Latest World Health Organization News

Rwanda and WHO declare end of Marburg outbreak after no new cases reported

Dec. 20, 2024 11:17 AM EST

KIGALI, Rwanda (AP) — The World Health Organization and the Rwandan government on Friday declared the outbreak in Rwanda of the Ebola-like Marburg fever over after no new cases were registered in recent weeks. The country first declared the outbreak on Sept. 27 and reported a...

Congo man dies with hemorrhagic fever, indicating mystery outbreak could be more than just malaria

Dec. 19, 2024 12:21 PM EST

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A man in western Congo died Thursday with hemorrhagic fever symptoms, leading officials to suspect that a still-unidentified virus may be involved alongside malaria in a mysterious outbreak that has killed dozens of people, health authorities said. Congo...

Pakistan postpones polio vaccination drive in Balochistan after health workers boycotted it

Dec. 18, 2024 13:28 PM EST

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) — Pakistani authorities on Wednesday postponed a polio vaccination campaign in the country's restive southern Balochistan province after health workers boycotted it to oppose a proposed privatization of hospitals. Authorities on Monday launched the final...

Pakistan begins last anti-polio vaccination campaign of the year after a surge in cases

Dec. 16, 2024 05:18 AM EST

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan on Monday began its last nationwide vaccination campaign for the year to protect 45 million children from polio after a surge in new cases hampered efforts to stop the disease, officials said. According to the World Health Organization, Pakistan and...

Hardest-hit Nigeria is latest African country to provide malaria vaccine to young children

Dec. 12, 2024 03:07 AM EST

BAYELSA, Nigeria (AP) — Ominike Marvis has lost count of the number of times her 6-year-old son has had malaria. So when Nigeria started offering a malaria vaccine, she was eager to protect her youngest child. She took the 6-month-old baby to get his first shot at a health center...

Authorities say the mystery disease in Congo might be malaria but more testing is needed

Dec. 11, 2024 11:05 AM EST

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — The mystery flu-like illness that has killed dozens of people in southwest Congo in recent weeks might be malaria, according to results from laboratory samples of infected people, authorities said Wednesday. “Of the 12 samples taken, nine were positive for...

Dengue cases set a new record in the Americas this year as deaths also surge

Dec. 10, 2024 14:32 PM EST

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Dengue fever is sweeping across the Caribbean and the Americas, with a record 12.6 million suspected cases of the mosquito-transmitted virus reported this year, nearly triple the number from last year, health officials said Tuesday. Cases of dengue have...

Morocco produces Africa’s first mpox tests as the continent tries to rely less on imports

Dec. 08, 2024 23:12 PM EST

TAMESNA, Morocco (AP) — After African countries struggled to get testing kits during the COVID-19 pandemic, officials vowed to make the continent less dependent on imported medical supplies. Now, in a first for Africa, a Moroccan company is filling orders for mpox tests as an outbreak continues....

A mystery illness has killed dozens of people in Congo. UN experts are now investigating

Dec. 06, 2024 12:00 PM EST

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — The World Health Organization said Friday it was deploying experts to investigate a mystery flu-like illness that has killed dozens of people in southwest Congo in recent weeks. "All efforts are underway to identify the cause of the illness, understand its...

WHO Africa director-elect dies while receiving treatment in India

Nov. 27, 2024 03:13 AM EST

ARUSHA, Tanzania (AP) — The World Health Organization's regional director-elect for Africa died while receiving medical treatment in India, Tanzania’s parliament speaker said Wednesday. Plans to repatriate the body of Tanzania's Dr. Faustine Ndugulile, 55, were underway, Speaker...