While containing the yellow fever outbreak in Angola is a difficult task, it’s far from impossible. The disease is a mosquito-borne disease, and vaccination efforts have been unable to stop the spread. This has led to a global health crisis. The World Health Organization (WHO) is working with countries like Angola, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Uganda to prevent new cases and to reduce the disease’s impact on vulnerable populations.
The disease was first discovered in Viana, Luanda Province, on 5 December 2015. Then the disease spread throughout Angola and into the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo. By March 2016, local transmission had been established in the DRC, with 2987 suspected cases and 81 confirmed cases, 16 deaths, and thousands more affected. The DRC has subsequently seen a large spike in the number of people suffering from the disease.
In late June, Angola reported no new cases of yellow fever. The outbreak is being closely monitored and the WHO is supporting vaccination and prevention initiatives. Isabel, a 10-year-old girl, watches a team of vaccine providers as they vaccinate her. The ministry of health is battling the escalating number of cases and a global race to produce the yellow fever vaccine.
To contain the 2016 outbreak of yellow fever, the WHO is providing support to the Angolan Government. The country’s health system has established a comprehensive vaccination programme and strictly enforces travel restrictions. But, despite these efforts, international travel restrictions are not enough. As a result, the disease continues to spread to other neighbouring countries. Since 23 February, the Democratic Republic of Congo has declared a localised outbreak.
The CDC has worked hard to prevent the outbreak of yellow fever in Angola. In December, CDC staff in Angola sent 40 workers to assist with vaccination campaigns and social mobilization. With these efforts, CDC staff in Angola managed to contain the outbreak of yellow fever. In fact, the disease is a vaccine-preventable disease and improved vaccination coverage is vital to the success of this effort.
The rapid spread of yellow fever in Angola triggered the global health community’s worst outbreak in decades. As the disease spread, vaccine production couldn’t keep up with the demand. By May 2016, only three cases were confirmed, despite reports of the virus in other parts of the world. As of mid-June, the global health community has not been able to contain the outbreak. Nonetheless, the rapid growth in cases and vaccine stockpiles has been a major factor in the recent decline in disease mortality.
As the disease spread from Angola to neighboring countries, it’s important to focus on the prevention of the disease. The CDC and WHO are working together to contain the outbreak. However, there are still many countries that are not prepared for the outbreak. The rise of yellow fever in Angola in 2016 reflects a broader increase in mosquito-borne diseases. The Zika virus was relatively unknown until recently, and it hardly affected human populations.
