Western Pacific Surveillance and Response最新文献

{"title":"COVID-19 vaccine-related adverse events following immunization in the WHO Western Pacific Region, 2021-2022.","authors":"Ananda Amarasinghe, Heeyoun Cho, Eve Rizza Katalbas, Yoshihiro Takashima","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1046","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1046","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The speed at which new vaccines against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were developed and rolled out as part of the global response to the pandemic was unprecedented. This report summarizes COVID-19 vaccine-related safety data in the World Health Organization Western Pacific Region. Data for 1 March 2021 to 31 March 2022 from 36 out of 37 countries and areas in the Western Pacific Region are presented. More than 732 million doses of eight COVID-19 vaccines were administered; reporting rates of adverse events following immunization (AEFIs) and serious AEFIs were 130.1 and 5.6 per 100 000 doses administered, respectively. Anaphylaxis, thrombosis with thrombocytopenia syndrome, and myocarditis/pericarditis were the most frequent COVID-19 adverse events of special interest (AESIs) reported. The reported rates of AESIs in the Western Pacific Region were within the range of expected or background rates. Vaccine benefits far outweigh the risk of reported serious adverse reactions and serious outcomes of COVID-19. Continued AEFI surveillance is recommended to better understand and ensure the safety profiles of novel COVID-19 vaccines.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 2","pages":"1-11"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10363417/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10139434","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ensuring access to novel COVID-19 therapeutics in Pacific island countries and areas.","authors":"Gereltuya Dorj, Eva Mata Martinez, Karen Hammad, Biniam Getachew Kabethymer, Nuha Mahmoud","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1000","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1000","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Problem: </strong>As of November 2022, over 417 397 confirmed cases and 2631 deaths related to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) were reported in Pacific island countries and areas (PICs). Most PICs have faced challenges accessing therapeutics recommended for the treatment of COVID-19 due to their high demand worldwide and supply chain constraints.</p><p><strong>Context: </strong>The World Health Organization (WHO) coordinates and provides tailored technical and operational support to 21 PICs. Since the start of the pandemic, WHO has worked with partners to establish a mechanism to ensure equitable access to three novel COVID-19 therapeutics (tocilizumab, molnupiravir and nirmatrelvir/ritonavir) for lower-income countries, including 11 eligible PICs.</p><p><strong>Action: </strong>WHO coordinated the requests, procurement and distribution of the three novel therapeutics. In addition, WHO supported PICs by providing trainings in clinical management of COVID-19, developing critical supply needs estimates, and facilitating regulatory approval of clinical therapeutics, including emergency use authorization.</p><p><strong>Lessons learned: </strong>The main barriers to procurement of novel COVID-19 therapeutics were identified as prolonged negotiations with licence holders, sourcing funding, the high cost of therapeutics and limited capacity to provide safety monitoring.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>Uninterrupted supply and availability of essential medicines in the Pacific region is dependent on external and local sourcing. To overcome procurement barriers and ensure access to novel COVID-19 therapeutics in PICs, WHO's pandemic support to Member States focused on strengthening regulatory requirements, safety monitoring and supply chain activities.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 2","pages":"1-7"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10354403/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10140267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Experiences in COVID-19 clinical management and health-care pathways in the Western Pacific.","authors":"Saho Takaya, Ji Young Lee, Takeshi Nishijima, Masahiro Zakoji, Howard L Sobel","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.5.1017","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.5.1017","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has transformed clinical practice and health systems. This paper provides an overview of COVID-19 clinical management and health-care pathway challenges that the World Health Organization and its Member States in the Western Pacific Region have faced. The experiences and lessons identified can help countries to better prepare for future pandemics.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 5 Spec Edition","pages":"1-4"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10583969/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49683036","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Localizing health emergency preparedness and response: emergency medical team development and operations in Pacific island countries and areas.","authors":"Sean T Casey, Erin Noste, Anthony T Cook, Jan-Erik Larsen, Simon Cowie, May M Ferguson, Pierre-Yves Beauchemin","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1021","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1021","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 6 Spec Edition","pages":"1-4"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-06-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10645487/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134650015","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tonga national emergency medical team response to the 2022 Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcanic eruption and tsunami: the first deployment of the Tonga Emergency Medical Assistance Team (TEMAT).","authors":"Siosifa Sifa, Sela Ki Folau Fusi, Sean T Casey, Penisimani Poloniati, Kaloafu Tavo, Yutaro Setoya","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1026","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1026","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Problem: </strong>The undersea Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai volcano erupted on 15 January 2022, causing a tsunami that affected Tonga as well as other countries around the Pacific rim. Tonga's international borders were closed at the time due to the coronavirus disease pandemic, but clinical surge support was needed to respond to this disaster.</p><p><strong>Context: </strong>Tonga's Ministry of Health formed the Tonga Emergency Medical Assistance Team (TEMAT) in 2018 to provide clinical care and public health assistance during disasters, outbreaks and other health emergencies. TEMAT was activated for the first time in January 2022 to respond to medical and public health needs following the eruption and tsunami.</p><p><strong>Action: </strong>On 16 January 2022, a five-person TEMAT advance team was deployed to conduct initial damage assessments and provide casualty care. Subsequently, TEMAT rotations were deployed to provide clinical care and public health support across the Ha'apai island group for over 2 months.</p><p><strong>Outcome: </strong>TEMAT deployed to the islands most affected by the volcanic eruption and tsunami within 24 hours of the event, providing emergency clinical, psychosocial and public health services across four islands. TEMAT reported daily to the Ministry of Health and National Emergency Management Office, providing critical information for response decision-making. All TEMAT actions were documented, and an after-action review was conducted following the deployment.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>TEMAT's deployment in response to the 2022 volcanic eruption and tsunami highlighted the importance of national emergency medical teams that are prepared to respond to a range of emergency events.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 6 Spec Edition","pages":"1-6"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-05-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10645485/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134650016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"School outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease in Balungao, Pangasinan Province, Philippines, October 2022.","authors":"Emeryn C Victori,&nbsp;Ray Justin C Ventura,&nbsp;Mariz Zheila C Blanco,&nbsp;Rosario P Pamintuan,&nbsp;Rio L Magpantay,&nbsp;Karen B Lonogan","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1001","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.1001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>On 24 September 2022, the Regional Public Health Unit in Ilocos received a report of a cluster of suspected hand, foot and mouth disease (HFMD) in one school in Balungao, Pangasinan Province, the Philippines. On 4 October 2022, the public health unit sent a team from the Field Epidemiology Training Program - Intermediate Course to conduct an outbreak investigation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Active case-finding was conducted at the school. A suspected case was defined as any student or staff member with mouth ulcers and papulovesicular or maculopapular rash on the palms, fingers, soles of the feet or buttocks occurring from 1 September to 5 October 2022. We interviewed school officials about possible sources of infection and students' activities. We collected oropharyngeal swab samples for testing. Findings were used for descriptive analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Nine suspected cases of HFMD were detected, with the highest number of cases (6, 67%) occurring in children in grade 1. The majority of cases (7, 78%) were 6 years old, and five cases (56%) were male. Seven (78%) of the cases had been exposed to a confirmed case of HFMD, as reported by their parents or guardians and teachers. Six cases (67%) were positive for coxsackievirus A16 and two (22%) for enterovirus.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>The causative agents of this outbreak were coxsackievirus A16 and other enteroviruses. Direct contact with a confirmed case was the source of transmission, with a lack of physical distancing in classrooms likely contributing to transmission. We recommended that the local government implement measures to control the outbreak.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 2","pages":"1-5"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10169525/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9470884","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strengthening health emergency response capacity in Kiribati: establishing the Kiribati Medical Assistance Team (KIRIMAT).","authors":"Sean T Casey, Anthony T Cook, May M Ferguson, Erin Noste, Katarake T Mweeka, Tabutoa Eria Rekenibai, Wendy Snowdon","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1013","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.6.1013","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 6 Spec Edition","pages":"01-3"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10184053/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10141915","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Antimicrobial use in patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection in the Philippines: a cross-sectional study.","authors":"Roanne J Dominguez,&nbsp;Nicole A Domingo-Cereno,&nbsp;Rosemarie T Josue-Dominguez","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.999","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.999","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is exacerbating optimal antibiotic stewardship and the promotion of bacterial resistance due to the over-prescribing of antibiotics for patients with COVID-19. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of antibiotic therapy in patients with COVID-19 infection and explore the association of antibiotic prescribing with patients' demographics and clinical characteristics.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A retrospective analytical cross-sectional study was conducted at a tertiary hospital and training institution in Baguio City, the Philippines from March 2020 to March 2021. Univariate and multivariable logistic regression was used to compare COVID-19 patients who were prescribed antibiotics with those who were not.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the 157 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 infection, 90 (57.3%) received antibiotics, with only three (1.9%) having confirmed bacterial coinfection. Among those prescribed antibiotics, azithromycin was the most frequently prescribed antibiotic (43.3%), followed by ceftriaxone (33.1%), piperacillin-tazobactam (15.3%), ceftazidime (5.1%), moxifloxacin (1.3%), amikacin (0.6%), ampicillin and sulbactam (0.6%), cefuroxime (0.6%), metronidazole (0.6%) and penicillin (0.6%). Antibiotic use was associated with factors such as having bilateral infiltrates on chest X-ray, the severity of COVID-19 infection and high white blood cell counts.</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>Antibiotic use was high among patients with confirmed COVID-19 despite a low prevalence of confirmed bacterial coinfection. This may be due to the similarities in the clinical manifestations of both viral and bacterial infections. Judicious use of antibiotics in the treatment of COVID-19, as well as other viral infections (for example, influenza), is required to prevent antibiotic resistance in accordance with the principles of antimicrobial stewardship.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 2","pages":"1-8"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10354402/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"9905288","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Epidemiology of COVID-19 cases and vaccination coverage in Seremban District, Malaysia, 2021.","authors":"Khairul Hafidz Alkhair Khairul Amin,&nbsp;Nur Nadiatul Asyikin Bujang,&nbsp;Siti Aishah Abas,&nbsp;Nadiatul Ima Zulkifli,&nbsp;Syuaib Aiman Amir,&nbsp;Sharina Mohd Shah,&nbsp;Veshny Ganesan,&nbsp;Nurul Fazilah Aziz,&nbsp;Muhammad Adli Jalaluddin,&nbsp;Mohd Shahrol Abd Wahil,&nbsp;Muhamad Hazizi Muhamad Hasani,&nbsp;Noor Khalili Mohd Ali,&nbsp;Mohamad Paid Yusof","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.985","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.2.985","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>Malaysia's first case of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was reported in January 2020, with the first case in the state of Negeri Sembilan diagnosed on 17 February 2020. The National COVID-19 Immunization Programme commenced in early March 2021 in Negeri Sembilan. This study describes the COVID-19 cases and vaccination coverage in Seremban District, Negeri Sembilan, during 2021.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The demographic and clinical characteristics of COVID-19 cases and the district's vaccination coverage were described. Vaccination coverage was plotted against COVID-19 cases on the epidemic curve. The χ² test was used to examine the differences between the vaccination status of COVID-19 cases and severity category, hospitalization status and mortality.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In Seremban District, there were 65 879 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in 2021. The data revealed that the \u202821-30-year age group had the highest proportion of cases (16 365; 24.8%), the majority of cases were male (58.3%), and most cases were from the subdistrict of Ampangan (23.1%). The majority of cases were Malaysian. Over half (53.5%) were symptomatic, with fever (29.8%) and cough (22.8%) being the most frequently reported symptoms. COVID-19 vaccination status was significantly associated with severity category, hospitalization and mortality (<i>P</i> < 0.001 for all categories).</p><p><strong>Discussion: </strong>This is the first study to describe two-dose vaccination coverage and the trend in COVID-19 cases in Seremban District. It was observed that COVID-19 cases had been reduced following more than 60.0% vaccination coverage.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 2","pages":"1-7"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10354401/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10011971","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Epidemiology of tuberculosis in Mongolia: analysis of surveillance data, 2015-2019.","authors":"Tsolmon Boldoo, Larissa Otero, Borgil Uranchimeg, Anuzaya Purevdagva, Temuulen Enebish, Oyunchimeg Erdenee, Tauhid Islam, Fukushi Morishita","doi":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.1.931","DOIUrl":"10.5365/wpsar.2023.14.1.931","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Mongolia has a high tuberculosis (TB) burden. Data from routine paper-based surveillance were used to describe the epidemiology of TB in Mongolia; the data included testing presumptive TB cases, TB notifications, drug-resistant cases, treatment outcomes and notifications in prisoners. The proportion of the population tested for TB increased between 2015 and 2019. The number and rate per 100 000 population of TB notifications decreased between 2015 and 2018 and then increased in 2019. Most TB notifications in 2019 were in the capital, Ulaanbaatar (59.3%), followed by the central (16.8%), Khangai (10.4%), east (8.5%) and west (5.0%) regions. About half of TB notifications nationally were bacteriologically confirmed (45.4% in 2015, 48.1% in 2019), with the proportion of bacteriologically confirmed TB per province or district varying from 0% to 66%. High TB notification rates were observed in 2019 for males aged 15-54 years (202 per 100 000\u2028population) and females aged 15-34 years (190 per 100 000 population). Treatment success for all forms of TB was 90% in 2019 but was below the 90% target for bacteriologically confirmed cases. Between 2015 and 2019, the number of RR/MDR-TB notifications ranged from 265 to 211. The Mongolian National Tuberculosis Programme needs to continue its efforts in TB control, to further increase the programmatic impact and reduce the TB burden. It is recommended that Mongolia continue to increase TB screening, the use of Xpert testing, contact investigations and preventive treatments, and targeting interventions to the high-burden areas identified in this subnational analysis.</p>","PeriodicalId":31512,"journal":{"name":"Western Pacific Surveillance and Response","volume":"14 1","pages":"1-12"},"PeriodicalIF":1.0,"publicationDate":"2023-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10090033/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"10129723","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}