In Retrospect
NOVEMBER Promising Drug Combination Treatment Against Parasitic Worm Infections In a phase III clinical trial, researchers at Swiss TPH successfully gathered encouraging data to demonstrate higher efficacy of co-administration of ivermectin-albendazole in combating soil-transmitted helminthiasis. The findings were published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. → Soil-transmitted helminths affect one in five people around the world.
People from Low-Income Households Severely Affected by Pandemic The COVCO-Basel study by Swiss TPH investigated the health-related and societal effects of the COVID– 19 pandemic in the Basel region. Results from the study showed that people coming from low-income households are more severely affected by the pandemic, and that rates of depression among this population group have risen. → People with low incomes particularly suffered in the pandemic.
DECEMBER Elimination on the Horizon: Decrease of Schistosomiasis by Nearly 60% In a study by Swiss TPH, researchers found that the prevalence of schistosomiasis among school-aged children decreased by nearly 60 % between 2000 and 2019 due to large-scale drug administration and social and economic development of the African continent. The findings offer hope of elimination for this major neglected tropical disease. The study was published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. → Schistosomiasis is a parasitic worm infection that is a major public health problem.
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Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute
