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Ebola treatment beds prevented 40,000 deaths in Sierra Leone: Study

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London: The introduction of thousands of Ebola treatment beds by the British and Sierra Leone governments and NGOs prevented an estimated 57,000 Ebola cases and 40,000 deaths in Sierra Leone up to February 2015, new research has found.

But introducing the beds just one month earlier may have halved the outbreak, the researchers noted.

There have been 13,945 reported cases of Ebola in Sierra Leone to date with an estimated 70 percent of infections resulting in death during 2014 , the World Health Organisation stated.

With many cases in Sierra Leone potentially going unreported, the real figure is likely to be much higher, the study said.

“Our findings show the unprecedented local and international response led to a substantial decline in Ebola transmission,” said lead author Adam Kucharski, lecturer in infectious disease epidemiology at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.

“Given the rapid growth of the outbreak in Sierra Leone, if those beds had not been in place to isolate the ill and avert further infections, the epidemic could have been much worse,” Kucharski noted.

Between September 2014 and February 2015, more than 1,500 treatment beds were introduced in Ebola holding centres and community care centres, and a further 1,200 in Ebola treatment units, to support the overstretched health system in Sierra Leone.

Using mathematical models, researchers estimated the potential impact additional treatment beds had in bringing about the decline of the Ebola outbreak.

They separated out the effect of beds from other factors that reduced transmission, such as behaviour change, community engagement, improved case finding and increase in safe burials.

Taking into account both reported and presumed unreported cases, the researchers said 57,000 Ebola cases were prevented up to February 2015 as a direct result of the introduction of treatment beds.

Given that the Ebola case fatality rate in Sierra Leone was near 70 percent, the researchers estimate this averted 40,000 deaths.

The study was published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Corona

Covid toll in Karnataka is a worrying sign for state government

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Even though Karnataka recorded the lowest number of Covid deaths in April since the virus struck first in 2020, the state is recording a rise in the positivity rate (1.50 per cent). Five people died from the Covid infections in April as per the statistics released by the state health department. In March, the positivity rate stood around 0.53 per cent. In the first week of April it came down to 0.38 per cent, second week registered 0.56 per cent, third week it rose to 0.79 per cent and by end of April the Covid positivity rate touched 1.19 per cent.

on an average 500 persons used to succumb everyday in the peak of Covid infection, as per the data. Health experts said that the mutated Coronavirus is losing its fierce characteristics as vaccination, better treatment facilities and awareness among the people have contributed to the lesser number of Covid deaths.

During the 4th and 6th of April two deaths were reported in Bengaluru, one in Gadag district on April 8, two deaths were reported from Belagavi and Vijayapura on April 30. The first Covid case was reported in the state in March 2020 and three Covid deaths were recorded in the month. In the following month 21 people became victims to the deadly virus, and May 2020 recorded 22 deaths. The death toll recorded everyday after May crossed three digits. However, the third wave, which started in January 2

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