For Immediate Release                     Media Contacts:
June 27, 2008                                      In U.S.:  Geoffrey Knox: +212-229-0540
 In Ghana:
Cyril Heymann, Bullseye Marketing (Awesome Ventures), Tel. +233 24 461 0679
Mrs. Rebecca Ackwonu, PRO, Ghana Health Service Tel. +233 20 811 8787
              Dr. Agatha Aboe, ITI-Ghana Tel. +233 21 689 321
              Dr. Oscar Debrah, Eye Care Unit, GHS Tel. +233 24 422 9604

GHANA ANNOUNCES SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS TOWARD
ELIMINATING BLINDING TRACHOMA

Ministry of Health/Ghana Health Service and International Trachoma Initiative cite achievements of National Trachoma Control Program; prevalence of trachoma in children aged 1-9 years in some districts drop dramatically, well below the WHO accepted level of 5%

(27 June—Accra, Ghana) The Ministry of Health/Ghana Health Service (GHS) and the International Trachoma Initiative (ITI) announced today that Ghana has made significant progress in eliminating trachoma. Ghana’s national Trachoma Control Program, coordinated by GHS, is on track to meet its goal of eliminating blinding trachoma by 2010—ten years before the target date of 2020 set by the World Health Organization (WHO).  Ghana could soon become one of the first countries in sub-Saharan Africa to eliminate trachoma as a public health problem.

Based on the latest impact assessment survey conducted from December 2007 to March 2008, Ghana’s Trachoma Control Program has succeeded in reducing prevalence of active trachoma in children 1-9 years-of-age from as high as 16% in some districts to as low as 0.1—2.8%.  These new prevalence rates are well below the WHO accepted level of 5%, at which active trachoma is no longer considered of public health significance.  Trichiasis, the advanced stage of the disease that causes blindness, has been dramatically reduced from 13,000 to 5,000 cases.

“Our partnership with the Ghanaian government on trachoma control efforts has been solid and extraordinary,” said Ibrahim Jabr, President of ITI.  “The country has made great strides to reduce trachoma prevalence, and we are now confident that the disease will be eliminated within the next two years.”

GHS and ITI recognize that trachoma is a disease of poverty and that a multi-sectoral approach is needed to address it effectively.  A coordinated effort by GHS with NGO partners focused on the WHO-endorsed SAFE strategy to prevent and eliminate trachoma through Surgery to correct in-turned lashes known as trichiasis that may cause blindness if left untreated; Antibiotics to treat active trachoma infections; Face washing to reduce disease transmission; and Environmental changes to improve sanitation and access to clean water.

Achievements
Since the inception of the Ghana Trachoma Control Program in the year 2000 until 2007:

• 4,542 people diagnosed with trichiasis have been provided with sight-saving surgery.
• Over 3.4 million doses of the Pfizer-donated Zithromax valued at over $60 million have been administered to treat community members in trachoma endemic districts.
• Health education on face washing has been on-going, provided to groups and individuals using a multimedia approach.  
• Community-based volunteers, community health nurses and environmental health workers have provided individuals and small group educational sessions on all aspects of trachoma.  
• FM radio stations aired educational messages in the form of jingles and short piece dramas in local languages.
• Trained School Health Teachers have educated children on hygiene and face washing.
• Environmental Health Officers regularly visited sub-districts and communities.
• Approximately 12,000 household latrines and 2,134 safe water sources have been provided by partners in the water and sanitation sectors.

Despite these achievements, there are currently 5,000 people in Ghana who are at risk of going blind if surgery is not immediately provided to them.  Funds and other logistics are needed to address this issue in the next 12 months.  The gains made by the program need to be sustained through a community-based surveillance system and plan.  A concerted effort by all players, especially those in the water and sanitation sectors, must also ensure provision of adequate safe water and sanitation to all communities.

Background on Trachoma Control in Ghana
When Ghana’s Trachoma Control Program began in 2000, an estimated 2.8 million people were at risk of trachoma infection, there were over 11,600 cases of trachoma-related blindness, and about 13,000 people had trichiasis.  In Ghana, as opposed to other countries in West Africa, disease prevalence was spotty and concentrated in two of the country’s 10 administrative regions: the Northern and Upper West Regions. These trachoma-endemic regions, located in the arid north, far from the economically more vibrant south, lacked the infrastructure and comparative wealth of southern Ghana.  

In 2000, a two-year strategic plan was put in place to address the issue of trachoma in five districts. At the inception of the program, GHS worked to bring together all sectors that had a role to play in trachoma control, including the Ministry of Local Government, Rural Development and Environment, the Ghana Education Service, the Ministry of Women and Children’s Affairs, UN organizations like WHO and UNICEF, NGOs in the eye sector such as ITI, and those in water and sanitation sectors.

Achievements, challenges and lessons learnt over the first two-year period led to the development of a five-year strategic plan document, which included all 18* districts in the two trachoma endemic regions. In 2004, trachoma control activities through the SAFE strategy were expanded into all endemic districts, and the five-year national strategic plan began implementation in 2005.  

Routine monitoring was done, and review and planning workshops were held annually. A strong partnership, the National Trachoma Control Taskforce that includes UN organizations and NGOs, was formed and replicated at the regional and district levels. This partnership was the driving force for the control program.

About Trachoma
Trachoma is the world’s leading cause of preventable blindness.  The disease is caused by the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, and was once prevalent in many parts of the world, including the US, but is now limited to approximately 56 countries.  Today, 63 million people are affected with the active disease and 10 million people have been visually impaired or blinded by it.

Trachoma is primarily found in regions in the developing world where water and sanitation services are not readily available.  The disease is easily spread through casual contact and mother-to-child contact, but it can be controlled through improved hygiene, sanitation, use of antibiotics and simple surgery in advanced cases.  

Repeated trachoma infections over time, if untreated, result in in-turned eyelashes (trichiasis) which then scratch and scar the cornea, leading to blindness.  Children in the age range of 1-5 years are most prone to infection, and women are two to three times more likely than men to be infected by trachoma as they care for their children and thus likely to experience repeated infections.  Because the disease causes blindness in the most productive years of a person’s life, it can ruin the economic well being of entire families and communities.  Developing countries lose almost $3 billion in productivity per year due to blindness caused by trachoma.

Trachoma is a Neglected Tropical Disease, or NTD.  Global public health experts have recently mobilized to address seven Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs), including blinding trachoma.

#  #  #

The International Trachoma Initiative (ITI) is a non-governmental organization working to prevent, treat and ultimately eliminate blinding trachoma. Building on trachoma elimination success in Morocco, ITI currently works in 15 countries in Africa and Asia.  ITI is a major proponent and facilitator of the SAFE strategy to prevent and eliminate trachoma through Surgery, Antibiotics, Facial cleanliness and Environmental improvement. ITI, created through a public-private partnership of the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation and Pfizer Inc, collaborates with international agencies, governmental, and non-governmental organizations to build targeted support—including Zithromax® donated by Pfizer—for expanded implementation of the SAFE strategy, operational research and program evaluation, education and advocacy. http://www.trachoma.org