THE PANDEMICS IN AFRICA

Plagues and Epidemics have ravaged humanity throughout its existence, often changing the course of history. Pandemics have occurred throughout history and appear to be increasing, from Prehistoric Epidemics to Historic Epidemics, Plagues, Flus, Polios, AIDS, Ebola virus to the new novel Corona virus the world is experiencing now. The outbreaks of these infectious diseases have greatly increased morbidity and mortality rate across the world and have caused significant economic, social and political disruption. Has something happened to facilitate these epidemics which seem to be occurring more frequently? Evidence suggests that the likelihood of Pandemics has increased over the past century because of increased global travel and integration, urbanization, changes in land use, and greater exploitation of the natural environment (Jones and others 2008; Morse 1995).



Africa can be seen as distinct from the rest of the world, and even from other parts of the developing world which are also affected by the emergence and reemergence of diseases. Some of these pandemics, epidemics and most dangerous infectious agents originate in Africa. Now, why do we have these diseases arising from Africa? Africa is a continent that is marked by poverty, malnutrition, crowded living conditions, poor health care, poor infrastructure and unstable political climate; all these exacerbate health problems in Africa and allow diseases to spread undaunted. According to WHO, five of the six worst countries for mortality of children under 5 years are in Africa with an under-5 mortality rate above 100 deaths per 1000 live births. Half of all deaths in Africa are caused by infectious diseases; this means that Africa should be one of the world’s priorities in the fight against infectious diseases.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), the chronic, life-threatening condition caused by Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), started as a global pandemic in 1980s and still continues as an epidemic in some parts of the world. HIV was reported to have likely developed from a chimpanzee virus that transferred to humans in West Africa in the 1920s. AIDS claimed over 35 million lives since it was first identified, the virus made its way around the world, and AIDS was a pandemic by the late 20th century. The disease has no cure but with the help of research, developed medications have been made to slow the progression of the disease and reduce AIDS deaths. People with the disease are now able to experience a normal life span with regular and adequate treatment.

Though an epidemic, Ebola virus, which ravaged West Africa between 2014 and 2016 had also shaken the human world. The first case to be reported was in Guinea in December 2013, the disease was later spread to Liberia and Sierra Leone. The bulk of the cases and deaths occurred in those three countries, a smaller number of cases occurred in Nigeria, Mali, Senegal, the United States and Europe (reported by the center for Disease control and Prevention). The virus is transmitted to people from wild animals and spreads in the human population through human-to-human transmission via direct contact (through broken skin or mucous membranes). There is no cure for Ebola, although research is still ongoing in finding a vaccine. The first known cases of Ebola occurred in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1976 and the virus was said to have originated from bats.

Lassa fever, an animal-borne, acute viral illness, is endemic in parts of Africa including Sierra Leone, Liberia, Guinea and Nigeria. This illness is one of the hemorrhagic fever viruses like Ebola virus but unlike Ebola, it is not as contagious nor as deadly. It was discovered in 1969 and is named after the town in Nigeria where the first cases occurred. It is spread to people through contact with household items, food, water, or air contaminated with the droppings or urine of infected rats, these rodents that transmit this virus are very common throughout West to East Africa and they can shed the virus without being ill.

Beginning in December 2019, in the region of Wuhan, China, a new novel Corona virus came into existence in human world. Named Covid-19, a shortened form of ‘Corona virus disease of 2019’, this new virus spreads incredibly quickly between people, countries, to continents and was declared as a Pandemic by WHO in March 2020. So far, Covid-19 is most deadly for people over 60 with underlying health conditions. It is primarily spread through respiratory droplets and can cause respiratory issues that lead to serious problems like pneumonia. The virus appears to have an incubation period of between 4 to 14 days which means that an individual could be carrying and spreading the virus for up to 2 weeks before experiencing any illness. So far, the clearest signs of the disease appear to be fever, dry cough and shortness of breath according to the CDC, other symptoms include headache, sore throat, abdominal pain and diarrhea. With the Corona virus pandemic, people all over the world have become more aware of the best practices during a Pandemic from careful hand washing to social distancing. Countries across the world declared mandatory stay-at-home measures, lock-down of companies, organizations and all other public places. The push for the human race to survive the Pandemic became the primary concern in the world.

- Sulaiman Aishat Taiwo