Publications by authors named "J C Mwanza"
Purpose: To characterize corneal and conjunctival abnormalities (CCAs) and their impact on visual acuity in a cohort of survivors from the Western African Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak.
Design: A post hoc analysis of 121 patients, who had previously undergone screening for the Ebola Virus Persistence in Ocular Tissues and Fluids study, was performed.
Methods: Patients underwent a comprehensive ophthalmic exam at the Lowell and Ruth Gess Eye Hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Following the devastating 1994 Genocide, the Government of Rwanda and its citizens have worked relentlessly to rebuild the country and reassemble a strong health system. Immediately after the genocide, global development partners sought to swiftly provide aid and support to the country to address urgent health system needs. However, inadequate coordination of the influx of aid resulted in duplicated efforts and inefficient health sector management.
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- The initiative 2030 In Sight and the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness aim to reduce preventable vision loss globally, prioritizing the need for eye health data in East Africa, a region with high rates of childhood blindness and severe visual impairment.
- Recent studies (1995 and 2009) highlighted the causes of these conditions, but updated data is necessary to track current trends.
- An analysis of eight articles involving 534 cases from six countries identified common causes of childhood blindness, mainly linked to the cornea and cataract, and recognized systemic relations to diseases like measles and toxoplasmosis, suggesting a need for further investigation into these associations.
During the last decade, global health security has been threatened by major Ebola virus disease outbreaks in Western Africa (2014 to 2016) and in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (2018 to 2020). Particularly in Western Africa, the outbreak initially overwhelmed health care capacity in already fragile health systems. Thousands of survivors were at risk of newly recognized postacute ocular complications, and their need for urgent ophthalmic care challenged national vision health systems with scarce eye care services.
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- - The Ebola virus disease (EVD) was first identified in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 1976, and a significant outbreak occurred between 2018 and 2020, complicated by security issues and high case numbers across a wide area.
- - A program was initiated to provide eye care for EVD survivors, involving partnerships with health authorities, where 237 survivors were screened and a significant percentage reported ocular symptoms like itchy eyes and eye pain.
- - The findings revealed various eye issues such as retinal scarring, uveitis, and cataracts among survivors, highlighting the need for ongoing monitoring and multidisciplinary care to address these post-EVD health challenges.