hospitalized with the virus, new CDC data show. STAT

Heterosexual mpox transmission appears to be a key contributor to an ongoing outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to preprint research published this week that found female sex workers and their clients “may be at higher risk.” CIDRAP

The CDC has issued a warning about melatonin after finding that 11,000 infants and young kids were hospitalized from 2019 to 2022 after accidentally ingesting the sleep aid without supervision; the increase coincides with a “major uptick in adult use.” Axios

The WHO today published new diagnostic guidance, the ICD-11 CDDR, for mental, behavioral, and neurodevelopmental disorders, including recent additions to the ICD-11 such as PTSD, prolonged grief disorder, and gaming disorder. WHO (news release) STATE OF THE UNION Abortion Rights in the Spotlight 
Reproductive rights took center stage in U.S. President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address last night—signaling the issue will be a key focus of his and fellow Democrats’ 2024 campaigns. 

Describing recent rulings against reproductive rights as an “assault on freedom,” Biden promised to “restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again” if he and other abortion rights candidates prevail. 

But the question of access continues to be in flux, with the Supreme Court expected to decide two key abortion rights cases before the election, reports STAT.

Abortion is the top issue for 1 in 8 U.S. voters, a new KFF survey finds—with the majority of those voters saying it should be legal in all or most cases, reports CNN.


Related: Alabama IVF clinics plan to restart operations – Axios  GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES TECH & INNOVATION A Feat for Fetal Disease Research  
For the first time, researchers have grown 3D organoids—mini lung, kidney, and small intestines—from fetal cells in amniotic fluid.
 
These tiny cells are a big deal: “We can actually access the fetus without touching the fetus,” says the study’s first author Mattia Gerli. 
 
The only other way to create these organoid models—key to studying fetal development—is by using postmortem fetal tissue from terminated pregnancies. That’s controversial and limits the types of tissue available.
 
Looking ahead: The models aren’t ready for clinical use but could be used in the future to study personalized therapies for congenital diseases.
 
STAT FRIDAY DIVERSION Dance Dance Evolution
Forget the hottest clubs or TikTok trends: Today’s most aspirational dance moves were inspired by an ecologist's doctoral thesis on the social adaptations of the eastern kangaroo. 

In his winning submission for the annual “Dance Your Ph.D.” contest, Weliton Menário Costa crafted a bouncy single—“Kangaroo Time”—based on the field research conducted for his ecology degree from Australian National University, reports Ars Technica. Kangaroos, he found, have distinct and diverse social personalities, but modify their behaviors to adapt to the group. 

Chor-roo-ography: To illustrate this social flux, Menário Costa recruited dancers skilled in a range of styles—from classical ballet to Brazilian funk to goofy-dad-moves.

• Dancers were instructed to “do as the ’roos do”—freely improvising their mishmash of steps, leaps, twirls, and twerks while gradually responding to each others’ styles, reports Science. 

Bonus: Menário Costa scored the $2,750 prize and perhaps more importantly, his grandmother’s praise. After years of head-scratching over her grandson’s academic pursuits, she watched the video and told him: “I get it now!”  QUICK HITS What makes a pathogen antibiotic-resistant? – EurekAlert

‘Failure at every level’: How science sleuths exposed massive ethics violations at a famed French institute – Science

Meet the public health researchers trying to rein in America's gun violence crisis – NPR Shots

Is COVID-19 a Seasonal Virus Yet? – TIME

Why Daylight Saving Time Messes With Your Brain – Atlas Obscura Issue No. 2491
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. -->
ABOUT
SUPPORT US
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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96 Global Health NOW: The Global AIDS Fight Has a Data Problem; Microplastics Linked to Heart Risks; and Gaining Traction on Slowing Down Massive gaps in HIV demographic data are hindering progress for those most at-risk populations. View this email in your browser March 7, 2024 Forward Share Post A peer educator of the Wits Reproductive Health Institute Sex Worker Programme sits in consultation with a client at the clinic in Johannesburg, on July 20, 2017. Gulshan Khan/AFP via Getty The Global AIDS Fight Has a Data Problem  
HIV services for those most at risk of contracting the virus consistently lag behind those for other populations—and researchers say that massive inconsistencies in the data are a major driver of the problem.

• Key populations (KPs), which generally include men who have sex with men, transgender individuals, sex workers, and people who use injectable drugs, accounted for approximately 43% of new HIV infections in 2019, globally. 

But the number of people in different KPs reported by the world’s leading HIV programs—PEPFAR, UNAIDS, and the Global Fund—vary by as much as 20X, according to a dashboard built by a team at amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Research.
 
These “scattershot” results are used to make important funding decisions about programs for KPs, how ambitious they should be, and how many people need to be on treatment, says Brian Honermann, amfAR’s deputy director of public policy.

This is a difficult problem to fix. Persistent stigma and discrimination against KPs make gathering this data a delicate business. Plus, donor funding for HIV programs is stagnating, and anti-LGBTQ+ policies are on the rise across the globe.

The problem can’t be solved overnight. In the meantime, Honermann recommends a hefty dose of “data humility.”  

Annalies Winny, Global Health NOW


Related: 

After decades of failures, researchers have renewed hopes for an effective HIV vaccine – NBC News

4 children surpass a year of HIV remission after treatment pause: Study – ABC News

PrEP use up, HIV incidence down, data show – Healio GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners
~8,000 patients in Gaza need to be evacuated from the territory, the WHO has said—expressing mounting frustration that so few have been evacuated for care despite months of referrals and medical petitions. RFI

STIs spiked across Europe in 2022—with gonorrhea cases up 48%, syphilis cases up 34%, and chlamydia cases up 16%—figures that one EU health official called “a stark picture, one that needs our immediate attention and action.” Reuters

Psittacosis infections are on the rise in five European countries per a WHO report; the bacterial respiratory disease that primarily affects birds has led to the deaths of five people. CIDRAP

Adult twins who suffered trauma as children were 2.4X more likely to be diagnosed with a psychiatric illness than their twin siblings who did not experience such events, per a new study of 25,000+ Swedish twins. The New York Times NONCOMMUNICABLE DISEASES Microplastics Linked to Heart Risks
Doctors are warning of potential health dangers posed by micro- and nanoplastics, after finding that “jagged foreign particles” of plastic removed from blood vessels could be linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke, and early death, reports The Guardian. 

Details of the study: After examining fatty plaques removed from the blood vessels of patients with arterial disease, researchers in Naples found that more than half had accumulated tiny particles of polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride, per a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. 

• Those with plaques containing such plastics were 4.5X times more likely to suffer cardiovascular problems or early death over the following 34 months, compared with people with plastic-free plaques. 

More to study: The research doesn’t definitively prove that microplastics caused such problems, the authors cautioned—but it does establish a worrisome link between microplastics and cardiovascular health that bears further study, reports STAT.  GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES ROAD SAFETY Gaining Traction on Slowing Down
Every year, speeding leads to 12,000+ U.S. car-related fatalities—around a third of the national total. 

In response, more safety advocates are shifting their focus from changing driver behavior—to changing the cars. 

Emergent technology called Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA) compels drivers to take the pedal off the metal through a range of methods:

• “Active” ISA systems prevent further acceleration once the vehicle hits a speed ceiling, while “passive” systems alert the driver.

Legislators are taking notice: The EU will require all new cars to be outfitted with passive ISA starting in July. 

In the U.S., officials at city, state, and federal levels are now calling for various forms of ISA adoption.

Vox CORRECTION The Fries Award Deadline: May 7, Not March 7
Yesterday, we highlighted the CDC Foundation’s Fries Awards for Health—but our headline botched the deadline. We’re sorry for the false alarm! But at least you have two more months to decide who to nominate for the Fries Prize for Improving Health, a $100,000 prize, and the Elizabeth Fries Health Education Award, a $50,000 prize. 

• Learn more, see past winners, and submit a nomination

QUICK HITS Air quality improvements belie rising racial and ethnic disparities in pollutant-related deaths, study finds – STAT

Novo Nordisk's diabetes drug Ozempic slashed the risk of kidney disease progression in trial – NBC

Senator Chris Murphy on loneliness and social media regulation – Harvard Public Health

Abortion meds can now be sold in drugstores. Here's why that's so important. – Vox

Diabetes, Colonialism, and Killers of the Flower Moon – Think Global Health Issue No. 2490
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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SUPPORT US
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  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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96 Global Health NOW: Brazil’s Dengue ‘Explosion’; Extreme Weather’s Hidden Health Care Toll; and South Korea’s Fertility Rate Plunges Further View this email in your browser March 6, 2024 Forward Share Post Patients receive treatment for dengue at an emergency medical care unit in Brasilia, Brazil, on January 23. Mateus Bonomi/Anadolu via Getty Brazil’s Dengue ‘Explosion’
A deluge of dengue cases is overwhelming Brazil’s public health system and forcing state officials to declare emergency status as they set up field hospitals to meet demand, reports NPR Shots. 

A closer look: 1 million suspected cases were reported in January and February—4X as many as in the same period in 2023. 214 people have died. 

Behind the spike: An unusually hot rainy season and the effects of urbanization, per Nature. 

Not enough protection: Brazil launched a vaccination campaign using the Japanese-manufactured Qdenga vaccine—but it does not have nearly enough doses for widespread protection, reports Science.

• A Brazilian-made vaccine, Butantan-DV, could reach more people, but its deployment is months off. 

Other mosquito control methods are being scaled up, including:

• Sanitation efforts.


• Releasing more mosquitoes infected with the virus-preventing Wolbachia bacterium, and releasing sterile male mosquitoes to dent the insect population. 

Not just Brazil: Argentina has been battling mosquitoes as its dengue cases surge, reports The Guardian. Peru is battling its own epidemic, and Bangladesh, Vietnam, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan have escalating case counts.

Related: Special insecticide paint may help curb Zika and dengue fever outbreaks – Medical Xpress

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Resistance to HIV drug dolutegravir is being documented among several countries, with resistance levels reaching 19.6% among some people treated with the drug—leading the WHO to call for “increased vigilance.” WHO (news release)

A WHO investigation pinpointed meningitis as the likely cause of a “mystery illness” in Nigeria’s Gombe State; the agency confirmed three meningitis deaths that it attributed to ongoing seasonal outbreaks. Nature

A German man obtained 217 vaccinations against COVID-19—bought and given privately—within 29 months and against medical advice; he appears to have suffered no harm, according to details published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, but researchers emphasized they do not endorse “hyper-vaccination” to enhance adaptive immunity. BBC
 
Walking 2,200+ steps a day reduces the risks of heart disease and early death—even when the rest of the day is spent sitting—with 10,000 steps a day associated with the lowest mortality risk, per a new study published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. The Guardian CLIMATE CHANGE Extreme Weather’s Hidden Health Care Toll 
The human cost of climate-related disasters is deeply underestimated, per a new study published in Nature Medicine.

Key findings: The study, which drew from Medicare records following major disasters in the U.S. between 2011 to 2016, found that emergency departments saw a “significant” uptick of admissions and even deaths in the days and weeks after storms—numbers that were likely not counted in final death tolls.

• Six weeks after a storm, the death rate in counties that saw the greatest destruction was 2-4X higher than in less impacted areas.

A bigger picture—but not complete: The analysis looked at records after hurricanes, floods, and storms—but not wildfires, drought, and heat. 

NPR POPULATIONS South Korea’s Fertility Rate Plunges Further 
South Korea's fertility rate has dropped again, with the average number of expected babies for a South Korean woman falling another 8% in 2023 to a record low of 0.72, reports Reuters. 

The nation’s fertility rate is already the world's lowest, but numbers continue to plummet, despite billions spent by the Korean government to reverse the trend.

• If the decline continues, Korea's population is projected to halve by the year 2100.

Driving the decline, per the BBC:

• Inequality: Despite being highly educated, Korea has the worst gender pay gap compared with other countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 


• Cost: Housing prices and the skyrocketing tuition for private extracurriculars expected of Korean families make family-building out of reach. 

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES OPPORTUNITY Fries Awards: Nomination Deadline Tomorrow
The CDC Foundation’s Fries Awards for Health is accepting nominations through May 7 for both the Fries Prize for Improving Health and the Elizabeth Fries Health Education Award.

• The Fries Prize for Improving Health, a $100,000 prize, goes to an individual who has made major accomplishments in health improvement, emphasizing recent contributions, with the general criteria being the greatest good for the greatest number of people.

• The Elizabeth Fries Health Education Award, a $50,000 prize, recognizes a practitioner or scholar who has substantially advanced the field of health education or health promotion through research, program development, or program delivery.

• Learn more, see past winners, and submit a nomination.

QUICK HITS Florida health officials provide scant details on measles cases, worrying health experts – STAT

A Utah Cleft Palate Team Says Its Approach Is Innovative. Others See a Pattern of Unnecessary Surgeries on Children. – ProPublica

How Medical Education Is Adapting to Climate Change – Think Global Health

Podcasts as a tool to disrupt knowledge hierarchies and silos to decolonize global health – Nature

King Charles’ diagnosis throws UK’s long cancer treatment waiting times into sharp relief – AP

Michigan lawmaker introduces bill requiring state health plans to cover cutting-edge cancer treatments – The Hill Thanks for the tip, Cecilia Meisner! 

The Science Behind Ozempic Was Wrong – The Atlantic Issue No. 2489
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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96 Global Health NOW: A Dangerous U.S. Syphilis Treatment Shortage; Nonprofits Bridging the Pharma Gap; and The Peril of South Africa’s Pit Toilets View this email in your browser March 5, 2024 Forward Share Post The Dangerous U.S. Syphilis Treatment Shortage  
A shortage of a key treatment is hobbling efforts to stem the U.S. syphilis surge—and endangering babies, ProPublica reports in a must-read story.

• In 2022, 3,700+ babies were infected and almost 300 were stillborn or died as infants.


• In +50% of these cases, the pregnant parent had been diagnosed with syphilis but not treated.


• Infants who survive “can suffer from deformed bones, excruciating pain or brain damage.”

Syphilis spikes:

• 200,000 cases reported in 2022—a 79% rise from five years before.


• 250% increase in infections among pregnant people and babies during that time.

Desperate shortage: Pfizer, the only U.S. manufacturer of injections to treat syphilis, told the FDA last June that it anticipated a yearlong stock-out because of rising infection rates and “competitive shortages.”

Canada’s rising cases: Syphilis cases in Canada reached nearly 14,000 in 2022 as well as 117 cases of early congenital syphilis—a 15X increase of cases among infants over five years, the CBC reports.
 
New hope: A post-sex, single dose of the common antibiotic doxycycline “halved the incidence of chlamydia and early syphilis among gay and bisexual men and transgender women in San Francisco,” according to city health officials, The New York Times reported yesterday (gift article). EDITORS’ NOTE CU at CUGH!   Heading to Los Angeles for the Consortium of Universities for Global Health conference later this week? We’ll see you there.
 
Please stop by exhibit #20 and say hi to Dayna and Brian. And bring a friend to sign up for Global Health NOW. It’s still free!
 
Plus: Be sure to attend the Pulitzer-GHN communications workshop on Sunday, March 10, at 3:30 p.m. We’ve got a blockbuster panel:

• Jocalyn Clark - International Editor for The BMJ
• Jon Cohen - Science magazine journalist
• Carlos Faerron Guzman - Associate Director, Planetary Health Alliance
• Clara Germani - Project manager and writing coach at The Christian Science Monitor

Topics include communicating about planetary health and how to connect with journalists.
 
Have a story idea? Want to talk about your research? Email Dayna or Brian. GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Gambian parliamentarians introduced a bill to decriminalize female genital mutilation yesterday, threatening to repeal a ban on the practice passed by former President Yahya Jammeh in 2015 that carries steep fines and jail sentences for perpetrators. Reuters

COVID-19 increases risk of autoimmune disease—but vaccination helps decrease the risk, suggests a large Annals of Internal Medicine study published yesterday; an analysis of medical records of 22 million Korean and Japanese adults found a 25% higher risk of autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic diseases in former Covid patients up to one year post-infection compared to the general population. STAT
 
Long COVID patients showed more signs of difficulty regulating their blood iron levels, including anemia, per a small study in Nature Immunology of 214 patients that suggests a possible role for iron supplementation during the acute phase of COVID-19 infection and/or as a potential long COVID treatment. CIDRAP         

Two mRNA vaccine candidates for MPXV, the virus that causes mpox, elicited protective immunity in mice and macaque infection models, per results published in Cell; there is an FDA-approved live non-replicating vaccine for MPXV, but it has limited efficacy and manufacturing limitations. Nature ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE How Nonprofits are Bridging the Pharma Gap
The emergence of two new game-changing drugs late last year heralds new hope for the fight against antimicrobial resistance and fungal disease—and new vision for the drug making process.

• The trials for both drugs—one an antibiotic to protect against gonorrhea, the other an antifungal that treats fungal mycetoma—were conducted by nonprofit organizations with missions to bring new drugs to the market.

These new organizations “hope to fill a big gap” in drug development and access as most legacy pharmaceutical companies withdraw from antimicrobial drug discovery, explains Maryn McKenna for Nature. 

Nature GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES WATER & SANITATION The Peril of South Africa’s Pit Toilets
Ten years ago, the death of a 5-year-old boy who drowned in a school latrine prompted a national outcry—leading to a government vow to replace dangerous public toilets by 2016. 

But 3,932+ schools—17%—still have unacceptable pit toilets, according to human rights groups who track the issue. They say the continued usage of such toilets symbolizes deep inequities that persist in the country two decades after the end of apartheid. 

The Quote: “It’s a huge depiction of inequality in South Africa to still have pit toilets,” said Cassandra Dorasamy of Amnesty International.

The Telegraph QUICK HITS Measles Cases Surge in Morocco: Health Ministry Urges Citizens to Vaccinate – Morocco World News 

Cancer warning after big rise in people smoking pipes, shisha and cigars in UK – The Guardian

Research: Behavior change had larger role than vaccination in curbing 2022 mpox epidemic – CIDRAP

Shady bleaching jabs fuel health fears, scams in W. Africa – AFP via NBC

Mexico's lawsuit against US gunmakers could be a game-changer – The World (audio)

‘My period has become a nightmare’: life in Gaza without sanitary products – The Guardian

Spain's Catalonia hands out free reusable menstruation products – Reuters Issue No. 2488
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

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  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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Drug dealers have continued to use cutting-edge digital technology, social media platforms and disinformation to sell their illegal produce, fuelling narcotics consumption globally, a UN-backed report launched on Tuesday showed. 

96 Global Health NOW: February Recap People who test positive for COVID-19 don't need to isolate themselves for five days, CDC now says. View this email in your browser March 4, 2024 Forward Share Post A passenger wears a mask while riding a Metro train on January 4, in Washington, D.C. Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty CDC ‘Sunsets’ COVID Isolation Guidelines
The CDC is relaxing its recommendations that people infected with COVID-19 isolate themselves for five days—the first shift in its guidance since 2021, reports STAT. 

The details: In the guidelines published Friday, the agency suggested infected people stay home until they are fever-free for 24 hours.

• The new recommendations do not apply to health facilities or nursing homes. 

Changing landscape: COVID hospitalizations are down 75% this winter from the rate seen in January 2022, with deaths declining by 90%.

• “We are in a different place, both in the level of protection people have against these illnesses and the tools we have available,” said CDC director Mandy Cohen. 

But: ~20,000 people are hospitalized because of the virus every week, and hundreds still die, reports Axios. 

Boosting boosters: Agency leaders said vaccinations and boosters are now their central prevention focus.

• 95% of people hospitalized for COVID-19 this winter had not received the latest booster.

Related: Why Are We Still Flu-ifying COVID? – The Atlantic GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Women from Greenland are seeking compensation from Denmark over an involuntary birth control campaign dating back to the 1960s; the campaign involved placing IUDs in ~4,500 women and girls in the former Danish colony without their knowledge or consent. Reuters

Two victims of Nipah virus in Bangladesh had consumed raw date palm sap, which can be contaminated with bat droppings that increase the risk of contracting the disease, per a WHO statement. CIDRAP

Pacific island nations account for 9 of the 10 top countries with the highest prevalence of obesity among adults, per new findings published in the Lancet; obesity has “progressively increased” in the Pacific over recent years. WHO 

A new HIV vaccine’s development has been stalled after an “unusually high” percentage of recipients of the mRNA shot developed rashes and other skin irritations during early tests. Science GHN EXCLUSIVE A child looks out at a hazy skyline from an overlook in midtown Manhattan on July 19, 2023, in New York City. Spencer Platt/Getty A Zero-Emissions Future Would be Great for Kids  
What would children’s health look like if the U.S. transitioned to zero-emission vehicles and electricity?
 
A whole lot better, according to a new American Lung Association report.

• The U.S. could avoid millions of pediatric asthma attacks and respiratory infections—and hundreds of infant deaths. 


• The estimates are based on a scenario in which, by 2050, all new passenger vehicles and trucks sold in the U.S. are zero-emission, and the nation’s electric grid transitions to non-combustion renewable energy.


• Previous Lung Association research shows the transition would also yield massive economic benefits.

Health risks: The hazards of growing up surrounded by polluted air—for example, near a port or a high-traffic area—can start before birth and stretch well into adulthood. 

• The risks are higher for kids in low-income communities and communities of color.

Exercise conundrum: Afif El-Hasan, a pediatrician and volunteer American Lung Association spokesperson, says the dangers of pollution make it harder to address the obesity epidemic: “I need [kids] out and running. But how about if the kid has asthma, how about if they're in a high pollution area?”
 
Annalies Winny, Global Health NOW FEBRUARY RECAP: MUST-READS Heat Waves and Hot Flashes in India   KURUNDVAD, India—First came sleeplessness. Then night sweats, hot flashes, and painful body aches.
 
Sunita Nikam was 39 when she first experienced symptoms of early menopause.
 
Menopause symptoms may be worsened by extreme temperatures driven by climate change, per a 2023 article in Maturitas, though data have not yet proved this.
 
Although 1.1. billion women will be perimenopausal by next year and many of them are already affected by climate change, the connection attracts little attention.
 
The Quote: “No one is interested in how menopause affects a woman,” says Nikam, now 48. “I was relieved only after my menopause ended.”
 
Sanket Jain for Global Health NOW

  Mexico City’s Water Slows to a Trickle   Mexico City is facing an escalating water crisis, as its outdated water infrastructure strains under severe drought, reports CNN.

As officials restrict water output and residents watch their faucets slow to a trickle, researchers warn the city of 22 million could hit “day zero”—the day taps run dry—within months, reports UPI. 

But that day has already arrived in many neighborhoods, while those in wealthier areas remain unaffected. 

  Left Out of Liver Transplants
Native Americans have the highest rate of death from liver disease in the U.S.—but they are less likely than other groups to secure a spot on the national liver transplant list, per an analysis by The Markup and The Washington Post.

• Native Americans are 4X more likely to die from the disease than non-Hispanic White people. 


• If transplant rates had been equal, ~1,000 more Native people would have received liver transplants between 2018–2021.

Less Hustle, More Bedroom Bustle
While Japan’s government struggles to reverse a slumping birth rate, the Tokyo suburb of Nagareyama has managed to buck the trend, enjoying Japan’s highest population growth rate for six years running, Bloomberg CityLab reports. 

How did they do it? Nagareyama’s mayor, Yoshiharu Izaki, adopted a series of initiatives to ease the burden on working parents, including better daycare options, commuter-friendly services like a weekday bus service for nursery school kids, and a quota system to discourage daycares from refusing children with disabilities.  FEBRUARY’S BEST NEWS A ‘Wonder Pill’ for At-Risk Pregnancies   Pregnant women facing malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa—where ~35% of babies suffer from stunted growth—could soon get a boost from a “game changing,” all-in-one nutritional supplement currently being trialed by UNICEF, The Telegraph reports.

• The new multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS) combine 15 essential vitamins and minerals considered particularly important in early gestation, including zinc, folate, niacin, riboflavin, iron, iodine, and vitamins B6, B12, A and D.


• The supplements are currently being tested in Rwanda, Ethiopia, and Nigeria.

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS Why an international court struck down Costa Rica’s IVF ban – The World

CVS and Walgreens Will Begin Selling Abortion Pills This Month – The 19th 

School Shootings in the United States: 1997–2022 – Pediatrics

Your Child’s Medicine Probably Wasn’t Fully Vetted. Here’s Why. – Undark

Credible science or false claims: calls for more regulation of beauty products – The Guardian

After protests, U.S. agency drops plan to limit pesticide use report – Science

What it's like to be 72 — the faces (and wisdom) behind the age – NPR Goats and Soda (photo essay) Issue M-Feb-2024
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. -->
ABOUT
SUPPORT US
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


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You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

96 Global Health NOW: CDC ‘Sunsets’ COVID Isolation Guidelines; Kids’ Zero-Emissions Future; and February’s Must-Reads People who test positive for COVID-19 don't need to isolate themselves for five days, CDC now says. View this email in your browser March 4, 2024 Forward Share Post A passenger wears a mask while riding a Metro train on January 4, in Washington, D.C. Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty CDC ‘Sunsets’ COVID Isolation Guidelines
The CDC is relaxing its recommendations that people infected with COVID-19 isolate themselves for five days—the first shift in its guidance since 2021, reports STAT. 

The details: In the guidelines published Friday, the agency suggested infected people stay home until they are fever-free for 24 hours.

• The new recommendations do not apply to health facilities or nursing homes. 

Changing landscape: COVID hospitalizations are down 75% this winter from the rate seen in January 2022, with deaths declining by 90%.

• “We are in a different place, both in the level of protection people have against these illnesses and the tools we have available,” said CDC director Mandy Cohen. 

But: ~20,000 people are hospitalized because of the virus every week, and hundreds still die, reports Axios. 

Boosting boosters: Agency leaders said vaccinations and boosters are now their central prevention focus.

• 95% of people hospitalized for COVID-19 this winter had not received the latest booster.

Related: Why Are We Still Flu-ifying COVID? – The Atlantic GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES The Latest One-Liners   Women from Greenland are seeking compensation from Denmark over an involuntary birth control campaign dating back to the 1960s; the campaign involved placing IUDs in ~4,500 women and girls in the former Danish colony without their knowledge or consent. Reuters

Two victims of Nipah virus in Bangladesh had consumed raw date palm sap, which can be contaminated with bat droppings that increase the risk of contracting the disease, per a WHO statement. CIDRAP

Pacific island nations account for 9 of the 10 top countries with the highest prevalence of obesity among adults, per new findings published in the Lancet; obesity has “progressively increased” in the Pacific over recent years. WHO 

A new HIV vaccine’s development has been stalled after an “unusually high” percentage of recipients of the mRNA shot developed rashes and other skin irritations during early tests. Science GHN EXCLUSIVE A child looks out at a hazy skyline from an overlook in midtown Manhattan on July 19, 2023, in New York City. Spencer Platt/Getty A Zero-Emissions Future Would be Great for Kids  
What would children’s health look like if the U.S. transitioned to zero-emission vehicles and electricity?
 
A whole lot better, according to a new American Lung Association report.

• The U.S. could avoid millions of pediatric asthma attacks and respiratory infections—and hundreds of infant deaths. 


• The estimates are based on a scenario in which, by 2050, all new passenger vehicles and trucks sold in the U.S. are zero-emission, and the nation’s electric grid transitions to non-combustion renewable energy.


• Previous Lung Association research shows the transition would also yield massive economic benefits.

Health risks: The hazards of growing up surrounded by polluted air—for example, near a port or a high-traffic area—can start before birth and stretch well into adulthood. 

• The risks are higher for kids in low-income communities and communities of color.

Exercise conundrum: Afif El-Hasan, a pediatrician and volunteer American Lung Association spokesperson, says the dangers of pollution make it harder to address the obesity epidemic: “I need [kids] out and running. But how about if the kid has asthma, how about if they're in a high pollution area?”
 
Annalies Winny, Global Health NOW FEBRUARY RECAP: MUST-READS Heat Waves and Hot Flashes in India   KURUNDVAD, India—First came sleeplessness. Then night sweats, hot flashes, and painful body aches.
 
Sunita Nikam was 39 when she first experienced symptoms of early menopause.
 
Menopause symptoms may be worsened by extreme temperatures driven by climate change, per a 2023 article in Maturitas, though data have not yet proved this.
 
Although 1.1. billion women will be perimenopausal by next year and many of them are already affected by climate change, the connection attracts little attention.
 
The Quote: “No one is interested in how menopause affects a woman,” says Nikam, now 48. “I was relieved only after my menopause ended.”
 
Sanket Jain for Global Health NOW

  Mexico City’s Water Slows to a Trickle   Mexico City is facing an escalating water crisis, as its outdated water infrastructure strains under severe drought, reports CNN.

As officials restrict water output and residents watch their faucets slow to a trickle, researchers warn the city of 22 million could hit “day zero”—the day taps run dry—within months, reports UPI. 

But that day has already arrived in many neighborhoods, while those in wealthier areas remain unaffected. 

  Left Out of Liver Transplants
Native Americans have the highest rate of death from liver disease in the U.S.—but they are less likely than other groups to secure a spot on the national liver transplant list, per an analysis by The Markup and The Washington Post.

• Native Americans are 4X more likely to die from the disease than non-Hispanic White people. 


• If transplant rates had been equal, ~1,000 more Native people would have received liver transplants between 2018–2021.

Less Hustle, More Bedroom Bustle
While Japan’s government struggles to reverse a slumping birth rate, the Tokyo suburb of Nagareyama has managed to buck the trend, enjoying Japan’s highest population growth rate for six years running, Bloomberg CityLab reports. 

How did they do it? Nagareyama’s mayor, Yoshiharu Izaki, adopted a series of initiatives to ease the burden on working parents, including better daycare options, commuter-friendly services like a weekday bus service for nursery school kids, and a quota system to discourage daycares from refusing children with disabilities.  FEBRUARY’S BEST NEWS A ‘Wonder Pill’ for At-Risk Pregnancies   Pregnant women facing malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa—where ~35% of babies suffer from stunted growth—could soon get a boost from a “game changing,” all-in-one nutritional supplement currently being trialed by UNICEF, The Telegraph reports.

• The new multiple micronutrient supplements (MMS) combine 15 essential vitamins and minerals considered particularly important in early gestation, including zinc, folate, niacin, riboflavin, iron, iodine, and vitamins B6, B12, A and D.


• The supplements are currently being tested in Rwanda, Ethiopia, and Nigeria.

GLOBAL HEALTH VOICES QUICK HITS Why an international court struck down Costa Rica’s IVF ban – The World

CVS and Walgreens Will Begin Selling Abortion Pills This Month – The 19th 

School Shootings in the United States: 1997–2022 – Pediatrics

Your Child’s Medicine Probably Wasn’t Fully Vetted. Here’s Why. – Undark

Credible science or false claims: calls for more regulation of beauty products – The Guardian

After protests, U.S. agency drops plan to limit pesticide use report – Science

What it's like to be 72 — the faces (and wisdom) behind the age – NPR Goats and Soda (photo essay) Issue No. 2487
Global Health NOW is an initiative of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Contributors include Brian W. Simpson, MPH, Dayna Kerecman Myers, Annalies Winny, Morgan Coulson, Kate Belz, Melissa Hartman, and Jackie Powder. Write us: dkerecm1@jhu.edu, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @globalhealth.now and X @GHN_News.

Please send the Global Health NOW free sign-up link to friends and colleagues: http://www.globalhealthnow.org/subscribe

Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list. -->
ABOUT
SUPPORT US
NEWSLETTER ARCHIVE
  CONTACT US
  Copyright 2024 Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. All Rights Reserved. Views and opinions expressed in Global Health NOW do not necessarily reflect those of the Bloomberg School.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.

Clinical Workshop
April 4, 2024, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm
Room TBA

 

Using Narratives to Enhance Speech, Language and Communication in Students with Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN): the magic of storytelling.