World Health Organization

Suicide is preventable

6 September 2016 – Every 40 seconds someone dies by suicide. For each of one of those people, WHO estimates that at least another 20 attempt to take their own life. However, suicides are preventable. World Suicide Prevention Day, on 10 September, is an opportunity to find out what each of us can do to help prevent suicide.

Zika
Microcephaly
Sexually transmitted infections
Yellow fever

Updated guidance on prevention of sexual transmission of Zika virus

UNAIDS

6 September 2016 – The interim guidance on prevention of sexual transmission of Zika virus has been updated with new evidence and advice. The primary transmission route of Zika virus is via the Aedes mosquito, however mounting evidence shows that sexual transmission of Zika virus is possible and more common than previously assumed. This is of concern due to an association between the Zika virus and adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Read the guidance

Emergency Committee: Microcephaly, neurological disorders and Zika

WHO/PAHO

2 September 2016 -- The fourth meeting of the Emergency Committee on Zika and microcephaly convened by the Director-General under the International Health Regulations (2005) regarding microcephaly, other neurological disorders and Zika virus was on 1 September 2016. The Committee agreed that Zika virus infection and its associated congenital and other neurological disorders continues to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

New guidelines for chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis

30 August 2016 – In response to the growing threat of antibiotic resistance, WHO has issued new treatment guidelines for 3 common sexually transmitted infections: chlamydia, gonorrhoea and syphilis. All 3 are generally curable with antibiotics, however they are becoming more difficult to treat, as some antibiotics are now failing due to misuse and overuse. The new recommendations are based on the latest available evidence.

More about the guidelines

Emergency Committee meeting on yellow fever

WHO/S. Jalil

31 August 2016 -- The Emergency Committee under the International Health Regulations concerning yellow fever met today. It decided that the yellow fever outbreak in Angola and DRC does not constitute a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). Despite considerable progress, the outbreak remains a serious public health event that warrants continued action and international support.

Outbreaks and emergencies

Emergencies » MERS-CoV outbreak » Nigeria crisis » South Sudan crisis » Yellow fever » Zika virus and complications »

Mosquito-borne diseases

Diseases and the mosquitoes that cause them

Deadliest animal in the world

Mosquitoes are one of the deadliest animals in the world. Their ability to carry and spread disease to humans causes millions of deaths every year.

More on Mosquito-borne diseases

Highlights

WHO certifies Sri Lanka malaria-free
September 2016 − In a remarkable public health achievement, Sri Lanka was certified today by WHO on having eliminated malaria, a life-threatening disease which long affected the island country.

Millions protected in Africa’s largest-ever emergency yellow fever vaccination campaign
September 2016 − A major part of the largest emergency vaccination campaign against yellow fever ever attempted in Africa has been completed, with more than 7.7 million people vaccinated in record time in the city of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Halting cholera in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
September 2016 − Equateur province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has recorded 1954 suspected cholera cases and 78 fatalities since late August 2016. To stop the spread of epidemic cholera outbreaks, WHO is supporting local authorities to control the present epidemic in health districts where a large number of cholera cases have been recorded.

Improving sexual and reproductive health outcomes for young people
August 2016 − New research evaluates interventions which can help to improve reproductive health outcomes in young people aged between 10–24 years. Effective strategies include addressing early unintended and repeat pregnancies, preventing sexually transmitted infections and HIV, and ending child marriages.

What we do

Dr Chan, WHO Director-General, visits Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India, three of the four countries where indigenous transmission of wild poliovirus has not yet been interrupted.

WHO

Emergency reform

The WHO emergency reform process encompasses governance reform, managerial reform, and further development of emergency capacities.

Zika virus and complications

After a spike in cases of microcephaly and Guillain-Barré syndrome associated with Zika virus, WHO declared a public health emergency.

Commentaries

A two-weeks-old baby is held close to the chest of her mother at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center, Philippines.

Birth in a time of antibiotic-resistant bacteria

"Saving the lives of mothers and infants will require us to address the problem of access as well as excess. Simply put, those who need lifesaving antibiotics must get them, and those who do not must not."

Dr Anthony Costello, WHO Director of Maternal, Newborn, Child, and Adolescent Health
Dr Stefan Swartling Peterson, UNICEF Chief of Health