Latest news with #NICD
The Citizen
7 days ago
- Health
- The Citizen
#Wellness Wednesday: Protect yourself from the flu this winter
#Wellness Wednesday: Protect yourself from the flu this winter According to the NICD, South Africa's flu season began during the week of March 24. While the best time to get vaccinated is before flu season starts—typically between April and June—the NICD emphasizes that it's still not too late to get your flu shot. Protection from the flu develops about two weeks after vaccination The vaccine offers some protection from the flu and lessens the severity of the symptoms. For many people, flu comes with mild symptoms that are resolved in days to a week but for vulnerable groups, influenza can lead to severe illness, hospitalisation, or even death. Those most at risk include: Pregnant women People living with HIV Individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes, lung disease, heart disease, tuberculosis, kidney disease, or obesity Older adults (65 years and older) Children younger than 2 years Many people mistakenly believe that the flu vaccine can give them the flu, but the NICD has debunked this myth. The vaccine is made from an inactivated virus, meaning it cannot cause the flu. After receiving the shot, some may experience mild fever and soreness at the injection site, but not the full-blown flu. The National Department of Health provides influenza vaccination free of charge to healthcare workers and people in high-risk groups. To reduce the spread of flu in your community, remember to: Wash your hands often Cover coughs and sneezes with your elbow or a tissue Avoid close contact with people who are sick Stay home if you are feeling unwell if your symptoms worsen or don't improve within three–seven days, seek medical attention. Information sourced from The news provided to you in this link has been investigated and compiled by the editorial staff of the Newcastle Advertiser, a sold newspaper distributed in the Newcastle area. Please follow us on Youtube and feel free to like, comment, and subscribe. For more local news, visit our webpage, follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and request an add on our WhatsApp (082 874 5550). At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Citizen
27-05-2025
- Health
- The Citizen
Public warned as rabies continues to spread in SA rural provinces
Public warned as rabies continues to spread in SA rural provinces The National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has stressed the need for increased public awareness about the ongoing threat of rabies. According to the latest Public Health Bulletin South Africa (PHBSA) surveillance report, rabies continues to pose a significant public health threat in South Africa, especially in the Eastern Cape, KZN, and Limpopo. Rabies is a viral disease primarily transmitted through the saliva of infected animals, mostly dogs, via bites, scratches, or contact with mucous membranes or open wounds. 'Most human rabies cases are linked to dog bites, and the disease is almost always fatal once symptoms appear,' the NICD said. The study, titled Epidemiological Trends of Animal Bites and Human Rabies Cases in Limpopo, South Africa, 2011–2023: A Retrospective, highlighted the significance of continuous surveillance to track incidents of animal bites and human rabies cases. The study found that the majority of human rabies cases are reported from these regions. It emphasises the need to identify high-risk areas for targeted interventions. The article is part of the PHBSA initiative, which is led by the NICD and the National Institute for Occupational Health. It provides timely and actionable disease surveillance information for South Africa and the wider Southern African Development Community. While rabies is almost 100% fatal, the NICD said it is preventable through timely and appropriate post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) in humans following possible exposures. The NICD said rabies in dogs and cats can be controlled through vaccination. 'Each pet owner has a responsibility to contribute to reducing the risk of rabies by ensuring their pets are vaccinated against rabies. Understanding local patterns of animal bites and rabies exposure is essential to guiding targeted interventions, improving vaccination coverage, and ultimately saving lives.' Lead author of the study Unarine Makungo said the article offers crucial, evidence-based information regarding the persistent risk of rabies in Limpopo, where outbreaks continue to occur and disproportionately affect children. 'It highlights the importance of dog vaccination, public awareness, and timely medical care after animal bites. The findings are directly relevant to healthcare providers, policymakers, and community members who play a role in rabies prevention and control,' Makungo said. Makungo added that she hopes this surveillance will help guide targeted vaccination campaigns in high-risk areas, ensuring that at least 70% of the dog population is vaccinated. 'It should also inform public education initiatives on rabies risks and appropriate responses to animal bites. Additionally, it can support awareness for access to free and timely PEP, particularly in rural and underserved communities.' She emphasised the need for stronger collaboration between the veterinary and human health sectors through the One Health approach. 'Ultimately, the goal is to reduce the incidence of rabies and animal-bite injuries, moving South Africa closer to achieving zero human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030.' The study encourages the public to seek immediate medical care for PEP after a dog bite, which is available free of charge in the public sector and at a cost in the private sector. In the event of a dog bite, wounds and scratches should be washed immediately and thoroughly with soap or detergent and rinsed under running water for at least 15 minutes. The NICD is urging the public to report any suspected rabid animals to veterinary services or animal health technicians and not to try to capture or approach the animal. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Daily Maverick
18-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Maverick
South Africa faces alarming drop in HIV testing rates linked to US funding withdrawal
In the wake of the withdrawal of US Pepfar funding for South Africa's HIV/Aids programme, there has been an alleged decline in HIV viral load testing across the country. One HIV expert described the situation as 'frightening but expected'. Over March and April this year, there has been a significant decline in viral load testing for HIV in South Africa — a phenomenon that would appear to be linked to the recent withdrawal of United States funding for HIV programmes through the US President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (Pepfar). The drop in viral load testing is shown in alleged National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) data analysed by National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), as part of the laboratory service's surveillance function it provides to the national Department of Health. The information was shared with Daily Maverick by a source who chose to remain anonymous out of concern for professional backlash. At a national level, the data indicates that viral load testing for HIV was up 1% in March 2025 compared with March 2024. However, a comparison of the number of viral load tests conducted in April 2024 and April 2025, respectively, shows that testing dropped by 11.4% between the two periods, from 594,596 to 526,908. In certain population groups, including pregnant women, infants and young people between 15 and 24 years of age, the decline in viral load testing rates has been more severe. Daily Maverick reached out to the NICD about the data, but was told the institute was 'unable to authenticate [the] document and therefore cannot comment on its contents'. When sent a follow-up with specific questions about drops in viral load testing numbers across different population groups, the NICD referred the query to the laboratory service. The laboratory service told Daily Maverick it would not be commenting on the situation, adding: 'Please speak to the national Department of Health.' Daily Maverick asked the department to confirm the decline in HIV viral load testing and comment on the reasons behind it. The department responded that it was 'dangerous' to comment on data with an unknown source, and asked about authentication by the laboratory service. It did not respond to any specific questions about the alleged decline in HIV viral load testing. A recent Reuters report appears to have been based on the same data as that seen by Daily Maverick. Declining HIV viral load testing According to the data, the population group that has seen the largest drop in HIV viral load testing when comparing records for April 2024 and April 2025 is pregnant women, with the number of tests declining from 14,121 to 11,111 (-21.3%) between the two periods. Viral load testing for young people aged 15 to 24 dropped by 17.2%, from 40,227 in April 2024 to 33,305 in April 2025. Testing for infants using PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests dropped by 19.9%, from 48,312 in April 2024 to 38,689 in April 2025. Three health experts within the HIV sector that Daily Maverick spoke to about the data said that the decline in viral load testing was probably linked to the recent withdrawal of Pepfar funding for HIV/Aids programmes by the US, which has resulted in layoffs for 8,061 health workers across 27 high-burden HIV/Aids districts in South Africa. Since US President Donald Trump announced the suspension of foreign development spending in January, funding cuts by the United States Agency for International Development (USAid) have pushed key Pepfar-funded programmes and facilities to close their doors in South Africa and around the world. Pepfar funding made up R7.9-billion of South Africa's R46.8-billion HIV/Aids programme, according to Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi. 'Frightening but expected' HIV viral load testing for people taking antiretrovirals allows health workers to gauge whether the patients are taking their treatment correctly, and whether that treatment is suppressing the virus effectively. Professor Francois Venter, a Wits University clinician researcher, noted that South Africa followed 'world-class guidelines' for HIV care, which required people to be tested annually once they had been established on antiretrovirals. 'It's an incredibly important quality measure of your programme, your viral loads — the number that have been taken relative to the number of people on treatment, and then what those viral loads are showing. When they start dropping like this, you start losing that quality control measure, and it starts demonstrating that something severe is happening within the programme,' said Venter. 'The fact that [the drop in viral load testing] is happening across all the provinces suggests that there's a systemic, wide thing that's gone wrong here… There's something across the board that's happening here that's fundamentally affected the programme, and the only thing that makes sense is withdrawal of the Pepfar funding and support.' Professor Glenda Gray, a South African physician, scientist and activist specialising in the care of children and HIV medicine, described the data as 'frightening but expected'. 'If you're not going to have the people in place to do the [HIV] testing and the counselling and triaging to care, if you don't have those people who are following up on people who have missed their visits, or who are looking to see who needs viral load testing, the wheels will come off,' she said. 'I think that's… what the [Pepfar] implementing partners did… They were the part of the programme that added the quality that is needed for the ability to do [HIV] testing and counselling and retention in care and triage into programmes to get antiretrovirals. If you take that away, you will rapidly see the loss of quality of your programme.' The data seen by Daily Maverick also showed a drop in viral suppression rates among pregnant women and 15 to 24-year-olds. For the general population at a national level, viral suppression rates were shown to have dropped by 3.4% between March 2024 (77.2%) and March 2025 (74.6%). There was a drop of only 0.2%, year-on-year, between April 2024 and 2025. In this data, viral load suppression was defined as patients with less than 50 copies/ml, which meant their viral load was not detectable in testing. Lynne Wilkinson, a Gauteng-based public health specialist in the HIV/Aids sector, explained that viral load suppression rates were more difficult to interpret when fewer tests were done, as suppression was only being measured among those coming into health facilities to be tested. 'If your number of viral load [tests] goes down, you're not taking viral loads for a whole group of people. Now, who are those people? [Maybe] they're coming in, they're at the clinic, they're taking their treatment but the healthcare worker doesn't have the capacity because she's overburdened. Or you're not having [a viral load test] taken because you're not actually at the clinic,' she said. Concerns around vulnerable populations A decline in viral load testing for pregnant women would be a 'big problem', said Gray, as there was a 'direct correlation between viral load and perinatal transmission'. 'If women… aren't getting [HIV] tested, or if they're not getting on to care, they will transmit, and they will transmit during pregnancy, labour, delivery and postnatally. So, you'll start to see a reversal in control of paediatric HIV,' she said. For the infant population, a decline in HIV testing means infants might only be diagnosed once they are already in hospital for other conditions like pneumonia and TB, according to Gray. 'When you're an infant [with HIV], and you get sick and you land up in hospital, it means that you're already immunocompromised. And so basically, kids will start treatment later; some kids may never get on to treatment, and die,' she said. Need for action In recent months, many health experts and activists have been vocal about the need for the South African government to produce a clear emergency plan to address the loss of US funding for the HIV/Aids programme in South Africa. 'The Department of Health, senior people — including the minister — all said, 'No, this is going to be fine,' and it's not fine. It's unravelling, and they can reverse it, but they're going to have to acknowledge there's… a problem, and… simply throwing a whole lot of money at the problem is not going to solve it,' said Venter. 'You're going to have to have a plan for how you're going to replace what was an incredibly efficient service that was in place.' Venter said that the crisis caused by the loss of the Pepfar funding was 'fixable', if the response was swift and purposeful. 'It's not something that's going to be resolved by some international white horse coming over the mountain with lots and lots of money. It's not going to come from a donor. It's not going to come from anywhere other than within the Department of Health, with the help of lots of experts,' he said. 'They're not going to solve it by themselves. If they think they can solve it by themselves, by just bunkering down, they are going to fail, and it's going to be… another Aids tragedy, 20 years after the last one.' On Thursday, 15 May 2025, Motsoaledi assured South Africans that the country's HIV/Aids programme was not at risk of collapsing due to the withdrawal of US funding. Speaking at a media briefing in Pretoria, he listed steps taken by the Department of Health to address the loss of aid, including: A sensitisation training programme for healthcare workers on the barriers affecting access to healthcare by key populations, which had reached 1,012 clinicians and 2,377 non-clinicians in seven provinces. The establishment of 'roving teams, specifically for patient monitoring and data capturing', by eight provinces in which Pepfar was active. Weekly meetings between the Department of Health and provincial health departments to verify reports around HIV counselling and testing. Moving the files of 63,322 HIV patients from key populations to alternative public health facilities after the Pepfar-funded clinics they relied on closed down. Numerous meetings with potential donors about additional funding to fill the gap left by Pepfar. According to Motsoaledi, there is currently no plan to absorb the 8,061 health workers who lost jobs due to the Pepfar cut into the public health system, though he described them as 'people of interest' in the Health Department's talks with potential funders and the National Treasury. At the media briefing, a Reuters reporter asked Motsoaledi about the alleged drop in viral load testing across the country. 'If viral load testing has dropped, does it mean the collapse of the [HIV/Aids] campaign by any stretch of the imagination? No. We expected that some of these problems would occur, but we are sitting with them every day. Simply because a problem is occurring, to go and announce that the HIV/Aids programme has collapsed, it's wrong, and I will remain believing that it's wrong,' said Motsoaledi in his response. 'I want to state it very clearly that I've never said everything is fine… All I said is that it's wrong to say the… HIV/Aids programme in South Africa is collapsing, because it's not.' DM
The Citizen
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Citizen
Earliest flu season in a decade hits the Vaal
Given the early arrival of the flu season and the dominance of circulating strains, health authorities are urging the public – especially high-risk individuals, such as the elderly, young children, pregnant women and those with chronic conditions – to prioritise flu vaccination and seek medical care early if flu-like symptoms develop. Observed annually on May 5, World Hand Hygiene Day underscores the critical role of handwashing in curbing the spread of infectious diseases, particularly during the colder months when illnesses like influenza and respiratory infections rise. According to the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), the 2025 flu season began exceptionally early, starting in the week of March 24 (week 13) – making it the earliest onset in more than a decade. This marks a significant shift, as the 2024 season only began four weeks later, in late April. Data from the NICD's pneumonia surveillance programme also confirms that the most prevalent influenza strain currently in circulation is influenza, which accounts for 68% of lab-confirmed cases to date. Respiratory illnesses, like colds and flu, are transmitted through droplets and contact with contaminated surfaces, making hand hygiene an essential barrier against infection. The World Health Organisation emphasises that proper hand hygiene is one of the most effective measures to prevent the spread of infection in healthcare settings and the community. Key times to wash hands include: Before and after eating and preparing food; When caring for someone at home who is sick with vomiting/diarrhea; Before and after treating wounds; After using the toilet, changing nappies or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet; After coughing or sneezing; After touching animals or their waste; After touching dirt, and when coming home from public places. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Citizen
12-05-2025
- Health
- The Citizen
Listeriosis class action settlement offered but many victims still unknown
Tiger Brands confirmed on Monday that a settlement has been reached in a class action suit related to the 2017 listeriosis outbreak. A Tiger Brands facility in Germiston that is believed to have handled contaminated products. Picture: Gallo Images / Netwerk24 /Felix Dlangamandla Tiger Brands has presented a settlement offer to the victims of the deadly 2017 listeriosis outbreak. A strain of listeria killed 218 people and affected at least another 820 who consumed contaminated processed food. National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) investigations tracked the strain to a Tiger Brands facility in Polokwane, as well as distribution facility in Germiston. Eligible claimants The class action fight for the claimants has been pursued by two firms, namely Richard Spoor Inc and LHL Attorneys. The firms praised the peer-reviewed work of the NICD, spearheaded by Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi. 'These findings have since been confirmed by world-renowned epidemiologists, including Tiger Brands' own experts,' the case attorneys said in a joint statement on Monday. The claimants covered in this case are those who contracted the genotype L1-SL6-ST6-CT4148 of Listeria monocytogenes (ST6), as well mothers of the children affected. Additionally, the legal dependants of any household breadwinners who died of ST6 listeriosis, as well as adults whose legal dependants contracted the illness, are also eligible. The details of the offer have been sent to the claimants' attorneys, but they have not been publicly disclosed to protect their interests. Liability still to be proven This is just the first of a two-step process where the company's liability must still be determined by the courts, only after which compensation can be awarded. 'Before any settlement can be finalised, it must be presented to the High Court, which will determine its fairness as the ultimate guardian of class member interests,' confirmed the attorneys, who labelled the settlement offer an 'effective admission of liability'. The food manufacturers' statement contradicted that position, but stressed that they had adequate product liability insurance cover. 'Only if Tiger Brands is found to be liable will the issue of causation arise, in the second stage of the class action, as well as an assessment of compensation payable to qualifying claimants for damages suffered,' the company stated on Monday. 'The offer is subject to certain conditions and has been made without admission of liability and in full and final settlement of the claims of the claimants,' Tiger Brands explained. Both Tiger Brands and the legal representatives state that this will take at least several weeks to resolve, but they remain committed to the process. 'Tiger Brands' renewed and demonstrable commitment to the victims will ultimately lead to a comprehensive resolution of all claims,' stated the attorneys. Importance of food safety The firms, as well as the NICD, have been praised by the Department of Health for placing 'the sufferings of the victims' at the forefront of the fight. Many of those affected by the outbreak over seven years ago have not come forward, but the department and the NICD are working to assist the attorneys in locating potential claimants. The DoH said the class action highlighted the importance of sticking to guidelines around the handling of processed food. 'Food safety and hygiene practices remain crucial for public health, preventing foodborne illnesses, reducing food waste and avoiding costly food recalls,' stated the department. Those affected by listeriosis who were not part of the class action may still contact Richard Spoor Inc or LHL Attorneys for further information. NOW READ: Not Rasta, but Tiger Brands: Here's who's behind those spaza shop murals
