Arboviral disease is a general term used to
describe infections caused by a group of viruses spread to people by the bite
of infected arthropods (insects) such as mosquitoes and ticks.
Oftentimes, these infections occur during
warm weather months, when mosquitoes and ticks are active.
The most common arboviruses include Dengue,
Yellow fever, Chikungunya, Zika and West Nile virus,
They represent an ever-present and massive
health threat in tropical and sub-tropical parts of the planet, although there
are in fact a growing number of arboviral outbreaks worldwide.
Welcoming the move, Dr Mike Ryan, Head of
WHO’s Emergency Programme, explained that the scheme would allow health
authorities to tackle the “broad but related threats” posed by arboviruses in
different parts of the world.
“For each of these diseases, there have
been gains in different aspects of surveillance response, research and
development.
“But sustainability is often limited to the
scope and duration and scope of disease-specific projects.
“There is an urgent need to re-evaluate the
tools at hand and how these can be used across diseases to ensure an efficient
response, evidence-based practice, equipped and trained personnel and
engagement of communities,” he said.
The focus of the Global Arbovirus
Initiative would be to concentrate resources on risk monitoring, pandemic
prevention, preparedness, detection and response, the UN health agency said.
It insisted that international action is
essential, given the “frequency and magnitude of outbreaks” of arboviruses,
particularly those that are transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes.
Their reach is growing too, the WHO warned,
fuelled by climate change, population growth and increasing urbanisation.
Every year, dengue fever infects 390
million people in the 130 countries where it is endemic. It can cause
haemorrhagic fever and death.
Yellow fever poses a high risk of outbreaks
in 40 countries and causes jaundice and severe haemorrhagic fever and death.
Chikungunya is less well-known, but it is
present in 115 countries and causes severe and joint-disabling arthritis.
Zika virus gained worldwide notoriety in
2016 when it was found to cause birth defects such as microencephaly. It has
been detected in at least 89 countries.
Although there is a vaccine for Yellow
fever, for the rest, the best protection is to prevent mosquito bites in the
first place, WHO believes.
Ryan noted that interest in the WHO
initiative had been strong in the two-year run-up to Thursday’s launch, despite
the pressures of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, as there are growing concerns
about arboviral disease spread in large regional epidemics, “affecting those
populations least-equipped to deal with them”.
The key to WHO’s plan is to build the
capacity to deal with arboviral pathogens at front-line health centres, as well
as at the regional and global levels.
“WHO stands ready to lead and support these
strategic pandemic preparedness plans and to build a global coalition of
countries and partners to tackle the increased risk posed by these pathogens,”
Ryan emphasised.