Globally, the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic has caused unprecedented clinical and public health concerns with increasing morbidity and mortality. Unfortunately, the burden of COVID-19 in Africa has been further exacerbated by the simultaneous epidemics of Ebola virus disease (EVD) and Lassa Fever (LF) which has created a huge burden on African healthcare systems. As Africa struggles to contain the spread of the second (and third) waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of reported cases of LF is also increasing, and recently, new outbreaks of EVD. Before the pandemic, many of Africa’s frail healthcare systems were already overburdened due to resource limitations in staffing and infrastructure, and also, multiple endemic tropical diseases. However, the shared epidemiological and pathophysiological features of COVID-19, EVD and LF as well their simultaneous occurrence in Africa may result in misdiagnosis at the onset of infection, an increased possibility of co-infection, and rapid and silent community spread of the virus(es). Other challenges include high population mobility across porous borders, risk of human-to-animal transmission and reverse zoonotic spread, and other public health concerns. This review highlights some major clinical and public health challenges toward responses to the COVID-19 pandemic amidst the deuce-ace of recurrent LF and EVD epidemics in Africa. Applying the One Health approach in infectious disease surveillance and preparedness is essential in mitigating emerging and re-emerging (co-)epidemics in Africa and beyond.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, pandemic, Epidemics, Ebola virus disease, West Africa, Lassa fever, 【초록키워드】 public health, Diseases, COVID-19 pandemic, Infection, risk, Infectious disease, Spread, Surveillance, outbreak, one health, zoonotic, response, African, Co-infection, Community, epidemiological, morbidity and mortality, resource, Other, Endemic, Healthcare system, Healthcare systems, limitation, approach, tropical, human-to-animal transmission, highlight, Occurrence, caused, include, reported, exacerbated, silent, Applying, pathophysiological feature, porous, 【제목키워드】 public health, Infection, West, implication,