How cholera kills

The germ Vibrio cholerae is excreted by a sufferer in the stools and vomit. It can then be spread directly to other people if they touch the patient and then fail to wash their hands before eating. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Cholera

How MSF teams treat cholera patients

Cholera is eminently treatable. The main pathological process it causes is dehydration - thus the treatment we use is simply to replace all the fluid being lost. MSF treats many patients using oral rehydration solution, called ORS. This is a mixture of glucose and electrolytes (such as sodium and potassium) that comes in sachets. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Ebola and haemorrhagic fevers

How ebola kills

The Ebola virus must hide somewhere between outbreaks, but no-one has yet discovered where - it may be in monkeys or some other animal host, or it may be in healthy human carriers. Once an outbreak does occur the virus is spread from person to person via blood and bodily secretions. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Malnutrition

How MSF teams treat malnourished children

Children found to be less than 70% of the expected weight for their height are defined as severely malnourished. MSF teams admit them to a therapeutic feeding centre, where they receive intensive care. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Tuberculosis

How TB kills

It is estimated that up to one third of the world's population may be infected with the tubercule bacillus. Most of these people, however, do not have active TB. Their infection is latent, and may remain so for their whole life, not causing any symptoms. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Tuberculosis

How MSF teams treat TB patients

TB is difficult to treat. There is no single antibiotic that is capable of killing all the tubercle bacilli in a person's body. Apart from being hardy, TB germs can also develop resistance to drugs used against it. The only effective method is to use several different drugs combined together over a long period of time - usually a minimum of six months. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Measles

How MSF teams treat measles patients

MSF teams concentrate on treating the complications of measles. Chest infections, especially the most severe form known as pneumonia, are treated with antibiotics. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Measles

How measles kills

The rash of measles covers not only the skin but also the internal body surfaces of an affected child. This is what causes the complications of measles. The rash affects the intestines, and this leads to diarrhoea. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Kenya

Nutritional emergency in Kenya

During the past three years, the district of Samburu - particularly the Baragoï zone - has been afflicted by a serious drought. Due to the scarcity of water and the loss of grazing land, MSF estimates that in this area populated primarily by herdsmen, 40% of the cattle have died. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Ebola and haemorrhagic fevers

Ebola: The start

In 1976, in the north of what was then called Zaire, there was an outbreak of a new and deadly disease. It caused high fever, a rash, and bleeding from the internal organs. The disease moved for a while along the banks of the Ebola River, killing almost every person it struck. Then it disappeared again, as mysteriously as it had arrived. Project Update - 28 Sep 2000

Four mothers posing in a corridor of the Hospital in Bili. All four of them are staying in the hospital with their child, that's suffering from a severe case of malaria. Since the beginning of the project in 2016, the pediatric ward already treated more than 4.000 cases of complicated/severe form of malaria.

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

Independent medical humanitarian assistance

We provide medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Our teams are made up of tens of thousands of health professionals, logistic and administrative staff - most of them hired locally. Our actions are guided by medical ethics and the principles of independence and impartiality. We are a non-profit, self-governed, member-based organisation.

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