5 diseases with deadly impacts on Africans in last decade

Several diseases are causing great damage to the human race across the world but some are more prevalent in Africa than others.

From polio to pneumonia, HIV and malaria, Africa has been ravaged by a wide range of diseases that are caused by bacteria, virus or fungi.

The death rates of the victims of these diseases across Africa are not alarming but worth noticing.

Here are five deadly diseases with a negative impact on the lives of Africans living in Africa in the last decade.

American billionaire, Bill Gates through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation have been working hand in hand with the Dangote Foundation and Hebert Wigwe Foundation and other health bodies to help end these diseases.

Pneumonia (lower respiratory tract infection)

One of the killer diseases that has dealt Africa a dastardly blow is pneumonia. This killer disease is mostly tagged along with other lower respiratory tract infections and it affects both children and adults. According to AnswersAfrica, a total of 800,000 individuals across Africa die annually after suffering from pneumonia, bronchitis, and bronchiolitis. While pneumonia alone is responsible for 90 percent of all lower respiratory tract infections deaths across Africa, an estimated 4.2 million die annually after contracting the disease.

Cause: Pneumonia is often caused by bacteria, virus or fungal infection that creates acute inflammation of the lungs. The inflammation of the lung results in the accumulation of pus in air sacs and may become solid. The disease can be treated if noticed early.

Malaria

Malaria may be viewed as just a regular disease that can be treated by the enlightened folks but this disease is a major killer in Africa in the last decade. Malaria made a name for itself in Africa after the disease claimed at least 1.2 million lives across Africa in 2012 only. Malaria’s prevalence in Africa has dubbed it one of the major killers of Africans in Sub Saharan Africa in the last decade. Globally, Malaria affects more than 500 million people and claims between 1 to 3 million lives annually.

Cause: Malaria is caused by the Plasmodium parasite transmitted by mosquito bites. There are many different types of Plasmodium parasite, but only five types cause malaria in humans. Malaria can be treated if detected early.

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Ebola

Ebola has refused to quit Africa after it was first discovered in Congo in 1976. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Protection, Ebola virus was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Since then, the virus has been infecting people from time to time, leading to outbreaks in several African countries. From Liberia to Guinea, Sierra Leone and Nigeria, Ebola has wreaked havoc in the last decade killing over 11,315 as at 2016 and several infected, WHO says. In March 2018, an outbreak of Ebola was again recorded in DR Congo killing at least 19 people and 39 infected.

Cause: Ebola is caused by an infection with one of five known Ebola virus species, four of which can cause disease in people: Ebola virus (Zaire ebolavirus); Sudan virus (Sudan ebolavirus); Taï Forest virus (Taï Forest ebolavirus, formerly Côte d’Ivoire ebolavirus); Bundibugyo virus (Bundibugyo ebolavirus); Reston virus (Reston ebolavirus), known to cause disease in nonhuman primates and pigs, but not in people. Ebola can be treated if detected in time.

Lassa Fever

Lassa fever was first diagnosed in the 1950s and the viral particle was identified in 1969 from three missionary nurses who died in Lassa, Nigeria, after caring for an infected obstetrical patient. Lassa fever is one of the hemorrhagic fever viruses, occurring in West Africa sub-region in similar areas as Ebola virus. Over a 100 people lost their lives to the outbreak of Lassa fever, a deadly disease that ravaged Nigeria for the better part of 2017 after it broke out in 2016. The disease again reared its ugly head in Nigeria in 2018, months after it was thought to have been contained by the health authorities in collaboration with the World Health Organisation and other world health agencies.

Cause: Lassa fever, also known as Lassa hemorrhagic fever (LHF), is a type of viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus from infected rats. Many of those infected with the virus do not develop symptoms. When symptoms occur they typically include fever, weakness, headaches, vomiting, and muscle pains. The disease can be treated if detected early.

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HIV/AIDS

For Human Immunodeficiency Virus which causes Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, AIDS, the entirety of Africa is on its knee to either curb its spread totally or get a treatment to cure the deadly disease. In Africa, no region is spared from North to South, East and West, HIV/AIDS with more than 33 million Africans infected with HIV/AIDS. The Sub Saharan Africa seems to be more at the receiving end accounting for 65 percent of the total victims in Africa. Though the infection rate has been reduced after African countries waged a war against the disease, it is still widely spread through heterosexual transmission.

Cause: HIV causes AIDS. It is primarily spread by unprotected sexual intercourse with an infected partner. Other routes of infection include sharing needles, syringes, or unsterilized invasive instruments. It is also transmitted from an infected mother to the baby.