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posted by mrpg on Sunday October 14 2018, @07:24PM   Printer-friendly
from the but-does-it-cause-autism? dept.

Submitted via IRC for chromas

Scientists develop novel vaccine for Lassa fever and rabies

[...] There are currently no approved Lassa fever vaccines. Although Lassa fever is often a mild illness, some people experience serious symptoms, such as hemorrhage (severe bleeding) and shock. The overall Lassa virus infection case-fatality rate is about 1 percent, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), but that rate rises to 15 percent for patients hospitalized with severe cases of Lassa fever. People contract Lassa virus through contact with infected Mastomys rats and through exposure to an infected person's bodily fluids. Lassa fever is endemic to West Africa where these rats are common. In 2018, Nigeria experienced its largest-ever Lassa fever outbreak, with 514 confirmed cases and 134 deaths from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30, according to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.

Africa is also at high risk for human rabies. The WHO estimates that 95 percent of the estimated 59,000 human rabies deaths per year occur in Africa and Asia. Nearly all human rabies deaths are caused by bites or scratches from infected dogs. Effective rabies vaccines and post-exposure shots are available, but many deaths still occur in resource-limited countries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


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  • (Score: 4, Insightful) by Runaway1956 on Monday October 15 2018, @05:27AM

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Monday October 15 2018, @05:27AM (#748838) Journal

    It's not the poor guy, living out in the bush, or a ghetto, that I fail to understand. He cannot spend money that he does not have. It's his government, and the governments of the world, that I fail to understand. Those people who are responsible for the health and welfare of the people of the their countries, and/or the world.

    Starting Score:    1  point
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    Total Score:   4