Disease

Ebola Outbreak, West Africa - Update

Sierra Leone has appealed to the United States on Wednesday to send military aid to help it battle Ebola as it falls behind its West African neighbours Guinea and Liberia in the fight against the virus.

The worst recorded Ebola outbreak has killed at least 5,689 people, the World Health Organization said on Wednesday, as the virus has overwhelmed African countries with weak infrastructure and healthcare systems.

While the outbreak appears to be coming under control in Liberia, thanks partly to a health operation run by U.S. troops, infection rates have accelerated in Sierra Leone.

The rate of transmission is also beginning to slow in neighbouring Guinea, the first country to report an Ebola case, although case numbers are rising in Mali.

Jaundice Outbreak in India

An outbreak of jaundice in Saraspur has left 199 people affected in the last three weeks. There were nine new cases on Thursday across 24 chawl clusters in the area. Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) health officials were yet to confirm four additional jaundice cases.

"The jaundice strain is hepatitis E, which is not lethal among all those who are affected," says a senior AMC health official.