World's First Malaria-Vaccine Program for Children Started in Africa

According to the UNICEF data, nearly every minute, a child under 5 dies of malaria. Many of these deaths are preventable and treatable. In 2022, there were 249 million malaria cases globally that led to 608,000 deaths in total. Of these deaths, 76 per cent were children under 5 years of age.

In Africa, there are about 250 million cases of the parasitic disease each year, including 600,000 deaths, mostly in young children.

Cameroon, a Central African nation that experiences 2.7 million cases of the disease each year, will begin rolling out the world's first routine childhood-malaria immunizations using a vaccine called RTS,S, or Mosquirix. The vaccine targets sporozoites, the transmissible forms of the malaria parasite, and neutralizes them before they can enter the liver and multiply in their thousands.

Cameroon hopes to vaccinate about 250,000 children this year and next year.

The vaccine was approved by the World Health Organisation two years ago.

The WHO have acknowledged the vaccine's limits but says it will still dramatically reduce severe infections and hospitalisations.

The vaccine is only about 30% effective, requires four doses and protection begins to fade after several months.

Professor Sir Brian Greenwood from London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has played a pivotal role in malaria vaccination trials and research since the inception of RTS,S.

It is said that Sir Greenwood had once resigned himself to the possibility that a successful malaria vaccine might not become available in his lifetime. Now, at 86 years old, the resulted vaccine of his decades long research will be used for world's first routine childhood-malaria immunizations.

"It's been a long journey, with many ups and downs," says Sir Greenwood. "The first attempts to develop a malaria vaccine through studies in birds were done over 100 years ago."

RTS,S is, to date, the only malaria vaccine to be recommended and prequalified by the World Health Organization (WHO).

This pediatric vaccine acts against Plasmodium falciparum, the deadliest malaria parasite globally, and the most prevalent in Africa. The vaccine reduces the number of times a child gets malaria, including severe, life-threatening malaria, and it reduces child deaths.

Top Image – Youtube.com/GHTC

Ayush Ministry To Co-Host 1st-Ever Global Summit on Traditional Medicine

• WHO and the Ministry of Ayush to host the first-ever Global Summit on Traditional Medicine
• The highly anticipated event is set to take place on 17th-18th August at Gandhinagar, Gujarat
• The Global Summit will place India at the forefront of advancing Traditional Medicines: MoS Ayush

A first-of-its-kind global summit on Traditional Medicine, organised by the World Health Organization (WHO) and co-hosted by the Ministry of Ayush, is set to take place on August 17-18, 2023, at 

Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The summit will take into account the vast experience and expertise of the country and this highly anticipated event will serve as a platform for experts and practitioners to delve into the latest scientific advancements and evidence-based knowledge in the sector, with the ultimate goal of ensuring health and well-being for all.

The esteemed Director-General of WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, will inaugurate the event in the presence of Minister of Health Shri Mansukh Mandaviya and Minister of Ayush Shri Sarbananda Sonowal. G20 health Ministers, Regional Directors of WHO and eminent invitees from countries across WHO's six regions are expected to grace the event along with scientists, practitioners of traditional medicine, health workers and members of civil society organisations. Union Minister of State for Ayush, Dr Munjpara Mahendrabhai Kalubhai gave this information in a press conference today at New Delhi.

Speaking about the event in a press conference, Dr Munjpara stated that the summit's outcome will be a declaration, and this declaration will assist WHO in shaping the future of WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. He also stated, “It is very natural that after the foundation laying ceremony of the Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar last year, we are going to witness this first global event in India. It testifies to the multi-dimensional strides taken by various traditional medicine systems of our country in the recent past.”

“By blending traditional practices with contemporary practices aided by visionary policies and digital initiatives, India has demonstrated a path for achieving universal health coverage (UHC) through traditional medicine systems.” He added.

Director, Department of Health Systems Development (WHO South East Asia Regional Centre) Shri Manoj Jhalani stated that the summit is expected to develop a roadmap toward creating a more holistic and healthier world for future generations by recognizing the interconnectedness between human health, planetary harmony, and technological advancement.

An array of distinguished speakers will be spearheading discussions on key focus areas, namely research, evidence and learning; policy, data and regulation; innovation and digital health; and biodiversity, equity and traditional (healthcare) knowledge.

Another added milestone will be the exhibition of Traditional systems of medicine from across the globe and the Ministry of Ayush. This exhibition serves as a comprehensive display of Traditional Medicine worldwide and will showcase the interconnectedness of Traditional Medicine with the natural environment in the form of ‘Kalpavriksha’, along with scientific and technological advancements spearheaded by various regional centres of WHO and the Ministry of Ayush.

In a detailed presentation, the Joint Secretary of the Ministry of Ayush, Shri Rahul Sharma, laid down the salient features of the event and the exhibition by WHO regional Centres and the Ayush exhibition zone, which has the theme, 'Ayush for Planetary Health & Wellbeing', This exhibition will display WHO regional centres’ prowess apart from highlighting Ayush's efficacy and rich biodiversity of medicinal plants. Some very interesting experiential and interactive kiosks will also be there.

The ministry will also be organising yoga and meditation sessions at the Convention Centre. There also will be yoga and meditation sessions at hotel venues, as well as short Yoga breaks at Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre between sessions.

In 2022, WHO, with the support of the Government of India, established the Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, laid the foundation stone of WHO-GCTM last year in the presence of the Director-General, WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The centre is a collaborative project of the Ministry of Ayush of India and the World Health Organization (WHO) and is the first and only global outpost for traditional medicine across the globe. The WHO GCTM will provide leadership on all global health matters related to traditional medicine as well as extend support to member countries in shaping various policies related to traditional medicine research, practices and public health. In a significant move, this year's highly anticipated event in the form of the WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine is taking place.

Notably, India is revolutionising traditional medicine using digital methods. From Ayush hospital management system to the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL), the harmony between ancient wisdom and modern technology is evident in various key digital projects by Ayush Ministry, Government of India.

WHO Monitoring New Coronavirus Variant Named 'Mu' which May Have Resistance to Vaccines

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said that it has identified a new coronavirus "variant of interest" (VOI) known as "Mu" and the global health body is now monitoring it. 

Also known by its scientific name B.1.621, the new coronavirus variant was classified as a VOI on 30 August 2021 and given the WHO label 'Mu'. This includes the descendent Pango lineage B.1.621.1. This variant is known as 21H in Nextstrain nomenclature. 

According to WHO, the Mu variant has a constellation of mutations that indicate potential properties of immune escape. Preliminary data presented to the Virus Evolution Working Group show a reduction in neutralization capacity of convalescent and vaccinee sera similar to that seen for the Beta variant, but this needs to be confirmed by further studies.

'Mu' was first identified in Colombia in January 2021 and since then there have been a few reports of cases of the Mu variant, on irregular intervals & places and some larger outbreaks have been reported from other countries in South America and in Europe. 

The WHO currently identifies four Covid-19 variants of concern, including Alpha, which is present in 193 countries, and Delta, present in 170 countries.

Five variants, including Mu, are to be monitored, said the WHO. After being detected in Colombia, Mu has since been reported in other South American countries and in Europe.

The WHO said its global prevalence has declined to below 0.1 percent among sequenced cases. In Colombia, however, it is at 39 percent.

As of 29 August, over 4500 sequences (3794 sequences of B.1.621 and 856 sequences of B.1.621.1 ['Mu']) have been uploaded to GISAID from 39 countries. GISAID is a global science initiative and primary source established in 2008 that provides open-access to genomic data of influenza viruses and the coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

WHO Issues 1st Global Report and Guidelines on Use of AI in Health

Artificial Intelligence (AI) holds great promise for improving the delivery of healthcare and medicine worldwide, but only if ethics and human rights are put at the heart of its design, deployment, and use, according to new WHO guidance published today.

The report, Ethics and governance of artificial intelligence for health, is the result of 2 years of consultations held by a panel of international experts appointed by WHO.

Like all new technology, artificial intelligence holds enormous potential for improving the health of millions of people around the world, but like all technology it can also be misused and cause harm," said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General. "This important new report provides a valuable guide for countries on how to maximize the benefits of AI, while minimizing its risks and avoiding its pitfalls."

Artificial intelligence can be, and in some wealthy countries is already being used to improve the speed and accuracy of diagnosis and screening for diseases; to assist with clinical care; strengthen health research and drug development, and support diverse public health interventions, such as disease surveillance, outbreak response, and health systems management.

AI could also empower patients to take greater control of their own health care and better understand their evolving needs. It could also enable resource-poor countries and rural communities, where patients often have restricted access to health-care workers or medical professionals, to bridge gaps in access to health services.

However, WHO’s new report cautions against overestimating the benefits of AI for health, especially when this occurs at the expense of core investments and strategies required to achieve universal health coverage.

It also points out that opportunities are linked to challenges and risks, including unethical collection and use of health data; biases encoded in algorithms, and risks of AI to patient safety, cybersecurity, and the environment.

For example, while private and public sector investment in the development and deployment of AI is critical, the unregulated use of AI could subordinate the rights and interests of patients and communities to the powerful commercial interests of technology companies or the interests of governments in surveillance and social control.

The report also emphasizes that systems trained primarily on data collected from individuals in high-income countries may not perform well for individuals in low- and middle-income settings.

AI systems should therefore be carefully designed to reflect the diversity of socio-economic and health-care settings. They should be accompanied by training in digital skills, community engagement and awareness-raising, especially for millions of healthcare workers who will require digital literacy or retraining if their roles and functions are automated, and who must contend with machines that could challenge the decision-making and autonomy of providers and patients.

Ultimately, guided by existing laws and human rights obligations, and new laws and policies that enshrine ethical principles, governments, providers, and designers must work together to address ethics and human rights concerns at every stage of an AI technology’s design, development, and deployment.

6 Guiding Principles to Ensure AI Works for the Public Interest in All Countries

To limit the risks and maximize the opportunities intrinsic to the use of AI for health, WHO provides the following principles as the basis for AI regulation and governance:

1. Protecting human autonomy: In the context of health care, this means that humans should remain in control of health-care systems and medical decisions; privacy and confidentiality should be protected, and patients must give valid informed consent through appropriate legal frameworks for data protection.
2. Promoting human well-being and safety and the public interest. The designers of AI technologies should satisfy regulatory requirements for safety, accuracy and efficacy for well-defined use cases or indications. Measures of quality control in practice and quality improvement in the use of AI must be available.
3. Ensuring transparency, explainability and intelligibility. Transparency requires that sufficient information be published or documented before the design or deployment of an AI technology. Such information must be easily accessible and facilitate meaningful public consultation and debate on how the technology is designed and how it should or should not be used.
4. Fostering responsibility and accountability. Although AI technologies perform specific tasks, it is the responsibility of stakeholders to ensure that they are used under appropriate conditions and by appropriately trained people. Effective mechanisms should be available for questioning and for redress for individuals and groups that are adversely affected by decisions based on algorithms.
5. Ensuring inclusiveness and equity. Inclusiveness requires that AI for health be designed to encourage the widest possible equitable use and access, irrespective of age, sex, gender, income, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, ability or other characteristics protected under human rights codes.
6. Promoting AI that is responsive and sustainable. Designers, developers and users should continuously and transparently assess AI applications during actual use to determine whether AI responds adequately and appropriately to expectations and requirements. AI systems should also be designed to minimize their environmental consequences and increase energy efficiency. Governments and companies should address anticipated disruptions in the workplace, including training for health-care workers to adapt to the use of AI systems, and potential job losses due to use of automated systems.

These principles will guide future WHO work to support efforts to ensure that the full potential of AI for healthcare and public health will be used for the benefits of all.

Originally Published At Its Source - WHO

The So-called Indian Variant of COVID-19 Renamed As Delta and Kappa, Under WHO Guidelines

World Health Organization (WHO) has recommended using labeled using letters of the Greek Alphabet, i.e., Alpha, Beta, Gamma, which will be easier and more practical to discussed by non-scientific audiences as these will be easy-to-pronounce. Under this, the so-called Indian variants of covid-19 has got its name changes under new guidance released by the WHO on Monday.

The Indian variant, known by scientists as B.1.617.2 and B.1.617.1, have been dubbed the 'Delta' and 'Kappa' variant.

The British variant will now be called 'Alpha' as the WHO tries to stop stigmatization of regions that were the first to sequence those new variants of coronavirus.

Notably, these new names/labels do not replace existing scientific names (e.g. those assigned by GISAID, Nextstrain and Pango), which convey important scientific information and will continue to be used in research.

Similarly, the so-called South African variant, known by scientists as B.1.351, is now called the Gamma variant.

WHO label	Pango  lineage	GISAID clade/lineage	Nextstrain  clade	Earliest documented  samples	Date of designation
Alpha	B.1.1.7	GRY (formerly GR/501Y.V1)	20I/S:501Y.V1	United Kingdom,  Sep-2020	18-Dec-2020
Beta	B.1.351	GH/501Y.V2	20H/S:501Y.V2	South Africa,  May-2020	18-Dec-2020
Gamma	P.1	GR/501Y.V3	20J/S:501Y.V3	Brazil,  Nov-2020	11-Jan-2021
Delta	B.1.617.2	G/452R.V3	21A/S:478K	India,  Oct-2020	VOI: 4-Apr-2021 VOC: 11-May-2021

WHO Selected India's Qure.AI For 3 Global Medical AI Firms for Screening Tuberculosis Worldwide

Qure.ai's qXR being used for TB Screening

World Health Organization has introduced the Qure.AI’s artificial intelligence-based tuberculosis diagnostic software as a platform that can replace human specialists in its annual Integrated Tuberculosis Screening Guidelines.

Besides, Mumbai-based Qure.ai, the other two companies are -- Lenit of South Korea and Delft Imaging of the Netherland. The WHO conducted joint research for more than two years with carefully selected global medical AI companies and selected these three companies through internal discussion.

Qure.ai's qXR is an Artificial Intelligence (AI) based chest X-ray interpretation tool that has been trained on millions of chest X-rays. qXR can detect findings suggestive of Tuberculosis (TB) and aids several TB screening programs across the world.

Qure.ai is spread over 35 countries, mostly in Asia, Middle East, Africa, Europe, LatAm, the U.K. and the U.S. In countries like India, Africa, and South-East Asia, its A.I.-assisted medical imaging solutions are already helping small medical teams to turn around lifesaving diagnoses in a fraction of the time normally required.

To prevent tuberculosis, one of the world's highest mortality diseases, the WHO has been publishing guidelines for integrated tuberculosis screenings since 2013.

In this year's guidelines, the WHO recommended a chest X-ray reading test using AI for tuberculosis for the first time, reflecting the research results related to artificial intelligence-based computer-aided diagnosis (CAD).

The updated guidelines said that by using the AI software of companies that took part in the research, it is possible to detect and screen for tuberculosis with more than 90 percent accuracy, a level similar to that of radiologists.

Pollution, Poor Air Increase Severity of COVID-19 Cases, Confirms WHO

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recognised the link between poor air quality and severity of the current Coronavirus pandemic, while talking to a news publication.

Dr. Maria Neira, Director, Public Health, Environment and Social Determinants of Health Department (PHE) at the WHO, confirmed this link to the BBC News in an interview. She said that countries with high pollution levels, like those in Latin America, Africa and Asia, need to ramp up their CODID-19 operations. People in these countries typically suffer from pollution-related conditions and have developed a severe form of the COVID-19 disease.

"We will map the most polluted cities based on our database to support national authorities in these regions so that they can prepare their epidemic response plan accordingly," Dr Neira said.

While medical professionals say that it's still too early to have a conclusive link, the statement matches many research items imploring the need to examine air quality with the current COVID-19 crisis.

"Air quality, especially indoor air quality, governs our risk levels for the Coronavirus. A poor air quality (Air Quality Index PM 2.5) would heighten existing difficulties, especially for COVID positive cases. Sanitised, ventilated spaces also add to safe living conditions for everyone, whether at homes or outside", explained Mansoor Ali, Research Ananlyst and Indoor Air Quality Expert and founder of AMFAH India.

Ali, the founder of AMFAH India, holds 20 years of industry experience in air treatment products. He is one of the first movers in the Air Treatment category and had predicted the global Coronavirus pandemic back in February, on his Twitter handle.

Apart from this link, Ali has been expressing the importance of maintaining ideal relative humidity (RH) levels at 40-60 RH to prevent transmission of the virus and deactivate surface-based contamination.