ETIDIOH - NEW

{Excerpt} Diphtheria is a major public health problem in the WHO African Region despite substantial efforts on immunization activities over the past three decades .  Between 2000 and 2024, 75 789 suspected diphtheria cases were reported in the Region, with the majority reported from 2023 to 2024, when Algeria, Chad, Gabon, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Niger , and South Africa reported a resurgence of diphtheria outbreaks with approximately 57 000 suspected cases and 2 000 deaths (case fatality ratio (CFR) of 3.5%) recorded.  The countries most affected were Guinea, Nigeria and Niger .  Most cases reported were in children under fifteen years and female .  Over 50% of suspected cases were non-vaccinated or with unknown vaccination status.  In 2025, as of 19 October 2025, over 17 000 suspected diphtheria cases and about 900 deaths with an average CFR of 5.1% have been reported across eight Member States in the African Region; Algeria, Chad, Guinea, Mali, Mau...

  • New human cases {1,2}:  -- From 30 September to 5 November 2025 , based on reporting date, the detection of influenza A(H5N1) in one human , A( H5N2 ) in one human and A( H9N2 ) in two humans were reported officially.   • Circulation of influenza viruses with zoonotic potential in animals :  -- High pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) events in poultry and non-poultry animal species continue to be reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).{3}  -- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) also provides a global update on avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential.{4}  • Risk assessment {5}:  -- Sustained human to human transmission has not been reported in the above human infection events.  -- Based on information available at the time of this risk assessment update , the overall public health risk from currently known influenza A viruses detected at the human-animal interface has not changed...

  {Excerpt} On Sept 4, 2025, the DR Congo Government and Ministry of Health announced a new Ebola virus disease outbreak in the Bulape health zone (Kasai province), marking the end of over 15 years without any reported cases of Ebola virus disease in this region . As of Sept 14, 2025, there were 35 confirmed Ebola virus disease cases and 16 deaths , representing a case fatality rate of 45·7%.1,2 This unexpected resurgence in a region with insufficient preparedness capacity raises serious concerns about potential regional spread, including towards neighbouring Angola. At the same time, DR Congo is experiencing one of the most severe cholera outbreaks of the past decade , with a total of 48 139 cases and 1443 deaths reported between Jan 1 and Aug 24, 2025, resulting in a case fatality rate of 3%.3 By epidemiological week 33, high case fatality rates were reported in the provinces of Kwilu (76 cases, 26 deaths; 44%), Sankuru (42 cases, 6 deaths; 14%), and Equateur (224 cases, 19 death...

  Situation at a glance Between 20 September and 30 October 2025, a total of 404 confirmed human cases of Rift Valley fever (RVF), including 42 deaths , were reported by national health authorities in two West African countries : Mauritania and Senegal .  RVF is a zoonotic disease , which mainly affects animals, but can also infect humans.  The majority of human infections result from contact with the blood or organs of infected animals, but human infections have also resulted from the bites of infected mosquitoes .  To date, no human-to-human transmission of RVF has been documented.  While RVF often leads to severe illness in animals, its impact in humans varies, ranging from mild flu-like symptoms to severe hemorrhagic fever that can be fatal .  RVF is endemic in both countries, where recurrent outbreaks have been previously reported in both livestock and humans.  The risk of further spread remains high , especially with environmental conditions favo...

  September 2025   The development of influenza candidate vaccine viruses (CVVs), coordinated by WHO, remains an essential component of the overall global strategy for influenza pandemic preparedness . Selection and development of CVVs are the first steps towards timely vaccine production and do not imply a recommendation for initiating manufacture . National authorities may consider the use of one or more of these CVVs for pilot lot vaccine production , clinical trials and other pandemic preparedness purposes based on their assessment of public health risk and need.  Zoonotic influenza viruses continue to be identified and evolve both antigenically and genetically, leading to the need for additional CVVs for pandemic preparedness purposes.  Changes in the antigenic and genetic characteristics of these viruses relative to existing CVVs and their potential risks to public health justify the need to develop new CVVs. This document summarizes the antigenic and genetic c...

  Highlights     • This Situation report will now be published monthly.  • All clades of the monkeypox virus (MPXV) continue to circulate. When mpox outbreaks are not rapidly contained and human-to-human transmission is not interrupted, there is a risk of sustained community transmission.   • In September 2025, 42 countries , across all WHO regions, reported a total of 3135 confirmed cases , including 12 deaths (case fatality ratio [CFR] 0.4%). More than 80% of these cases were reported in the African Region . Four regions (African Region, Eastern Mediterranean Region, Region of the Americas, and the Western Pacific) observed a declining trend in confirmed cases reported per month, while the European and South-East Asian regions observed an increase in cases in September 2025. • Seventeen countries in Africa have experienced ongoing active transmission of mpox in the last six weeks (14 Sep – 19 Oct 2025), with 2862 confirmed cases, including 17 deaths (CFR ...

  Summary Background For more than three decades, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) has provided a framework to quantify health loss due to diseases, injuries, and associated risk factors . This paper presents GBD 2023 findings on disease and injury burden and risk-attributable health loss, offering a global audit of the state of world health to inform public health priorities. This work captures the evolving landscape of health metrics across age groups, sexes, and locations, while reflecting on the remaining post-COVID-19 challenges to achieving our collective global health ambitions. Methods The GBD 2023 combined analysis estimated years lived with disability (YLDs), years of life lost (YLLs), and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) for 375 diseases and injuries , and risk-attributable burden associated with 88 modifiable risk factors. Of the more than 310 000 total data sources used for all GBD 2023 (about 30% of which were new to this est...

  New human cases {1,2}:  -- From 26 August to 29 September 2025 , based on reporting date, the detection of influenza A(H5) in one human , influenza A(H5N1) in one human , influenza A(H9N2) in eight humans and an influenza A(H1N1) variant ((H1N1)v) virus in one human were reported officially.   Circulation of influenza viruses with zoonotic potential in animals :  -- High pathogenicity avian influenza (HPAI) events in poultry and non-poultry animal species continue to be reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).{3}  -- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) also provides a global update on avian influenza viruses with pandemic potential.{4}  Risk assessment {5}:  -- Sustained human to human transmission has not been reported from these events.  -- Based on information available at the time of this risk assessment update , the overall public health risk from currently known influenza A viruses d...