23 March 2012 / Paris – Close to 366 million people worldwide are at increased risk for developing active tuberculosis (TB) disease – and they may not know it. They are part of the rapidly growing population with diabetes mellitus (DM), which is expected to reach 552 million by 2030. This link between DM and TB threatens public health efforts, according to The Union and the World Diabetes Foundati...
This focus of this year's World TB Day on 24 March is childhood TB, which is typically under-detected and under-reported. Dr Steve Graham of The Union's Child Lung Health Division says reversing the years of neglect will require improvement in TB control, prevention and treatment, as well as the resources to turn policy into practice.
22 March 2012, Paris/Singapore – Philanthropist and New York City Mayor Michel R. Bloomberg announced today an additional commitment of US $220 million to the global fight against tobacco use. The announcement, which came at the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Singapore, will extend funding for the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use (BI) for four more years.
In India, a new superhero called Bulgam Bhai is on a mission to educate people about TB. The round, colourful character, who introduces himself as "Myself Bulgam Bhai", stars in an ad campaign launched by Project Axshya in February.
This story by Dr Philippe Clevenbergh describes a day in a Myanmar TB/HIV outpatient clinic and reflects on the enormous odds of tackling the HIV epidemic in a country where there are now 30,000 on ART, but there are 15,000 new infections each year.
How can we measure whether OR is really making a difference? This is a question that is frequently asked and for which there has been little guidance until now. A recent paper in the Lancet Infectious Diseases proposes parameters and a checklist for measuring the success of OR in influencing policy and practice.
The city of Harbin in China commenced its 100-day countdown until its new smokefree law takes effect on 31 May with a big celebration in February. The event, which included an exhibition and a one-day seminar, aimed to promote the law among Harbin's citizens and to prepare for its implementation by the Municipal Government.
Prof Anthony D Harries, Director of the Department of Research, has received the Faculty of 1000 (F1000) Faculty of the Year Award in Public Health Epidemiology in recognition of his contributions in 2011. F1000 offers post-publication peer review to highlight the most important articles in biology and medical research.
