River Blindness Elimination Program - In the News Archive

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December 2022
Nigeria 14th National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee Communiqué
Posted with permission from Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health.
The 14th meeting of Nigeria’s National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health concludes that Benue State has reached “transmission suspected interrupted” status. Organized by the Federal Ministry of Health, the hybrid meeting was held at Frasier Suites, Abuja, Nigeria, 18 – 20 May 2022, with support from The Carter Center and the USAID Act to End NTDs | East Program, led by RTI International. View terms of reference »

Nov. 21, 2022
Ethiopia Interrupted River Blindness (Onchocerciasis) Transmission in Seventeen More Districts in South West Ethiopia Peoples and Oromia Regions and 1.38 Million People No Longer Need Mass Drug Administration (MDA) with Ivermectin
Press release posted with permission from the Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health.
The Ethiopia Onchocerciasis Elimination Expert Advisory Committee (EOEEAC), during its 9th annual meeting held in Addis Ababa from October 19-21, 2022, reviewed serological blood tests in humans and molecular examination of vector black flies for O. volvulus parasites and found they showed no significant infections and were below the WHO cut-off and recommended to stop the drug distribution in seventeen districts of Ethiopia.

Sept. 30, 2022
Progress in Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Advances in Reaching the Last Endemic Communities of the South Focus in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
Published by World Health Organization Weekly Epidemiological Record.
Human onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus, transmitted by Simulium black flies that breed in fast-flowing rivers and streams. In the human host, adult male and female O. volvulus worms become encapsulated in subcutaneous fibrous “nodules”, and fertilized females produce embryonic microfilariae that migrate to the skin, where the black fly vectors ingest them during a blood meal.

Aug. 8, 2022
UOEEAC Press Statement 2022 (PDF)
Post with permission, published by Uganda Ministry of Health.
The 15th meeting of the Uganda Onchocerciasis Elimination Expert Advisory Committee (UOEEAC) of the Ministry of Health held from 3rd to 5th August 2022 at Sheraton Hotel, Kampala concluded that two more river blindness foci have met the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria for eliminating transmission following three years of active surveillance for any infection after halting ivermectin mass treatment.

Aug 8, 2022
UOEEAC Press Release 2022 (PDF)
Published by the New Vision newspaper.
The Budongo and Bwindi foci in Uganda were declared free of River Blindness, and the Maracha-Terego focus received a provisional declaration of elimination until further investigation is completed, bringing the total number of eliminated foci to 14 out of 17 foci. The last endemic Lhubiriha focus was reclassified as suspected transmission interruption.

May 12, 2022
COVID-19 Nasal Spray Could Transform Medicine Delivery, Treatment (Video)
Published by Voice of America-TV.
A promising antiviral delivery system developed at Northwestern University in Illinois could mean a "game changer" in the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 infections. For several decades, Kelly Callahan has worked for the carter Center's global nonprofit, which provides treatment and medication to people suffering from neglected tropical diseases in some of the most remote and warm places on the planet. It is the need to continue reaching those remote and isolated places, where Callahan works, that has motivated a group of professionals at Northwestern University in Illinois, to embark on a project to develop a vaccine against COVID-19 in nasal spray. The project could usher in a milestone that revolutionizes the prevention and treatment of infections with the virus, its developers told VOA. En Español »

March 2022
Nigeria 13th National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee Communiqué
Posted with permission from Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health.
The 13th meeting of Nigeria’s National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health concludes that Jigawa State, Cross River State, and the Federal Capital Territory have reached “transmission suspected interrupted” status. Organized by the Federal Ministry of Health, this meeting was held virtually, on the 8th and 9th of December, 2021, with support from The Carter Center and the USAID Act to End NTDs | East Program, led by RTI International. Terms of reference can be found here.

Dec. 21, 2021
Ethiopia Interrupted River Blindness (Onchocerciasis) Transmission in Three More Districts in Oromia and 508,000 People No Longer Need Mass Drug Administration with Ivermectin
Press Release posted with permission from the Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health.
Onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, is one of the neglected tropical diseases targeted for elimination by 2030. It is caused by Onchocerca volvulus, a parasitic worm that causes skin disease and vision loss and is transmitted from person to person through the bites of infected blood-sucking black flies, which breed around rapidly flowing rivers.

Nov. 18, 2021
Elimination Milestone reached in River Blindness Hotspot Nigeria
ASTMH Annual Meeting 2021 Blog.
In a new episode of the Global Institute for Disease Elimination’s (GLIDE) podcast Elimination Exchange, Dr. Frank Richards of The Carter Center reflects on his four decades of work in river blindness (onchocerciasis) and shares his thoughts on what it’ll take to eliminate finally this disease across all geographies. River blindness, also known as onchocerciasis, is caused by tiny parasitic worms transmitted by infective bites from blackflies that breed in rapidly flowing rivers.

Nov. 18, 2021
Ivermectin Works! (For River Blindness in Nigeria) 
Published by MedPage Today.
Mass drug administration (MDA) with ivermectin appeared to interrupt transmission of onchocerciasis, or river blindness, in several Nigerian states, and may have eliminated it altogether in other parts of the country, researchers said.

Nov. 18, 2021
Podcast | Elimination Exchange | A Man on a Mission: Dr. Frank Richards’ Journey to Eliminate River Blindness
Published by Global Institute for Disease Elimination.
In this new episode of Elimination Exchange, Dr. Frank Richards of The Carter Center reflects on his four decades of work in river blindness (onchocerciasis) and shares his thoughts on what it’ll take to finally eliminate this disease across all geographies.

Nov. 18, 2021
New Evidence that Mass Treatment with Ivermectin Has Halted Spread of River Blindness in Two Nigerian States; Separate Study Shows Drug’s Potential to Interrupt West Nile Virus Transmission in U.S.
ASTMH Press Release.
New data indicate that mass treatment with ivermectin—a drug that was a workhorse of tropical medicine long before it emerged as a controversial COVID-19 treatment—has eliminated river blindness transmission in two states in Nigeria, the first Nigerian states to achieve this distinction in a country that has the world’s highest burden of the disease.

November 2021
Nigeria 12th National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee Communiqué
Posted with permission from Nigeria Federal Ministry of Health.
The 12th meeting of Nigeria’s National Onchocerciasis Elimination Committee of the Federal Ministry of Health concludes that two Carter Center-assisted states, Plateau and Nasarawa, have met the national criteria for transmission elimination and four Carter Center-assisted states have met the national criteria for transmission interruption and can begin post-treatment surveillance. Organized by Federal Ministry of Health, this meeting was held virtually, on the 18th and 19th of May, 2021, with support from The Carter Center. Terms of reference can be found here.

Aug. 10, 2021
UOEEAC Press Release 2021 (PDF)
Published by The National News.
The Wadelai and Nyamugasani foci in Uganda were declared free of River Blindness, bringing the total number of eliminated foci to 10 out of 17 foci.

Aug. 9, 2021
UOEEAC Press Statement 2021 (PDF)
Published by Uganda Ministry of Health.
The Uganda Ministry of Health declares another two foci as free of River Blindness.

August 2021
Obituary: Nabil Aziz Awad Alla
Published by The Lancet.
Nabil Aziz Awad Alla, a clinical and public health expert renowned for his work in the field of neglected tropical disease (NTD) including guinea worm disease, onchocerciasis, and trachoma, died in the third week of May in Sudan due to reasons not specified in media reports.

April 25, 2021
Ivermectin: From Cattle Treatment to Nobel, the History of the Drug Without Proven Efficacy Against Covid-19
Published by BBC Brazil.
"In our region, the initiative started in 1992 and we have already managed to eliminate onchocerciasis in four countries: Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Guatemala," reports Dr. Mauricio Sauerbrey, director of the disease elimination program in the Americas maintained by The Carter Center, a nonprofit institution created by former American President Jimmy Carter.

March 7, 2021
Abu Dhabi Institute to Help Eradicate River Blindness From the Americas 
Published by National News UAE.
Indigenous people living in remote rainforests will be targeted in a new drive to eliminate river blindness from the Americas. The campaign has been funded thanks to a partnership between The Carter Center and Abu Dhabi’s Global Institute for Disease Elimination (Glide), an initiative organized by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

March 2, 2021
The Fight Against Neglected Tropical Diseases
Published by MSN.
Despite having been eradicated in the West, poorer regions around the world still suffer from neglected tropical diseases. The Carter Center is leading the way as it tries to find a cure to combat the afflictions that keep communities in poverty.

Feb. 25, 2021
Threads of Purple
Published by Williams College alumni website
In 1991 I was 15 years out of Williams. My medical career was established, and I was married with children. One day, out of the blue, I received a package that contained an old, yellowed photograph, a black-and-white portrait of a 6-year-old girl.

Jan. 15, 2021
Summary of the 31st meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication, 20–21 October 2020
Published by WHO’s Weekly Epidemiology Record, 2021, 96, 1-12.
The ITFDE discussed, “the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on eradication/elimination programmes and the way forward.” The COVID-19 pandemic is having a devastating effect on our fragile planet, especially on vulnerable populations. This meeting addressed the pandemic’s impact on 2 global eradication programmes and 5 global elimination efforts.

Dec. 17, 2020
Carter Center Neglected Tropical Disease Programs Adapt and Overcome Amid Pandemic
Published by Georgia Global Health Alliance.
The COVID-19 pandemic has harmed patients, families, and economies, and even societies and political systems. It has pushed health care providers to the breaking point and brought many public health interventions to a heart-rending halt. Nevertheless, The Carter Center has persevered in our primary mission through resilience and adaptation characteristic of our founders, former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn.

Dec. 17, 2020
The Carter Center Addresses Mental Health During COVID-19 Pandemic
Published by Georgia Global Health Alliance.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented levels of stress, anxiety, depression, grief, and substance abuse among populations worldwide. Meanwhile, critical mental health and disability services have been disrupted. Recognizing that the need for mental health and substance use management will grow during and after the pandemic, the Carter Center’s Mental Health Program is pushing for mental health to be part of COVID-19 responses everywhere and is applying a COVID-19 lens across its work to strengthen behavioral health services and integrate mental health and substance use management into key health and development priorities.

Dec. 2, 2020
Poverty Is A Disease | Dr. Frank Richards Jr. | Sweet Auburn Stories
Published By Royce Bee.
Royce chats with the impactful Dr. Frank Richards Jr. from The Carter Center. Dr. Richards has devoted his life to ridding the world of parasitic diseases-- most of which are in developing nations.

Nov. 30, 2020
River Blindness May Have Stopped Spreading in Most of the Americas
Published by Reuters Health Information.
The spread of river blindness, or onchocerciasis, may have been halted in nearly two-thirds of the 34,000 people who remain at risk in the Americas, new evidence suggests. The disease has been chased down to remote areas in the jungles of Venezuela and Brazil, where health workers have likely halted transmission in 61% of at-risk communities and 64% of the population, according to findings presented November 18 at the virtual annual conference of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Oct. 5, 2020
Notice from Uganda Ministry of Health (PDF)
Published by New Vision (Uganda).
Ministry of Health is close to declaring Wadelai (Pakwach District) and West Nile (Koboko and Yumbe) foci as river blindness free.

Oct. 2, 2020
Progress in Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Advances Towards Transmission Suppression in Parts of The Yanomami Focus Area (PDF)
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2020; 95: 484–487.  
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus, which is transmitted by Simulium black flies that breed in fast-flowing rivers and streams. In human hosts, adult male and female O. volvulus worms become encapsulated in subcutaneous fibrous “nodules,” and fertilized females produce embryonic microfilariae that migrate to the skin, where they are ingested by the black fly vectors during a blood-meal.

Aug. 18, 2020
New Award Announcement: Achieve Onchocerciasis Elimination in the Americas (Achieve OEA)
Published by USAID.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) awarded a $11.8 million, five-year, cooperative agreement to The Carter Center to support regional elimination of onchocerciasis, also known as River Blindness, in the Americas.

Feb. 3, 2020
How to Prevent Two of the World's Worst Diseases for Less than the Price of a Can of Cola
Published by National News UAE.
It is less than the price of a can of soda, but a Dh2 donation can fight diseases that cause blindness and misery among some of the world's poorest communities. That is the message of a campaign launched on Monday that calls on everyone to play their part in preventing and eradicating illnesses that afflict around 200 million people.

Jan. 29, 2020
Carter Center Declares Early Win Against River Blindness in Ethiopia
Published by Atlanta Journal Constitution. Subscription required to read the full article.
The Carter Center has won a first battle against river blindness in the border region between Ethiopia and Sudan. Related links: Personal Journeys – Eye on the Cure | Revisiting Journeys Past – Eye on the Cure

Oct. 17, 2019
LCIF and The Carter Center: Partners in Vision
Published on the Lions Club International Foundation website.
The Carter Center partnership is among the most important and long-lasting relationships currently enjoyed by the SightFirst program and Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF). “I’m proud to be a Lion and proud of the Carter Center’s SightFirst partnership with Lions Clubs. I’m grateful for their support in alleviating millions of men, women, and children of preventable blindness. It is one of the strongest partnerships the Center has ever had,” said 39th U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Carter Center founder.

Aug. 15, 2019
Uganda Leads the Fight in Successful Elimination of River Blindness/Onchocerciasis
Published by New Vision (Uganda).
Uganda Ministry of Health declares elimination of river blindness in Obongi focus and interruption of transmission in Nyagak-Bondo focus (Nebbi, Zombo, and Arua districts). This published press statement is part of the Ministry of Health’s annual update on Uganda’s progress to eliminate river blindness.

Aug. 8, 2019
Health Ministry to Carry Out Mass Treatment of River Blindness
Published by New Vision (Uganda).
Aceng said the ministry, working closely with the Office of the Prime Minister and UNHCR, will administer mass treatment to only eligible refugees.

Dec. 17, 2018
From Fascinating to Disturbing - 10 Things You Should Know About Onchocerciasis
Medium, posted with permission.
The elimination of onchocerciasis is now in sight. 2018 has been a year of oncho success stories, with many countries nearing or reaching the point of being able to stop mass treatment, in some cases after more than twenty years. For example, Nigeria and the Carter Center announced in March that Nasarawa and Plateau states will stop distributing medicine for onchocerciasis because transmission has been interrupted. This represents more than 2.6 million people no longer at risk for the disease.

Nov. 19, 2018
The President Receives a Message from Former US President Jimmy Carter
Presidency Information Affairs, posted with permission.
The President of the Republic received a written message from former US President Jimmy Carter on the cooperation of the Carter Center with Sudan in various fields, especially in the fight against deadly diseases in Sudan.

Nov. 19, 2018
Carter Center: What Sudan Has Achieved in Stopping the Spread of River Blindness is an Unprecedented Achievement (Text in Arabic only)
Khartoum Center, posted with permission. 
The Carter Center described what Sudan has achieved in stopping the spread of river blindness in the border area of Qulabat with Ethiopia with unprecedented achievement.

Nov. 18, 2018
Declaring the Spread of "River Blindness" in Border Areas Between Sudan and Ethiopia (Text in Arabic only)
Sudan Press, posted with permission.
Sudan, represented by the Federal Ministry of Health, announced the cessation of the spread and spread of river sickness in the border region of Qulabat with Ethiopia, while the Carter Center described Sudan's achievement as unprecedented.

Nov. 18, 2018
Sudan Announces the Cessation of the Spread of River Blindness (Text in Arabic only)
Kush News, posted with permission.
The Federal Ministry of Health announced the cessation of the spread of river blindness in the focus of the jumps in the state of Gedaref.

Nov. 18, 2018
Sudan Declares Interruption of Transmission of Onchocerciasis in Galabat Focus (PDF)
(بالعربية)
Sudan Federal Ministry of Health, posted with permission.
Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Health announces the interruption of transmission of river blindness in Al-Galabat focus in Gedaref State. It is the first globally successful interruption of onchocerciasis (river blindness) in a cross-border focus area.

Nov. 18, 2018
Transmission of River Blindness Interrupted in Al-Galabat Focus in Gedaref State (Arabic)
Published by Elmghar.
Sudan’s Federal Ministry of Health reports transmission of onchocerciasis (river blindness) has been interrupted for the first time in a cross-border focus area.

Oct. 12, 2018
Progress Towards Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of The Americas: Advances in Mapping the Yanomami Focus Area (PDF)
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2018; 93: 541–552.  
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus, which is transmitted by Simulium species black flies that breed in fast-flowing rivers and streams. In the human host, adult male and female O.

Sept. 17, 2018
USF Plays Pivotal Role in Eradication of River Blindness
Published by 83 Degrees Media (Tampa Bay).
Thomas Unnasch embraced that opportunity for positive change 26 years ago. While on a trip to Africa, he witnessed blind adults with walking sticks being led around by little children. The adults were victims of river blindness, a tropical disease.“ That trip literally changed my life,” he recalls. “I stepped into a niche a lot of other people didn’t want.” Today Unnasch, who chairs the University of South Florida’s Department of Global Health at the College of Public Health, plays a vital role in the battle against river blindness.

Aug. 10, 2018
Uganda Leads in Making Progress Towards Elimination of River Blindness/Onchocerciasis in Africa (PDF)
Published by New Vision.
Uganda has successfully freed 1,469,147 people from river blindness (onchocerciasis), based on the current World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, bringing the country closer to achieving its goal of eliminating river blindness nationwide by the year 2020. Download press release only (PDF)

May 9, 2018
New Initiative Will Drive Atlanta’s Reputation as the Center for Global Health
Published by Global Health ATL.
The Metro Atlanta Chamber, Georgia Global Health Alliance and Deloitte announced the launch of Global Health ATL. The initiative’s priorities are to create a health innovation hub in the heart of metro Atlanta and drive impact in areas such as disease eradication, economic development and disaster response.

April 11, 2018
Nasarawa State Free from Lymphatic Filariasis
Published by PM News (Nigeria).
The Nasarawa State Government and Carter Center, an NGO, have confirmed that lymphatic filariasis and trachoma, both of which are Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), have been eliminated from the state.

March 20, 2018
Two States in Nigeria Interrupt Transmission of River Blindness
Published by The Nigerian Voice.
Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Health has interrupted transmission of river blindness in two large states and as a result will stop mass drug administration (MDA) of ivermectin (Mectizan®) in 2018.

March 3, 2018
Oncocercosis sigue amenazando a pueblo yanomami
Published by SciDev.net.
Si bien cuatro países latinoamericanos han sido los primeros en el mundo en haber eliminado la oncocercosis de sus territorios, la enfermedad aún tiene un foco importante: las áreas ocupadas por el pueblo yanomami, en la frontera entre Brasil y Venezuela.

Feb. 12, 2018
The Shadow Crusade to End Measles
Published by Wired.com.
A crusade to eradicate measles would save 22 million lives by 2030. But to succeed, we might need to learn how to eradicate other diseases – such as polio, river blindness, and Guinea worm – first.

Jan. 29, 2018
Single-dose Moxidectin Promising in River Blindness Elimination Program
Published by Reuters Health. Login is required to access full text.
Single-dose moxidectin might be more effective than ivermectin in programs to eliminate Onchocerca volvulus, the parasite responsible for river blindness, according to results from a phase 3 trial.

Dec. 21, 2017
River Blindness Transmission Interrupted in cross-border Metema Focus, Amhara Regional State, Ethiopia (PDF)
Published by Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health.
Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Health announces the interruption of transmission of river blindness in the Metema focus in Amhara Regional State, which borders Sudan. The Metema focus includes Alefa, Quarra, Chilga, Takusa, Tach Armachiho, and West Armachiho districts.

Nov. 27, 2017
The Deep-Pocketed Donors Behind the Latest Push Against Neglected Tropical Diseases
Published by Inside Philanthropy.
Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) have been getting increased attention from philanthropy in recent years—including a new $100 million fund that was just announced—and that's a good thing.

Oct. 30, 2017
WATCH: What Life Is Like When A Parasite Destroys Your Sight
Published by Huffington Post.
“Out of Sight” is a series of 360-degree films telling the stories of the victims and the health workers battling neglected tropical diseases in some of the most remote and underdeveloped regions of Nigeria and Congo. The series explores efforts to eliminate three of those diseases, the challenges and the progress.

Oct. 27, 2017
The Galien Foundation Honors Excellence in Scientific Innovation and Humanitarian Efforts at 2017 Prix Galien Awards Gala
Published by Business Insider.
The Prix Galien USA Committee last night honored excellence in the biopharmaceutical and medical industry for research, development and innovation at its 11th annual Prix Galien Awards Gala, held at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

Oct. 13, 2017
Progress Towards Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Elimination of Transmission in the North-east Focus of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (PDF)
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2017, 92, 609–624.  
The elimination of onchocerciasis in the northeast focus in Venezuela represents an important advance toward the regional goal of eliminating transmission. (Page 617)

Oct. 1, 2017
Former President Jimmy Carter Chosen as 2017 Prix Galien Pro Bono Humanum Honoree
Published by PR Newswire.
The Galien Awards Committee announced today that former U.S. President Jimmy Carter will receive the 2017 Pro Bono Humanum Award at the 11th annual Prix Galien USA Awards Ceremony, to be held on Thursday, October 26, at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.

August 2017
Uganda on the Road to Elimination of River Blindness/Onchocerciasis
Published with permission from Uganda Ministry of Health
The Tenth Uganda Onchocerciasis Elimination Expert Advisory Committee to the Ministry of Health concludes that two more river blindness transmission zones — Kashoya-Kitomi (Ibanda, Kamwengye, Rubirizi and Buhweju districts) and Wambabya-Rwamarongo (Hoima district) — have met the WHO criteria for elimination.

Aug. 30, 2017
100 Million Dollar Question
Published by BBC World Service: Radio.
What is the best way to spend $100 million to fix one huge problem in the world today? That is the challenge laid down by the MacArthur Foundation in Chicago, distributors of the “genius grant.” They created the 100&Change competition to inspire solutions for some of the looming disasters facing people, places or the planet.

Aug. 14, 2017
Podcast: Making a $100 Million Plan to Eradicate River Blindness
Published by The Chronicle of Philanthropy.
River Blindness Elimination Program Director Dr. Frank Richards explains the Carter Center’s plan for tackling the disease in Nigeria.

July 6, 2017
Fighting a Flesh-Eating Bacteria
Published by The New York Times.
Aneri Pattani, a freshly minted graduate of Northeastern University, is the winner of Nicholas Kristof’s annual win-a-trip contest. In this article, she details the presence of Buruli ulcer in Liberia through interviews with Buruli patients and clincians, like The Carter Center’s Dr. Stephen Blount.

May 31, 2017
For the 10^th Consecutive Year, the Carlos Slim Health Award Were Delivered
Published by Fundación Carlos Slim.
For the 10th consecutive year, the delivery ceremony of the Carlos Slim Health Awards was health at the Soumaya Museum. The awards were delivered from the hands of the Minister of Health, Dr. Jose Narro Robles; the General Director of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), Mikel Arriola; Rector of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), Dr. Enrique Graue Wiechers, and Carlos Slim Helu.

April 19, 2017
Tanzania: Fighting Neglected Diseases 'Means Uplifting Livelihoods'
Published by AllAfrica.
Here in Geneva, a child is depicted in a statue leading a blind man, who is affected by river blindness – one of Tanzania's five most common neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). Other NTDs being trachoma, lymphatic filariasis, sleeping sickness, soil-transmitted worms and leprosy.

Feb. 15, 2017
Semi-Finalists Named in MacArthur Competition for $100 Million Grant
Published by MacArthur Foundation.
Eight bold solutions to critical social problems were named semi-finalists today in 100&Change, a global competition for a single $100 million grant from MacArthur. The proposals address challenges ranging from eliminating needless blindness to educating children displaced by conflict, in places from Nigeria to Nepal to the United States.

Feb. 8, 2017
Why 1 Billion People In Poor Countries Are Sick With ‘Horror Movie Diseases’
Published by The Huffington Post.
This article is part of HuffPost’s Project Zero campaign, a yearlong series on neglected tropical diseases and efforts to fight them. Over one billion people around the world suffer from neglected tropical diseases, a group of illnesses that tend to strike marginalized communities in the developing world.

Nov. 15, 2016
Community Hosts Outreach Milestone Celebration
Published by The Nation: Nigeria.
A rustic community in the Federal Capital Territory (FTC) was chosen to host the Carter Centre’s milestone of administering 500 million doses of medication to fight Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) in 14 countries, including Nigeria, reports Vincent Ikuomola.

Oct. 28, 2016
Weekly Epidemiological Record
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2016; 91:501-5; No. 43, 2016, 91, 501-516.
Progress towards eliminating onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: verification of elimination of transmission in Guatemala.

Oct. 12, 2016
Africa Eye War Waged on River Blindness
Published by Financial Times.
Roy Vagelos remembers the thrill in the 1980s when he saw test results of his company’s prototype drug against river blindness and the parasitic worm, Onchocerca volvulus, that causes pain, scarring and blindness in hundreds of thousands of people across Africa and Central and South America.

Oct. 6, 2016
Eradicating River Blindness in Guatemala Scratches the Surface of a Global Problem 
Published by Humanosphere.org
The eradication of onchocerciasis – otherwise known as river blindness – in Guatemala is a tremendous achievement, but only scratches the surface of the effort to eradicate the neglected tropical disease worldwide.

Sept. 2, 2016
Uganda Scores Major Victory Against River Blindness, Nears Eradication 
Published by Humanosphere.org
Uganda is edging closer to eliminating river blindness from the country. The government announced this week that it eliminated the disease in four areas of focus in the country, leaving only two more areas with active transmission of the parasite.

Aug. 11, 2016
How Worm Warriors Are Beating An Unbeatable Worm
Published by NPR's Goats and Soda.
How do you get rid of river blindness? It's all about the worm. Specifically, about "breaking the life cycle" of onchocerca volvulu, the parasitic worm that causes the disease, says Dr. Frank O. Richards Jr., who directs the Carter Center's river blindness elimination and other tropical disease programs.

Jan. 14, 2016
What a Difference a Drug Makes in the Fight Against River Blindness 
Published by NPR Goats and Soda
Over the past three decades, much of the world has made steady progress against river blindness, a debilitating disease that can cause agonizing itching, disfigured skin, and even blindness. And much of the credit for that progress is linked to ministries of health introducing the drug ivermectin.

Nov. 5, 2015
Enfermedad parasitaria se declarará eliminada
Published by Prensa Libre (Guatemala).
Conocida también en Latinoamérica como la "enfermedad de Robles", y en África, "ceguera de los ríos", es la segunda causa de pérdida de la vista en el mundo provocada por una infección. La oncocercosis es una afección endémica en seis países latinoamericanos, incluyendo Guatemala, y en África, desencadenada por la filaria oncocherca volvulus, que se transmite por la picadura de la mosca negra.

Oct. 23, 2015
Weekly Epidemiological Record
Published by The WHO. 2015; 90(43): 577-588.
Progress towards eliminating onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: verification of elimination of transmission in Mexico.

Oct. 19, 2015
River Blindness Featured on "Just A Minute"
Published by CBS46 (Atlanta).
What do the Carter Center and a huge pharmaceutical company have in common? Give her #JustAMinute and Sally Sears will open your eyes.

Oct. 15, 2015
Press Release: Federal State Minister of Health Declares Elimination of Transmission of River Blindness in Abu Hamad Focus, River Nile State, Sudan (PDF)
Published by the Sudan Federal Ministry of Health.
Sudan's Federal Ministry of Health declares the elimination of transmission of onchocerciasis in the Abu Hamad focus area.

Oct. 15, 2015
Sudanese Region Declared Free of River Blindness
Published by SudaNow.
The Federal Ministry for Health celebrated Thursday the declaration of Abu Hamad region, Northern State, free of river blindness. The celebration was attended by the Federal Minister of Health, Carter Center, the World Health Organization, and other national partners.

Oct. 14, 2015
WHO Verifies Mexico Free of Onchocerciasis
Published by the World Health Organization.
Mexico has become the third country in the world to be declared free of onchocerciasis, a parasitic disease that mainly affects poor people in rural areas. Since 1993, The Carter Center's Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas, the Pan American Health Organization and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have provided technical assistance and led the campaign against onchocerciasis in the Region of the Americas.

Oct. 13, 2015
A Noble and Laudable Nobel Laureate: William C. Campbell
Published by the Huffington Post.
Human parasites are on the run. Just last week, Mexico was certified as finally free of the ravages of river-blindness -- a result of decades of international cooperation to deliver Bill Campbell's discovery to millions.

Oct. 5, 2015
3 Scientists awarded Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Published by NPR.
The Carter Center's Craig Withers provides insight into the importance of Nobel Prize Winners' William C. Campbell and Satoshi Omura discovery of ivermectin, the drug used to fight river blindness.

Oct. 5, 2015
Stunned Nobel Winner: 'Is There Some Way I Can Verify This?'
Published in the Boston Globe.
When Nobel Prize winner William Campbell realized his team at Merck & Co. Inc. - his longtime employer - had a drug that could treat debilitating parasitic diseases, Merck made the bold decision to donate the drug - as much as was needed for as long as was needed - to groups working to control river blindness.

Oct. 2, 2015
Mexico Is The Third Country to Officially Eliminate River Blindness, Jimmy Carter Offers Congratulations
Published in Outbreak News Today.
In eliminating river blindness, Mexico becomes the third country in the world (that had the disease) to have officially eliminated it. Mexico's Secretary of Health, Dr. Mercedes Juan Lopez, made the official announcement on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2015, during a press conference held in Washington, D.C.

Aug. 13, 2015
Press Statement: Uganda on the Road to Elimination of River Blindness/Onchocerciasis (PDF)
Published in New Vision.
The 8th Uganda Onchocerciasis Elimination Expert Advisory Committee (UOEEAC) has recommended that the Nyamugasani in Kasese District be declared as transmission interrupted, and that intervention in that focus (including mass drug administration with ivermectin) be halted.

June 16, 2015
Nigerian Businessman Emeka Offor Donates $10 Million to Fight River Blindness
Published by Forbes.com.
Sir Emeka Offor, a wealthy Nigerian businessman, has reportedly donated $10 million to the Carter Center to support the fight against river blindness in Nigeria. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, Offor, 56, made the announcement of the donation at a ceremony in Atlanta on Friday. The gift is the largest the Carter Center has ever received from an African donor.

June 14, 2015
Carter Center Gets $10 Million Gift to Fight River Blindness
Published in The Wall Street Journal.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter has a new ally in his long-standing fight against river blindness, one of the multiple debilitating tropical diseases he has spent decades trying to tame or wipe off the planet. Sir Emeka Offor, a Nigerian businessman and philanthropist, donated $10 million to the Carter Center to help end river blindness in his country by 2020. Nigeria is the country worst affected by river blindness, with about 40% of the world's cases.

June 12, 2015
Carter Center Receives $10 Million to Fight River Blindness
Published in the Associated Press.
Former President Jimmy Carter hopes a $10 million donation to end river blindness in Nigeria where it is most prevalent will help spark a global effort to eliminate the disease. Billionaire philanthropist Emeka Offor of Nigeria announced the donation to the Carter Center during an event there on Friday. Center officials said the donation is the largest from an individual African donor in its history.

June 12, 2015
Emeka Offor Donates $10M to Carter Centre to Fight River Blindness
Published in News Agency of Nigeria.
Nigerian Philanthropist, Chief Emeka Offor, on Friday donated 10 million dollars to accelerate the Carter Centre's efforts to eliminate River Blindness in Nigeria. To this effect, the former U.S. President, Mr Jimmy Carter, and Offor signed an agreement between the Carter Centre and Sir Emeka Offor Foundation (SEOF) for a partnership to eliminate the disease from seven states in Nigeria. Carter said the money from SEOF would extend the reach of the Centre's work in the Southeast and South South of Nigeria and help reach the goal of eliminating river blindness from the world's most endemic country, Nigeria, by 2020.

May 14, 2015
8 Horrific Diseases We're Close to Wiping Off the Planet for the First Time in History
Published in Business Insider.
Not too long ago, it was commonplace for people across the globe to die horrific, painful, disfiguring deaths from illnesses they couldn't control. Today, many of those diseases have begun to disappear. In many parts of the developed world, some of the worst of these diseases are gone completely. Their disappearance is a testament to the power of vaccines.

April 26, 2015
Noor Dubai Team Visits with Carter Centre
Published in Gulf News.
The Carter Centre and Noor Dubai Foundation continue to collaborate in trachoma elimination programme. A delegation from Noor Dubai Foundation was received by a senior member from the Carter Centre in Atlanta, Georgia in the United States.

Spring 2015
Adiós, River Blindness
Published in Seattle Pacific University’s Response magazine.
Over nearly four decades, alumnus Ron Guderian ’67 has witnessed communities in Ecuador become empowered to wipe out a devastating disease, river blindness. From discovery to elimination, missionary Dr. Guderian has helped empower communities to rid themselves of the parasitic disease.

Jan. 7, 2015
Revisiting Journeys Past – Eye on the Cure
Published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Dr. Frank Richards enjoyed 12 months of incremental victories and one personal setback since The Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote in January 2014 about his war on a devastating health threat. Related links: Personal Journeys – Eye on the Cure | Carter Center Declares Early Win Against River Blindness In Ethiopia

Nov. 14, 2014
Fundación Carlos Slim Anuncia Alianza Para Combatir La Oncocercosis
Published by EFE.
El expresidente estadounidense James (Jimmy) Carter y el empresario mexicano Carlos Slim Helú anunciaron una alianza para colaborar con la iniciativa que busca eliminar la oncocercosis, o ceguera de los ríos, en el continente americano.

Nov. 14, 2014
Jimmy Carter, Carlos Slim Join Forces Against River Blindness (link no longer available)
Published by EFE.
U.S. former President Jimmy Carter and Mexican multi-billionaire Carlos Slim announced here an alliance aimed at ridding the Americas of onchocerciasis, commonly known as river blindness.

Sept. 14, 2014
In the Quest to Make a Difference, "A Path Appears"
Published in NPR's Goats and Soda blog.
While promoting their new book, "A Path Appears," journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn are highlighting the Center's river blindness and trachoma work as a reason to remain optimistic in the face of daunting global problems.

Sept. 12, 2014
Elimination of onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Ecuador’s progress towards verification of elimination
Published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record, No.37, 2014, 89, 401-408.
Elimination of onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Ecuador’s progress towards verification of elimination.

Aug. 27, 2014
River Blindness Treatment Progress
Published in NTV (Uganda).
Uganda's Onchocerciasis Elimination Program is making dramatic strides in Lamwo district in the country's Northern region. Treatment coverage with the anti-parasitic drug Mectizan^®, donated by Merck, increased from 36 percent in 2012 to 90 percent in 2014. The drug treatments are distributed, with the support of The Carter Center, as part of Uganda's nationwide phased onchocerciasis elimination plan that was launched in 2007. In August 2014, a national expert advisory committee in Uganda announced that transmission of river blindness had been eliminated, interrupted, or suppressed in 15 of 17 originally endemic foci.

Aug. 17, 2014
River Blindness: 200 millionth patient treated in Uganda
Published in New Vision (Uganda).
At least 200 million people have been treated for river blindness in endemic countries in Africa and Latin America, under a campaign to eliminate the debilitating disease. The 200 millionth patient was treated in Uganda in Lamwo district on Wednesday. Sixty-year-old Christopher Olanya took four oral Ivermectin pills, amidst the chanting of spectators from across the globe that thronged the district.

Aug. 7, 2014
2.7 Million Ugandans Safe From River Blindness
Published in New Vision (Uganda).
At least 2.7 million Ugandans are no longer at risk of contracting river blindness in infection in Uganda, the state minister for health (primary healthcare), Dr Sarah Opendi has said. River blindness, known scientifically as onchocerciasis, is a parasitic infection that can cause intense itching, skin discoloration, rashes, and eye disease that can lead to permanent blindness. At its peak, river blindness was endemic in 35 districts, with an estimated 4.2 million people at risk of infection. A report by the Uganda onchocerciasis elimination expert advisory committee on Thursday shows that transmission the disease has been transmitted in 14 focal sites out of 17.

May 16, 2014
Lions Club Gives Millions to Carter Centerto Fight Blinding Disease
Published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Lions Clubs International Foundation Chairperson Wayne Madden announced May 15 an $8.8 million gift for its joint effort with Atlanta's Carter Center for their joint SightFirst Initiative to battle major causes of preventable blindness in Africa.

May 16, 2014
A Story From One of My Heroes
Published in Bill Gates' personal blog Gates Notes.
Bill Gates relays the story, told by Carter Center Senior Fellow Dr. William Foege, about how the "miraculous" program to distribute free river blindness treatments of the drug Mectizan®, donated by Merck, everywhere it is needed, for as long as necessary, came to be. According to Gates, Dr. Foege's story "captures the power of partnerships to improve health for the poorest people in the world."

April 20, 2014
The End is in Sight
Published in Al Jazeera English.
In Uganda, river blindness is a fly-borne parasitic infection that affects the poorest communities who live "where the road ends". It causes terrible itching, skin changes, and blindness that can devastate communities. Uganda's pioneering efforts to eliminate the debilitating disease, in partnership with The Carter Center, are featured in an eight-part documentary series, "Lifelines: The Quest for Global Health."

April 11, 2014
Meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication
Published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2014, 89, 153-160.
The 22nd meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication (ITFDE) was convened at The Carter Center on Jan. 14, 2014, to discuss the elimination of onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis (LF) in Africa.

April 4, 2014
Carter Center Marks Progress in Fight Against Guinea Worm, River Blindness
Published in Voice of America.
Guinea worm disease and river blindness are among 17 tropical diseases the World Health Organization considers neglected. Thanks to the efforts of the Atlanta-based Carter Center -- founded by former president Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn -- focused treatment and prevention are leading to the elimination of one, and the extinction of another.

April 1, 2014
Insecticides Vital in River Blindness Fight (PDF)
Published in Crop Life International.
River blindness, also known as onchocerciasis, is a parasitic infection spread by the bites of small black flies that breed in rapidly flowing rivers. It is one of the leading causes of preventable blindness in the world and is endemic to 37 countries in Africa and Latin America. BASF is collaborating with The Carter Center to support the Ugandan Ministry of Health in its program to eliminate river blindness nationwide.

March 31, 2014
Moses Katabarwa: The Roles of Technology and Innovation in Ending River Blindness Disease
Published in the "Talks at Google" YouTube channel.
Carter Center health expert Dr. Moses Katabarwa gave a presentation about the Center's River Blindness Elimination Program and the role technology can play in combating the debilitating parasitic disease at Google's global headquarters in Mountain View, California.

March 20, 2014
NGDOs in Ouagadougou Reaffirm their Commitment for Elimination of River Blindness and Lymphatic Filariasis as an Objective (PDF)
Published in the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control Newsletter.
The commitment of NGDOs to the acceleration of onchocerciasis and LF elimination is at once both firm in intent but flexible in approach. The onchocerciasis NGDO group changed its name last year from the NGDO Coordination Group for Onchocerciasis Control to the NGDO Coordination Group for Onchocerciasis Elimination to demonstrate our combined commitment by our 13 members to the interruption of river blindness transmission once and for all, globally.

March 17, 2014
President Carter Makes an Impact
Published in CNN – Impact Your World.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter discuses the Center's River Blindness Elimination Program and the impact it has made in Latin America and Africa with CNN. The Carter Center currently assists ministries of health in 10 nations in Africa and Latin America to eliminate river blindness through health education and twice-annual distribution of the medicine Mectizan^®, donated by Merck. The program mobilizes communities to distribute Mectizan and provide health education. In 2013, Colombia was verified as the first country in the world to have eliminated river blindness using these methods.
Related: With River Blindness, "You Never Sleep"

March 12, 2014
The Carter Center Partners with SEOF to Combat River Blindness in Nigeria
Published by the Sir Emeka Offor Foundation.
On March 3, 2014, The Carter Center in Atlanta, Ga., was noticeably alive as the 18th River Blindness Elimination Program Review kicked off in full swing.

March 3, 2014
Al Jazeera Profiles Uganda River Blindness 'Health Heroes'
Uganda's pioneering efforts to eliminate river blindness, in partnership with The Carter Center, is featured in an eight-part documentary series, "Lifelines: The Quest for Global Health," slated to air outside the United States on Al Jazeera English starting in April 2014.

Jan. 18, 2014
Personal Journeys – Eye on the Cure
Published in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 
Dr. Frank Richards, a veteran of battling diseases overseas, is leading the Carter Center's fight to eliminate river blindness in Africa. He successfully coordinated the program in Central and South America, which is close to success. He envisions a world without river blindness. And he might just have the tenacity to do it. Related links: Revisiting Journeys Past – Eye on the Cure | Carter Center Declares Early Win Against River Blindness In Ethiopia

January 1, 2014
We Did It! Lions and Lion Jimmy Carter Triumph Over Blindness
Published in LION Magazine, Lions Clubs International Foundation.
LION Magazine talked with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on our progress against blindness, his decades-long Lions membership, and on staying active as you age.

Nov. 6, 2013
Treating the Village to Cure the Disease
Published in The New York Times Fixes blog.
In communities across Africa, health workers are going house to house with medicine to combat lymphatic filariasis, or L.F., which is the world's second-largest cause of chronic disability. What makes this remarkable is that most of the people being treated aren't sick. They are participating in a strategy called mass drug administration, which treats everyone in an area where a disease is found – even if they aren't sick or infected. Normally, it would be malpractice to treat people for a disease they don't have. But some neglected tropical diseases will go on slowly killing and disabling people as long as some in the population are infected. Mass treatment is the way to break the cycle of transmission.

Oct. 18, 2013
Eliminating River Blindness in Uganda
Published in Al Jazeera English.
River blindness, or onchocerciasis, is a parasitic disease transmitted by the bites of black flies. It can cause terrible itching, skin discoloration and eventually permanent blindness. At its peak 3.5 million people in Uganda were at risk of contracting the disease. However there is good news. Since the president of Uganda announced a nationwide river blindness elimination strategy and partnered with The Carter Center, interruption of transmission has been seen in eight of 18 originally endemic areas in Uganda.

Oct. 14, 2013
Dr. Moses Katabarwa: 'A Cause to Fight For'
Published in Al Jazeera English.
Dr. Moses Katabarwa, a senior epidemiologist at The Carter Center, has dedicated himself to eradicating river blindness, playing a key role in community-based initiatives in Uganda. Katabarwa is one of the health heroes featured on "Lifelines: The Quest For Global Health," Al Jazeera's new cross-platform project profiling the extraordinary work of global health workers as they tackle deadly diseases.

Oct. 9, 2013
Breaking the Cycle of River Blindness
Published in Al Jazeera English.
The Uganda Ministry of Health is working with The Carter Center to eliminate river blindness nationwide. As part of this effort, the national river blindness program is treating rivers to stop the infection from spreading. See how this simple and safe process is making a difference in this video from Al Jazeera's series "Lifelines: The Quest For Global Health"

Oct. 1, 2013
How to Eliminate River Blindness: Lessons from Colombia
Published in The Guardian (UK).
Colombia recently eliminated river blindness through health education and drugs. Sound easy? Here's how other countries can follow suit. Eliminating a disease from a nation is complex. It requires community-based health education and sustained, heightened interventions including, increased drug treatments and enhanced monitoring and surveillance. Elimination means that the disease's transmission has been interrupted permanently and health resources can be used for other issues.

Oct. 1, 2013
Turning the Tide on River Blindness
Published in Al Jazeera English.
River blindness, or onchocerciasis, is a parasitic illness that causes itching, eye disease and can lead to permanent blindness. It is transferred to humans by a small black flies that breed in fast flowing rivers that are well oxygenated. After biting a person who has the disease, it can then transmit the infection by biting another person who may not have the disease. Dr Moses Katabarwa, a senior epidemiologist at the Carter Center, says that the real challenge was getting the breakthrough drug Mectizan to remote endemic communities. Learn the innovative techniques used to reach people "beyond the end of the road" in this video from Al Jazeera's series "Lifelines: The Quest For Global Health"

Sept. 18, 2013
Shining a Light on Hidden Diseases (PDF)
Published in Creating Chemistry.
There is a group of diseases that have plagued humanity for centuries and which today blight the lives of a billion people in 149 countries worldwide. The impact on individuals and communities is immense and yet, until recently, they attracted little attention – and little was done to combat them. That has changed over the past few decades. Efforts are now beginning to show results. But the battle is not yet won.

Sept. 18, 2013
Ephraim Tukesiga: "Sleepless Nights"
Published in Al Jazeera English.
Ephraim Tukesiga forces himself to get bitten by flies that cause river blindness - all in the name of science. The Ugandan vector control officer traps flies by exposing his legs to their painful bite. See how Epraim's work is helping to get rid of the debilitating disease and why it led to him being named one of Al Jazeera's Health Heroes.

Sept. 6, 2013
Progress Towards Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas: Verification by WHO of Elimination of Transmission in Colombia (PDF)
Published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record.
On 27 October 2011, Colombia filed a formal application to WHO for independent verification … that onchocerciasis had been eliminated. On 5 April 2013 … the Director-General issued an official letter confirming that Colombia has achieved elimination of onchocerciasis. The President of Colombia publicly announced this WHO verification in a ceremony held in Bogota on 29 July 2013. Present at the ceremony were representatives of the Ministry of Health and its National Institute of Health, PAHO, OEPA, the Carter Center and the various partners in the effort. Colombia is the first country in the world to be verified free of onchocerciasis by WHO.

Sept. 1, 2013
A Farewell to Parasites
Published in The Scientist.
In 2002, they said it was impossible. At an international conference held in Atlanta, 64 experts on public health, human rights, and finance concluded that ridding Africa of river blindness - a parasitic disease more formally known as onchocerciasis - was unachievable. Several attendees at the 2002 summit, which included reps from the World Health Organization (WHO), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), and the World Bank, argued that future efforts in Africa should focus on limiting the spread of onchocerciasis, rather than complete eradication. But a group of scientists at The Carter Center already had different plans in mind for Sudan. Related: Slideshow > | Video >

Aug. 29, 2013
River Blindness, Guinea Worm Disease and More: The Work and Accomplishments of The Carter Center
Published in The Global Dispatch.
The Carter Center in Atlanta, Georgia, founded by former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, is guided by a fundamental commitment to human rights and the alleviation of human suffering; it seeks to prevent and resolve conflicts, enhance freedom and democracy, and improve health, according to their website. In the area of health programs, the Center fights six preventable diseases - Guinea worm, river blindness, trachoma, schistosomiasis, lymphatic filariasis, and malaria - by using health education and simple, low-cost methods. Earlier this week I had the opportunity to speak to the expert that directs all of the health programs of The Carter Center, Vice-President of Health Programs, Donald R. Hopkins, M.D., M.P.H.

Aug. 23, 2013
Declaran Erradicada la Oncocercosis (link no longer available) 
Published by El Orbe.
Las acciones preventivas y de combate han permitido que la oncocercosis esté prácticamente erradicada, afirmó el director adjunto del Centro Nacional de Programas Preventivos y Control de Enfermedades (CENAPRECE), Cuauhtémoc Mancha Moctezuma. El funcionario de la Secretaría de Salud explicó que pese a la existencia de 597 localidades que tienen focos activos en la entidad, ya no hay más pacientes con nódulos, pica la mosca, pero lo único que puede es generar una roncha, no más.

Aug. 23, 2013
La Oncocercosis Esta Controlada en Chiapas Vamos por la Erradicacion: CENAPRECE
Published by Noticias de Chiapas.
Director General del Centro Nacional de Programas Preventivos y Control de Enfremedades (CENCAPRECE) Cuauhtemoc Mancha Moctezuma, inform que en Chiapas no hay casos registrados de oncocercosis en los ultimos meses, sin embargo aun se tiene que trabajar en algunos parametros para lograr su erradicacion total y asi en el 2014 poder certificar al Estado libre de oncocercosis por el Programa de Eliminacion de la Oncocercosis en las Americas.

Aug. 23, 2013
Chiapas libre de la Oncocercosis: Mancha Moctezuma
Published by Quadratin Chiapas TV.
Chiapas se encuentra libre de la enfermedad de la onconcercosis, ya que lleva más de tres años que se mantiene un control y sin reporte de casos nuevos esto como resultado de las acciones de promoción de la salud en los lugares más arraigados de las zona urbanas donde esta enfermedad tenia presencia.

Aug. 23, 2013
Declaran Erradicada la Oncocercosis (link no longer available) 
Published by El Orbe.
Las acciones preventivas y de combate han permitido que la oncocercosis esté prácticamente erradicada, afirmó el director adjunto del Centro Nacional de Programas Preventivos y Control de Enfermedades (CENAPRECE), Cuauhtémoc Mancha Moctezuma. El funcionario de la Secretaría de Salud explicó que pese a la existencia de 597 localidades que tienen focos activos en la entidad, ya no hay más pacientes con nódulos, pica la mosca, pero lo único que puede es generar una roncha, no más.

Aug. 23, 2013
La Oncocercosis Esta Controlada en Chiapas Vamos por la Erradicacion: CENAPRECE
Published by Noticias de Chiapas.
Director General del Centro Nacional de Programas Preventivos y Control de Enfremedades (CENCAPRECE) Cuauhtemoc Mancha Moctezuma, inform que en Chiapas no hay casos registrados de oncocercosis en los ultimos meses, sin embargo aun se tiene que trabajar en algunos parametros para lograr su erradicacion total y asi en el 2014 poder certificar al Estado libre de oncocercosis por el Programa de Eliminacion de la Oncocercosis en las Americas.

Aug. 23, 2013
Chiapas libre de la Oncocercosis: Mancha Moctezuma
Published by Quadratin Chiapas TV.
Chiapas se encuentra libre de la enfermedad de la onconcercosis, ya que lleva más de tres años que se mantiene un control y sin reporte de casos nuevos esto como resultado de las acciones de promoción de la salud en los lugares más arraigados de las zona urbanas donde esta enfermedad tenia presencia.

Aug. 15, 2013
Uganda Interrupts Transmission of River Blindness in Almost Half of the Endemic Areas (PDF)
Published by the World Health Organization's WHO Uganda News Bulletin, Vol. 1, Issue 15.
Uganda has successfully interrupted transmission of onchocerciasis (River Blindness) in 8 out of 18 localized areas (foci) endemic for the disease and is likely to eliminate it by 2020. According to the Sixth Uganda Onchocerciasis Expert Advisory Committee composed of national and international experts that met in Uganda from 6th – 8th August, presently, over 1.5 million Ugandans in 6 foci are no-longer at risk of getting this debilitating disease that causes severe itching, skin lesions, eyesight impairment or even blindness if not treated early.

Aug. 8, 2013
Uganda Interrupts the Transmission of River blindness (Onchocerciasis) in the Wambabya-Rwamarongo and Kashoya-Kitomi Foci; Targets Nationwide Elimination (PDF)
Published by Uganda Ministry of Health.
Uganda has moved closer to its goal of eliminating onchocerciasis (river blindness) nationwide by 2020. The sixth Uganda Onchocerciasis Elimination Expert Advisory Committee (UOEEAC), a team composed of national and international experts has today (8th August 2013) recommended stopping ivermectin treatment for river blindness (onchocerciasis) in 2 more foci namely: Wambabya-Rwamarongo (Hoima District) and Kashoya–Kitomi (Buhweju, Kamwenge, Ibanda and Rubirizi districts). However, the latter pends satisfactory completion of confirmatory laboratory tests currently underway.

8 de agosto de 2013
El último foco de la ceguera de los ríos en América
Published in BBC Mundo, Caracas.
Los indígenas yanomami viven como desde hace siglos, casi desnudos e indiferentes a que por su territorio -un remoto rincón de la selva amazónica- pasa la frontera entre Brasil y Venezuela.

Aug. 7, 2013
Uganda Worried About Cross-Border Infections
Published in New Vision (Uganda).
Dr. Edrinah Tukahebwa, the assistant commissioner for health services in charge of vector control said Uganda is on course to achieve its plan of eliminating some NTDs like river blindness by 2020.

July 29, 2013
Colombia, Primer País del Mundo en Eliminar la Oncocercosis
Published in Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social Colombia. (Spanish text only).
El Gobierno Nacional, a través del Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social y el Instituto Nacional de Salud reciben por parte de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS)/Organización Panamericana de la Salud (OPS) el documento de verificación que reconoce a Colombia como el primer país en el mundo en eliminar la Oncocercosis o ceguera de los ríos.

July 10, 2013
Defeating River Blindness
Published in USF News.
Tom Unnasch sat in the Land Rover, bouncing over the deeply rutted dirt road leading to a little village of mud huts and maybe 200 people in the south of Ivory Coast, Africa.

July 3, 2013
Scientists Celebrate Successes, New Tools in Fight Against Human Parasitic Worms
Published in The Journal of the American Medical Association.
River blindness experts recently reported on the apparent elimination of the parasitic disease onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, in Abu Hamed, Sudan. That's a rare accomplishment among those seeking to curb the spread of neglected tropical diseases, and one worth savoring.

July 1, 2013
El Último Escondite del Gusano Que ha Dejado Ciegas a 500.000 Personas
Published in Materia.
En 2005, más de 140.000 personas de América Latina estaban infectadas por el gusano, en Colombia, Ecuador, México, Guatemala, Brasil y Venezuela. Pero una exitosa campaña médica, que ha distribuido 11 millones de dosis de antiparasitario, ha conseguido barrer al enemigo, responsable de la llamada ceguera de los ríos, una enfermedad olvidada conocida entre los científicos como oncocercosis. El último refugio del gusano en América es la tupida selva de los yanomami.

May 28, 2013
Northern Sudan Set to Eliminate River Blindness
Broadcast by Voice of America.
River blindness may soon be a thing of the past in East Africa. Scientists believe a long-term community drug treatment in Abu Hamed, Sudan has eradicated this parasitic disease, which causes severe skin problems and in some cases, total blindness.

May 24, 2013
Progress Toward Elimination of Onchocerciasis in the Americas - 1993–2012
Published by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 62, No. 20.
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the parasitic worm Onchocerca volvulus, transmitted to humans by the bite of infected black flies of the genus Simulium, and is characterized by chronic skin disease, severe itching, and eye lesions that can progress to complete blindness. Currently, among approximately 123 million persons at risk for infection in 38 endemic countries, at least 25.7 million are infected, and 1 million are blinded or have severe visual impairment.

May 20, 2013
In a First for East Africa, Scientists Provide Detailed Evidence that Onchocerciasis (River Blindness) May Be Eliminated After 14 Years of Long-term Mass Drug Treatment
Published by the American Society Of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
New research provides the first evidence in East Africa that long-term community-based drug treatment alone can interrupt transmission of onchocerciasis, a parasitic disease commonly known as river blindness. The study finds that after eight years (beginning in 1998) of treating residents annually with the anti-worming medicine ivermectin, followed by six years of semi-annual treatment with the drug, there is no evidence of the disease or its transmission in or around the Nile River town of Abu Hamed in Northern Sudan.

April 16, 2013
Uganda on Road to Eliminate River Blindness (PDF)
Published in New Vision.
In Uganda, river blindness in endemic in 35 districts with an estimated 1.4 million people infected and at least 3.5 million at risk. Studies carried out in 2006 showed that treatment could eliminate the disease within six to 10 years. In 2007, Uganda became the first African country to introduce the measure on a large scale. The results of Uganda's approach show that transmission of the disease has been interrupted in six of 18 focus areas.

March 29, 2013
Uganda to End River Blindness by 2020
Published in New Vision.
Uganda is on course to eradicate Onchocerciasis (river blindness) in the country by 2020, the state minister for primary health care, Sarah Opendi has said. The disease is spread through bites of small black flies that breed around fast-flowing water sources. In Uganda, river blindness is endemic in 35 districts with an estimated 1.4 million people affected and at least 3.5 million at risk of infection. In 2007, Uganda became the first African country to adopt a new approach to eliminate the disease combining mass treatment with ivermectin twice a year with the killing of the black flies.

March 28, 2013
Uganda Marks Success Against River Blindness
Published in NTV Uganda.
Uganda has recorded remarkable success in the elimination of River blindness in the 35 affected Districts of Northern and Eastern Uganda. State Minister in Primary Health Care, Sarah Opendi says there has been tremendous improvement in eliminating the the black fly which transmits the disease.

Feb. 2, 2013
With River Blindness, "You Never Sleep"
Published in CNN.com.
About 18 million people have river blindness worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, but more than 99% of cases of this disease are found in Africa. It goes by the technical name "onchocerciasis," and it spreads through small black flies that breed in fast-flowing, highly oxygenated waters. When an infected fly bites a person, it drops worm larvae in the skin, which can then grow and reproduce in the body. Unlike malaria, river blindness is not fatal, but it causes a "miserable life," said Moses Katabarwa, senior epidemiologist for the Atlanta-based Carter Center's River Blindness Program, which has been leading an effort to eliminate the disease in the Americas and several African countries. Related: President Carter Makes an Impact

Jan. 22, 2013
¿Sabes que es la enfermedad llamada oncocercosis? (link no longer available) 
Published in CNN in Espanol.
La oncocercosis, conocida como 'ceguera de los ríos', es la segunda causa infecciosa de ceguera en el mundo.

Dec. 31, 2012
Pill Could Join Arsenal Against Bedbugs
Published in The New York Times.
Scientists are investigating whether a common deworming drug can be used to kill bedbugs. Dr. Frank O. Richards Jr., a parasitologist at the Carter Center in Atlanta, said he was "excited to see how this plays out." Americans might be initially squeamish about deworming pills, he said, but the country does have "a lot of worried rich people who don't like bug bites."

Nov. 1, 2012
2020 Vision (PDF)
Published in Emory Magazine.
In 2007, Uganda announced a bold plan to eliminate river blindness by 2020. The Carter Center's Moses Katabarwa has been in the battle from the beginning and he believes they're going to win.

Oct. 25, 2012
Philippe Lamy and Juan Sabines Inaugurate IACO 2012 (Spanish)
Published by Grafico Sur de Chiapas (Note: English text translated by Google – original Spanish follows.)
With the participation of leading academics, researchers and program coordinators of Onchocerciasis in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Venezuela, and Mexico the Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis (IACO 2012) began in Tuxtla gutierrez.
Con la participación de destacados académicos, investigadores y coordinadores de los Programas de Oncocercosis de Brasil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Venezuela y México inició en Tuxtla Gutiérrez la Conferencia Interamericana sobre Oncocercosis IACO 2012.

Oct. 25, 2012
Sierra Focus of Chiapas, Red Light (Spanish) (link no longer available) 
Published in Cuarto Poder (Note: English text translated by Google – original Spanish follows.)
Mexico has three onchocerciasis foci, two are in Chiapas: Chamula and Sierra, and one in Oaxaca. In the municipality of Chamula, it was reported that the transmission was interrupted, however the area ranging from Pijijiapan up Motozintla is considered active, so it continues to have epidemiological surveillance.
En México existen tres focos de oncocercosis, dos se encuentran en Chiapas: Chamula y la Sierra, y uno en Oaxaca. En el caso del municipio de Chamula se reportó que ya fue interrumpida la transmisión, sin embargo la zona que va desde Pijijiapan hasta Motozintla es considerada activa, por lo que se continúa con la vigilancia epidemiológica.

Oct. 24, 2012
Mectizan Donation Program Celebrates 25 Years of Partnership and Progress
Published in the Emory Report.
The Mectizan Donation Program (MDP) celebrated 25 years of partnership and progress in an Oct. 17 roundtable program at The Carter Center, one of the program's partners in the fight against river blindness. To commemorate the 25th anniversary, MDP brought Rollins School of Public Health Professor Emeritus William Foege and former Merck CEO Roy Vagelos together with former U.S. President and Carter Center founder Jimmy Carter to reflect on the early days of the program and comment on prospects for the future.

Oct. 22, 2012
Chiapas Chosen to Host the XXII Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis (Spanish) (link no longer available)
Published by Chiapashoy (Note: English text translated by Google – original Spanish follows.)
Because Chiapas managed to interrupt transmission of onchocerciasis and enter the phase of post-treatment surveillance, the state was chosen to host the XXII Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis, whose theme this time is "25 years of Mectizan donation." En español: Debido a que Chiapas logró interrumpir la transmisión de la oncocercosis y entrar en la fase de vigilancia epidemiológica post-tratamiento, la entidad fue elegida para ser sede de la XXII Conferencia Interamericana sobre Oncocercosis, cuyo lema en esta ocasión es "25 años de donación de Mectizan".

Oct. 22, 2012
An Amazing Tale of Three Men and a Miracle Drug Changing Lives of Millions
Published in The Saporta Report.
Three amazing men sat on the same stage to tell an amazing tale of how they led the fight to get rid of one of the most debilitating human diseases - river blindness. The occasion was the 25th anniversary of the Mectizan Donation Project, and the location was the Carter Center - the site where it all came together in 1987.

Oct. 11, 2012
On World Site Day, Merck and Partners Mark 25 Years of Successful Collaboration to Help Eliminate River Blindness
Published in Business Wire.
Today on World Sight Day, 25 years after Merck (known as MSD outside the United States and Canada) started the MECTIZAN® Donation Program (MDP), the company celebrates with partners important progress in the elimination of river blindness, one of the leading causes of preventable blindness worldwide.

Aug. 17, 2012
Progress Towards Eliminating Onchocerciasis in the WHO Region of the Americas in 2011: Interruption of Transmission in Guatemala and Mexico (PDF)
Published by the World Health Organization's Weekly Epidemiological Record. It is reprinted with permission.
More than 100 participants attended the 21st IACO held in Bogota, Colombia in November 2011; the meeting was organized by the Ministry of Social Protection of Colombia and OEPA/Carter Center staff. Data presented during IACO 2011 led to the conclusion that onchocerciasis transmission had been interrupted in the Southern Chiapas focus of Mexico and the Central focus of Guatemala, and that MDA could be stopped in these locations in 2012.

July 19, 2012
Elimination in Sight
Published in Global Health News, a publication of Tulane University's School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
Alumnus Maurcio Sauerbrey leads the effort to end River Blindness in the Americas. What do you do when you have significantly reduced malaria transmission rates in your home country? For Mauricio Sauerbrey, you turn your attention toward another illness that has plagued your region for more than a century.

July 17, 2012
Blow Your Mind: Eliminating River Blindness
This podcast and blog were published by How Stuff Works.
The parasitic worm onchocerciasis carries out a bizarre lifecycle, utilizing a bacterial cloaking devise to colonize the human body. In doing so, they also inflict tremendous suffering and even blindness. Luckily, the Carter Center continues to wage a lengthy and intense campaign of eradication against the parasite in the developing world.

May 20, 2012
River Blindness Spread Believed Stopped Sudan Area
Broadcast and published by Voice of America.
When the government of Sudan decided to ramp up efforts to eradicate river blindness, they looked to the nation's women. This month the country's Ministry of Health announced the strategy appears to have worked in at least one region, Abu Hamad. The key innovation to eliminating the disease was when the government decided to include women and families in distributing drug treatments, said partner aid agency The Carter Center.

May 17, 2012
Sudan Town First to Stop Transmission of River Blindness in Country (link no longer available)
Published in Examiner.com.
The small, isolated desert town of Abu Hamad, located on the right side of the Nile, is the first in Sudan to interrupt the transmission of river blindness according to the Sudan Federal Ministry of Health.

May 6, 2012
Abu Hamad Declared Free From Rivers Blindness (link no longer available) 
Published in Sudan Vision.
River Nile celebrated yesterday in Abu Hamad which was considered one of the focus areas worldwide, from Rivers Blindness. The Governor of the State Elhadi Abdallah described the success of the programme of curbing the spread of Rivers Blindness as victory for humanity.

May 6, 2012
Abu Hamad Stops Transmission of River Blindness (video in Arabic)
Published in Alshorooq TV.
The Sudan Federal Ministry of Health, with assistance from The Carter Center and Lions Clubs International Foundation, have announced that the isolated desert area of Abu Hamad has stopped transmission of river blindness (onchocerciasis). Abu Hamad is among the first areas in Africa to demonstrate that intensified mass treatment of the drug Mectizan®, donated by Merck, can interrupt transmission of this debilitating disease.

April 19, 2012
Local Impact: Moving Mountains to Prevent Disease (PDF)
Published by Emory Public Health magazine, a publication of the Rollins School of Public Health, a component of the Woodruff Health Sciences Center of Emory University (emoryhealthsciences.org).
Every day, Rollins students and alumni are building public health capacity throughout the nonprofit sector in Atlanta and across the state. Moses Katabarwa and Adam Weiss are health leaders at the Carter Center, one of Rollins' public health partners in the Atlanta community.

March 25, 2012
Houstonians Deserve Footnote in Battle Against River Blindness
Published in The Houston Chronicle.
When optometrist Bill Baldwin visited African villages in the early 1980s, he was struck by the beggars with opaque, unseeing eyes and mottled, leathery skin.

Feb. 24, 2012
Cuidado con la oncocercosis (Beware of Onchocerciasis)
Published in CNN Espanol.
La oncocercosis, conocida como "Ceguera de los Ríos", es la segunda causa infecciosa de ceguera en el mundo. (Onchocerciasis, also known as "river blindness" is the second leading infectious cause of blindness in the world. An interview with Carter Center expert Dr. Mauricio Sauerbrey, director of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program of the Americas.)

Feb. 23, 2012
Carter Center: River Blindness Interrupted in Several Areas of Uganda (link no longer available)
Published in The Examiner.
The Carter Center announced in a press release Thursday a historic achievement in the East African country of Uganda concerning the interruption of transmission of the parasitic scourge, river blindness, in three areas of the country.

Feb. 17, 2012
Uganda Makes Tremendous Progress Towards Elimination of Onchocerciasis (River Blindness) Disease (PDF)
Published by New Vision (Uganda). Reprinted with permission.
The Ministry of Health in collaboration with partners has made tremendous strides in the Elimination of Onchocerciasis (River blindness).

Jan. 23, 2012
Living His Dream: Doctor Fights Tropical Diseases in Africa, Americas (PDF)
Published by the St. Louis Beacon. Reprinted with permission.
Dr. Frank O. Richards Jr. has practiced medicine in places where flying bullets and kidnappings are as common as the tropical diseases he wants to eradicate.

Sept. 16, 2011
InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, 2010: Progress Towards Eliminating River Blindness in the WHO Region of the Americas (PDF)
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, No. 38, 2011, 86, 417–424.
Onchocerciasis is a leading infectious cause of skin disease and blindness, particularly in Africa but also in 6 countries in the WHO Region of the Americas, and in Yemen. It is caused by Onchocerca volvulus, a parasitic worm which becomes encapsulated in fibrous tissue to form palpable subcutaneous nodules.

Aug. 5, 2011
Meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication, April 2011/Réunion du Groupe spécial international pour l'éradication des maladies, avril 2011 (PDF)
Published by the Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2011, 86, 341-542.
The 18th meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication was convened at the Carter Center, Atlanta, Ga., United States, on 6 April 2011, to discuss the control and possible elimination of onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis in Africa.

July 18, 2011
Ugandan Man Helps Rid His Community of Onchocerciasis (PDF)
Published by African Program for Onchocerciasis Control magazine.
In the early 1990s, fear dominated the community of Jawe parish, found in Mbale district, Uganda. The Jawe clan's neighboring parishes, Buryango and Bulweta, were being plagued by an unknown ailment that attacked a person's skin and eyes. The disease left its victims unable to care for themselves or their families.

July 11, 2011
Human Swallows Pill. Mosquito Bites Human. Mosquito Dies.
Published in The New York Times.
Scientists have proposed an intriguing new way to fight malaria: turning people into human time bombs for mosquitoes.

July 2, 2011
Las últimas luces que apagó la ceguera de los ríos
Published by ElColombiano.com.(Spanish text only).
Colombia está a punto de ser certificada por la Organización Panamericana de Salud como el primer país que logra erradicar la oncocercosis, una enfermedad que ha provocado la pérdida de la visión a 270.000 personas en el mundo.

June 25, 2011
Helping a Starving Family in Niger
Published in The New York Times, "On The Ground."
Sometimes the story becomes more than a story. Today we went to a village in southern Niger to talk to a man who had suffered from river blindness, an excruciatingly painful disease spread by black flies. The condition often results in blindness but now can be treated, thanks in large part to the work of The Carter Center. It has been virtually eliminated. A success story.

Feb. 1, 2011
Global Leader in Malaria Control to Speak in Grand Rapids
Published in The Grand Rapids Press.
Malaria control in Africa could be aided by a local audience Wednesday when a global leader in the effort speaks to a state association meeting at the Amway Grand Plaza Hotel.

Oct. 12, 2010
Carter's Work to Eradicate Diseases Nearly Complete (link no longer available)
Published in The Associated Press.
Former President Jimmy Carter says his mission to eradicate two diseases that have affected millions in some of the world's poorest nations is nearly complete.

Oct. 5, 2010
Metabolomics-Based Discovery of Diagnostic Biomarkers for Onchocerciasis 
Published in PLoS Negl Trop Dis4(10): e834. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0000834.
Twice yearly dosage of ivermectin, through the efforts of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA, 1992-present), has lead to a minimization of infection to 13 foci within six countries in Central and South America. Although mass treatment of onchocerciasis foci in the Western hemisphere is slated to be suspended in 2012 [6], achieving the goal of elimination is contingent upon continued surveillance of the disease.

Sept. 1, 2010
Curbing Disease: Moving from Control to Elimination in Africa (PDF)
Published in EuroTimes.
With onchocerciasis on track for elimination in the Americas in the next couple of years, there are cautious grounds for optimism that the same results can eventually be obtained in Africa where the disease is most prevalent and the need is greatest.

Aug. 13, 2010
Report from the 2009 Inter- American Conference on Onchocerciasis: progress towards eliminating river blindness in the Region of the Americas
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2010: 85: 321-7.
The InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis is an annual event where stakeholders in the elimination programme’s regional initiative can present information on progress and discuss challenges. The 19th annual conference was held in Río de Janeiro, Brazil, in November 2009; the conference sought to address the unfinished elimination agenda.

June 14, 2010
A Vision For The Future Of Health Care
Published in the Guardian.
The mark of any community is how it treats its most vulnerable. Communities all over Uganda are working together to eradicate river blindness; a debilitating and destructive disease affecting the country's poorest and most vulnerable.

March 11, 2010
Not One Case of Blindness From Onchocerciasis in Chiapas, Could Be Eliminated This Year (link no longer available)
Published in Péndulo de Chiapas. Original text in Spanish.
El director del Programa de Eliminación de la Oncocercosis en las Américas (OEPA, por sus siglas en inglés, Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas), Mauricio Sauerbrey, aseguró que es muy posible que este año México logre la certificación por parte de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) que constate la erradicación de esta enfermedad.

March 2, 2010
Transmission of River Blindness, One of the World's Leading Infectious Causes of Blindness, Has Stopped in Ecuador (link no longer available.)
Published in Global Health Progress Media Center.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Health (MOH) of Ecuador announced that transmission of onchocerciasis, also known as river blindness, has stopped in that country. This achievement is the result of the work by MOH workers with support of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program of the Americas (OEPA).

Nov. 25, 2009
Advances in Tropical Medicine and Global Health Highlighted at A.S.T.M.H. Event
Published in TropIKA.net.
The annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene is one of the most prestigious events of its kind and is claimed by its organisers to be "the premier forum for scientific advances in tropical medicine and global health". This year's meeting took place 18–22 November in Washington DC.

Nov. 21, 2009
River Blindness (Onchocerciasis) Reduced by Nearly One-third in At-risk Populations in Six Countries
Published by The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygine.
A regional initiative launched in the 1990s to eliminate onchocerciasis (river blindness) in the Americas has substantially reduced the prevalence of the disease in recent years, as evidenced by a 31% decrease in the number of individuals requiring mass drug administration in six endemic countries. Results were reported today at the 58th annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH).

Sept. 18, 2009
Report from the Eighteenth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2009: 84: 385-96
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the vector-borne parasite Onchocerca volvulus and is endemic in 13 foci in 6 countries in WHO’s Region of the Americas: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela. Vaccine-derived polioviruses detected worldwide, January 2008–June 2009

Nov. 12, 2008
Public Health Officials Announce Progress in Elimination of Transmission of the Tropical Disease River Blindness
Public health officials gathering at the 18th Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis (IACO) in Oaxaca, Mexico, announced that transmission of the tropical disease onchocerciasis (also known as river blindness) has been halted in areas covering 31 percent of the population in Latin America formerly at risk of contracting the disease.

Aug. 22, 2008
African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control: Report on Task Force Meeting, July 2008
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Aug 22, 2008: 23(34): 307-312.
The fifth annual meeting of national onchocerciasis task forces was held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 1 to 5 July 2008. It was attended by representatives from 10 countries and from nongovernmental development organizations supporting onchocerciasis control in Africa. The meeting was organized and financed by the African Programme for Onchocerciasis Control and the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia.

July 18, 2008
Report from the Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis, November 2007
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Jul 18, 2008: 83(29): 256-260.
The seventeenth annual Inter-American Conference on Onchocerciasis was held in Quito, Ecuador on 15–17 November 2007. More than 80 people attended; the meeting was organized by the Ministry of Health of Ecuador and members of local Lions Clubs.

Jan. 4, 2008
Carter Center, Partners, Celebrate 100 Millionth Mectizan® Treatment
The Carter Center's River Blindness Program, with its global partners, announced recently the 100 millionth treatment of Mectizan® since 1996. The drug, proven effective and safe in treatment and prevention of river blindness, also called onchocerciasis, is donated by Merck & Co., Inc.

June 2007
The Ethiopia Campaign
Published by Smithsonian Magazine.
After fighting neglected diseases in Africa for a quarter century, former president Jimmy Carter takes on one of the continent’s biggest killers malaria.

Nov. 20, 2007
Colombia is First Country to Interrupt Transmission of River Blindness
Colombia has become the first country to interrupt transmission of onchocerciasis (also known as river blindness) on a countrywide basis, according to officials of the Onchocerciasis Elimination Program in the Americas (OEPA).

Aug. 31, 2007
Report from the Sixteenth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala
Published in Wky Epidemiol Rec. Aug 31, 2007: 82(35): 314-316.
Based on the results of routine immunization and supplementary immunization activities (SIAs), and in light of the reduced number of neonatal tetanus cases reported, a survey was conducted to assess whether Mali had successfully eliminated neonatal tetanus.

June 1, 2007
Meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Jun 1, 2007: 82(22/23): 191-202.
The tenth meeting of the International Task Force for Disease Eradication was convened at the Carter Center in Atlanta, GA, USA on 11 January 2007. The task force met to review the evidence pertaining to the potential eradicability of onchocerciasis (river blindness) 5 years after the 2002 Conference on the Eradicability of Onchocerciasis.

April 4, 2007
Case Studies in Global Health: Millions Saved
Published in the Center for Global Development.
Case Studies in Global Health: Millions Saved highlights 20 original public health large-scale success cases. The Guinea worm disease eradication campaign and river blindness control campaign are featured chapters in the book.
To read the full chapter (PDF) >

March 13, 2007
A Doctor's Lifelong Commitment to Fight Diseases (PDF)
Published in NPR, Nigeria's Negleted Diseases.
Dr. Frank Richards specializes in the infectious diseases that are rampant in developing countries, especially diseases that target children.

Feb. 20, 2007
Let's Start a War, One We Can Win
Published by The New York Times. Reprinted with permission.
They were two old men, one arriving by motorcade with bodyguards and the other groping blindly as he shuffled on a footpath with a stick, but for a moment the orbits of Jimmy Carter and Mekonnen Leka intersected on this remote battlefield in southern Ethiopia. Click here for official reprint (PDF).

Feb. 18, 2007
Torture By Worms
Published The New York Times. Reprinted with permission.
Presidents are supposed to be strong, and on his latest visit to Africa Jimmy Carter proved himself strong enough to weep. Click here for official reprint (PDF).

July 28, 2006
Report from the Fifteenth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Caracas, Venezuela
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Jul 28, 2006: 81(30): 293-296.
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the filarial parasite Onchocerca volvulus and is endemic in 6 countries of the Americas: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela.

July 29, 2005
Report from the Fourteenth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Jul 29, 2005: 80(30): 257-260.
Onchocerciasis (river blindness) is caused by the filarial parasite Onchocerca volvulus and is endemic in 6 countries of the Americas: Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of). The Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA) is a regional initiative with the goals of eliminating ocular morbidity from onchocerciasis and interrupting transmission of the parasite throughout the region.

April 11, 2005
Moses Katabarwa, Visionary Man
Published by the Emory Report. Reprinted with permission.
Moses Katabarwa's distinguished, internationally recognized public health career was set into motion by a case of mistaken identity.

Oct. 9, 2005
River Blindness - A Forgotten Disease
Published in the Houston Chronicle.
A forgotten disease: With the help of a Houston billionaire, an ex-president and an army of volunteers, millions of Africans will be spared from river blindness.

Oct. 10, 2003
Report from the Twelfth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Manaus, Brazil
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. Oct 10, 2003: 78(41): 361-364.
The twelfth annual conference (IACO.02) was held in Manaus, Brazil, on 16.19 November 2002. The meeting was organized by the Brazilian National Health Foundation (FUNASA) and OEPA, with financial support from The Carter Center, Lions Clubs International Foundation, WHO/PAHO and Merck & Co, Inc.

July 26, 2002
Report from the Eleventh InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Mexico City, Mexico
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2002: 77: 249-256.
The Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA) is a regional initiative with the goal of eliminating morbidity due to, and transmission of, the filarial parasite Onchocerca volvulus, which causes river blindness or “Robles disease.”

July 6, 2001
Report from the Tenth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Guayaquil, Ecuador
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2001. 76: 205-212.
The Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA) is a regional initiative working towards the goal of eliminating morbidity and transmission of the filarial parasitic disease known as “river blindness” or “Robles’ disease”. The OEPA strategy is to support ministries of health to provide sustained mass treatment every 6 months with safe and effective microfilaricide ivermectin (Mectizan®, donated by Merck & Co.) to populations in the region residing in communities known to be endemic for onchocerciasis.

Jan. 19, 2001
Report from the Ninth InterAmerican Conference on Onchocerciasis, Antigua, Guatemala
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2001: 76: 18-22.
The Onchocerciasis Elimination Program for the Americas (OEPA) is working towards the goal of eliminating both morbidity and transmission of onchocerciasis in the Americas through a strategy of sustained, semiannual mass treatment with ivermectin (i.e. every 6 months) of endemic communities.

July 28, 2000
Intervention research on onchocerciasis and lymphatic filariasis
Published in Wkly Epidemiol Rec. 2000: 75: 246-248.
The task force on filariasis intervention research of the UNDP/World Bank/WHO Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR) invites proposals on the following topics for review during its forthcoming meeting in September 2000.