Almost $122 million is needed to prevent and manage the medical complications of the&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;virus spreading throughout the Americas and causing birth defects in babies, the World Health Organization said on Friday. 
 
A specific focus is needed on supporting women and girls of child-bearing age, the UN health agency said as it set out a revised joint strategy with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) for how to handle the mosquito-borne virus. 
 
Zika&nbsp;has caused alarm throughout the Americas since cases of the birth defect microcephaly were reported in Brazil, the country hardest hit by the outbreak. 
 
The rare birth defect is marked by unusually small head size and potentially severe developmental problems. Brazilian authorities have confirmed more than 1,400 cases of microcephaly in babies whose mothers were exposed to&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;during pregnancy. 
 
On Thursday, U.S. health officials reported three babies there have been born with birth defects linked to likely&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;virus infection in their mothers in pregnancy, along with three cases of lost pregnancies linked to&nbsp;Zika.. 
 
WHO director-general Margaret Chan said much had been learned about&nbsp;Zika, how it spreads, the consequences of infection and how to control it since global health authorities set out their initial response plans earlier this year. WHO declared&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;a global public health emergency in February. 
 
&quot;The response now requires a unique and integrated strategy that places support for women and girls of child-bearing age at its core,&quot; she said in a statement. 
 
The plan highlights several aspects of the&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;outbreak &quot;that require a collaborative, global response,&quot; the WHO said. 
 
These include, the potential for further international spread of&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;given the wide distribution of Aedes mosquitoes capable of transmitting it; the lack of population immunity in areas whereZika&nbsp;virus is circulating for the first time; and the lack of vaccines, treatments and rapid diagnostic tests. 
 
Chan said &quot;coherent funding mechanisms&quot; were essential for the plan to be implemented successfully, and noted the number of donors engaged in the global&nbsp;Zika&nbsp;response had risen to 60 from 23 in February 2016. 
 
WHO, PAHO and other agencies say they need $121.9 million to implement the revised plan from now until December 2017. 
 
(Reuters)

The UN health agency's plan highlights several aspects of the?Zika?outbreak "that require a collaborative, global response"

Almost $122 million is needed to prevent and manage the medical complications of the Zika virus spreading throughout the Americas and causing birth defects in babies, the World Health Organization said on Friday. A specific focus is needed on supporting women and girls of child-bearing age, the UN health agency said as it set out a revised joint strategy with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) for how to handle the mosquito-borne virus. Zika has caused alarm throughout the Americas since cases of the birth defect microcephaly were reported in Brazil, the country hardest hit by the outbreak. The rare birth defect is marked by unusually small head size and potentially severe developmental problems. Brazilian authorities have confirmed more than 1,400 cases of microcephaly in babies whose mothers were exposed to Zika during pregnancy. On Thursday, U.S. health officials reported three babies there have been born with birth defects linked to likely Zika virus infection in their mothers in pregnancy, along with three cases of lost pregnancies linked to Zika.. WHO director-general Margaret Chan said much had been learned about Zika, how it spreads, the consequences of infection and how to control it since global health authorities set out their initial response plans earlier this year. WHO declared Zika a global public health emergency in February. "The response now requires a unique and integrated strategy that places support for women and girls of child-bearing age at its core," she said in a statement. The plan highlights several aspects of the Zika outbreak "that require a collaborative, global response," the WHO said. These include, the potential for further international spread of Zika given the wide distribution of Aedes mosquitoes capable of transmitting it; the lack of population immunity in areas whereZika virus is circulating for the first time; and the lack of vaccines, treatments and rapid diagnostic tests. Chan said "coherent funding mechanisms" were essential for the plan to be implemented successfully, and noted the number of donors engaged in the global Zika response had risen to 60 from 23 in February 2016. WHO, PAHO and other agencies say they need $121.9 million to implement the revised plan from now until December 2017. (Reuters)

USD 122m needed for global response to Zika: WHO

Liberia said today it was free of Ebola, meaning there are now no known cases of the deadly tropical virus left in west Africa following an outbreak that began in neighbouring Guinea in December 2013. 
 
Liberia was worst hit with more than 4,800 Liberians killed by the virus, and was awaiting the all-clear following the discharge of its last known patients in May. 
 
&quot;Liberia is again free of Ebola. We have just ended the incubation period following the last case,&quot; Sorbor George, chief of communication at the ministry, told AFP. 
 
The west African nation has now passed the World Health Organization (WHO) threshold of 42 days -- twice the incubation period for the virus -- since the last known patient tested negative for the second time. 
 
&quot;WHO commends Liberia`s government and people on their effective response to this recent re-emergence of Ebola,&quot; said Alex Gasasira WHO representative in Liberia in a statement. 
 
&quot;WHO will continue to support Liberia in its effort to prevent, detect and respond to suspected cases,&quot; Gasasira added. 
 
The country now enters a 90-day period of heightened surveillance for any new cases. 
 
At its peak in 2014, Ebola sparked anxiety about a possible global pandemic and led some governments to threaten or unilaterally enforce travel bans to and from the worst-affected countries -- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.&nbsp; 
 
The WHO declared an end to Ebola cases in Guinea on June 1 and Sierra Leone on March 17. 
 
However, previous declarations announcing the end of Ebola flare-ups in west Africa have been followed by new cases -- the virus has re-emerged three times in Liberia.Health authorities were monitoring for new cases after a woman died of Ebola in the capital of Monrovia on March 31 after arriving from Guinea. 
 
Two of her three children, aged five and two, subsequently tested positive for the virus. 
 
The virus affected ten countries, including the United States and Spain, with more than 28,000 cases reported. 
 
The Liberian health ministry called on people to remain vigilant in order to avoid another outbreak in the future. 
&nbsp; 
&quot;We have been carrying on a sensitisation campaign. This campaign will continue, and we will still be in readiness to contain any eventual outbreak,&quot; George said. 
 
The risk of infection lasts beyond the 42-day period because the virus can survive in certain bodily fluids of survivors, particularly sperm, where it can linger up to a year, according to experts. 
 
In Paynesville, the Monrovia suburb where the most recent spate of cases were registered, residents were glad to be moving on. 
 
&quot;It is good to hear that Ebola is gone again, but from what we saw recently we remain resilient in our preventive measures. We don`t want our neighbourhood`s name to be attached to the outbreak,&quot; said Bubakar Sanor, 56. 
 
&quot;We are happy that our health workers are now up to the task, containing the virus with bravery and professionalism,&quot; he told AFP.

With the country rid of the disease - the last known patient tested negative twice - there are no cases of the virus left in west Africa

Liberia said today it was free of Ebola, meaning there are now no known cases of the deadly tropical virus left in west Africa following an outbreak that began in neighbouring Guinea in December 2013. Liberia was worst hit with more than 4,800 Liberians killed by the virus, and was awaiting the all-clear following the discharge of its last known patients in May. "Liberia is again free of Ebola. We have just ended the incubation period following the last case," Sorbor George, chief of communication at the ministry, told AFP. The west African nation has now passed the World Health Organization (WHO) threshold of 42 days -- twice the incubation period for the virus -- since the last known patient tested negative for the second time. "WHO commends Liberia`s government and people on their effective response to this recent re-emergence of Ebola," said Alex Gasasira WHO representative in Liberia in a statement. "WHO will continue to support Liberia in its effort to prevent, detect and respond to suspected cases," Gasasira added. The country now enters a 90-day period of heightened surveillance for any new cases. At its peak in 2014, Ebola sparked anxiety about a possible global pandemic and led some governments to threaten or unilaterally enforce travel bans to and from the worst-affected countries -- Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. The WHO declared an end to Ebola cases in Guinea on June 1 and Sierra Leone on March 17. However, previous declarations announcing the end of Ebola flare-ups in west Africa have been followed by new cases -- the virus has re-emerged three times in Liberia.Health authorities were monitoring for new cases after a woman died of Ebola in the capital of Monrovia on March 31 after arriving from Guinea. Two of her three children, aged five and two, subsequently tested positive for the virus. The virus affected ten countries, including the United States and Spain, with more than 28,000 cases reported. The Liberian health ministry called on people to remain vigilant in order to avoid another outbreak in the future. "We have been carrying on a sensitisation campaign. This campaign will continue, and we will still be in readiness to contain any eventual outbreak," George said. The risk of infection lasts beyond the 42-day period because the virus can survive in certain bodily fluids of survivors, particularly sperm, where it can linger up to a year, according to experts. In Paynesville, the Monrovia suburb where the most recent spate of cases were registered, residents were glad to be moving on. "It is good to hear that Ebola is gone again, but from what we saw recently we remain resilient in our preventive measures. We don`t want our neighbourhood`s name to be attached to the outbreak," said Bubakar Sanor, 56. "We are happy that our health workers are now up to the task, containing the virus with bravery and professionalism," he told AFP.

Liberia says it is free of ebola

Who, News on Who, stories on Who, articles on Who, Who stories at Wion, Who news, Who latest news