Over 40 people, including children, killed in Sudan hospital attack, says WHO chief
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO Director-General, delivers his speech after inaugurating the WHO Academy campus, which promotes lifelong learning across the health sector, in Lyon, France December 17, 2024. (Laurent Cipriani/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo)
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HKFP
20 hours ago
- HKFP
WHO says all Covid-19 origin theories remain open after inconclusive study
All hypotheses on how the Covid-19 pandemic began remain open, the World Health Organization said Friday, following an inconclusive four-year investigation that was hamstrung by crucial information being withheld. The global catastrophe killed an estimated 20 million people, according to the WHO, while shredding economies, crippling health systems and turning people's lives upside-down. The first cases were detected in Wuhan in China in late 2019, and understanding where the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID came from is key to preventing future pandemics. However, a lengthy investigation launched by the UN's health agency said that pending further data, the origin of Covid and how it first spread remains elusive. 'As things stand, all hypotheses must remain on the table, including zoonotic spillover and lab leak,' WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a press conference, referring to the two main hypotheses as to how the pandemic began. Expert investigation An initial WHO-Chinese joint report in March 2021 concluded that the virus most likely jumped from bats to humans via an intermediate animal. It deemed a leak from Wuhan's virology laboratories — known for their research on coronaviruses — to be 'extremely unlikely'. However, that investigation faced harsh criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not seriously evaluating the lab-leak theory. Tedros launched another investigation, setting up the Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), comprising 27 international experts, in July 2021. Their 78-page report was published on Friday. It said the weight of available evidence suggests a spillover from animals — either directly from bats, or through an intermediate host. However, it could not conclude with certainty where and when this happened, nor whether the Wuhan wet market was where the virus first spilled over into humans. That said, the market 'appears to be the location for amplification of infection in humans', leading to widespread transmission. 'Evidence for widespread infections or cases in any other countries prior to December 2019 is lacking,' it added. While spillover was the best supported theory on the evidence currently available, 'until further requests for information are met, or more scientific data becomes available, the origins of SARS-CoV-2 and how it entered the human population will remain inconclusive,' SAGO chair Marietjie Venter said at the press conference. Lab leak theories 'could not be investigated or excluded', she said, because much of the needed information had not been made available. The experts requested unpublished information from other countries, notably Germany and the United States, but without success, she said. Earlier this week, one SAGO member resigned and three others asked for their names to be removed from the report. 'Crucial question' 'Over the past five years, we have learned a lot about Covid-19 but there is one crucial question about the pandemic that we have not yet answered: how it started,' Tedros said. 'Despite our repeated requests, China hasn't provided hundreds of viral sequences from individuals with Covid-19 early in the pandemic, more detailed information on animals sold at markets in Wuhan, and information on work done and biosafety conditions at laboratories in Wuhan,' he said. He said WHO has requested access to intelligence reports by governments around the world on the origins of Covid-19. US President Donald Trump's administration has officially embraced the lab leak theory. Moral imperative Tedros said finding out how Covid-19 started was a moral imperative for those who lost their lives in the pandemic and to prevent further outbreaks. He said the virus was continuing to evolve, take lives and leave people suffering with post-Covid conditions, or so-called long Covid. Tedros said the WHO is appealing to countries with information about the origins of Covid-19 to share information. SAGO said it would continue to evaluate any new, sound scientific evidence and update its findings accordingly.
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- South China Morning Post
How to age well? Specialist in healthy ageing gives his tips on adding life to your years
He did not win the US$250,000 prize, but Jed Ray Gengoba Montayre was one of 10 finalists out of 100,000 candidates for the 2025 Aster Guardians Global Nursing Award. The award recognises outstanding contributions to the nursing field. Montayre, a gerontologist – or healthy ageing specialist – and associate professor at Hong Kong Polytechnic University's School of Nursing, was considered for the award for his groundbreaking research. He has spent half his life doing research on ageing, from how to counter loneliness to interventions for cognitive impairment. He has pioneered innovative care models for older people and worked on World Health Organization projects. He is also currently writing a book on how to age well. To help others age well, Montayre promotes maintaining social connections and building healthy habits like exercising. Photo: Shutterstock With all this under his belt, one might expect Montayre to be long in the tooth himself, but he is just 38. Montayre has been a keen learner since his childhood in the Philippine province of Cebu.
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong woman opens up about life after moment her heart stopped beating
More than a decade ago, Hongkonger Olivia Cheung Lok-man's heart stopped beating for 63 minutes. She was a 19-year-old student at the time and had suffered a fulminant myocarditis attack, a rare and severe illness that can cause heart failure. Cheung, now a 30-year-old art teacher, has since developed the ability to cope with the uncertainties surrounding her condition, thanks to the special care of the medical team at Queen Mary Hospital's intensive care unit (ICU). 'I have experienced [near death], I don't think there's anything [my family and I] can't deal with,' she said. Cheung and her doctor spoke to the media on Monday as part of the hospital's work with the Shaw Foundation to offer in-person and online activities to educate the public about intensive care treatments and patients' experiences. Last year, lawmakers passed a legislative amendment that allows terminally ill patients to reject certain treatments, such as undergoing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), as the end of their life nears.
