Department of Medicine, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Department of Physiology, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Clin Infect Dis. 2020 Nov 19;71(16):2180-2183. doi: 10.1093/cid/ciaa552.
The trajectory and impact of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa are unclear, but they are seemingly varied between different countries, with most reporting low numbers. We use the situation in Zimbabwe to build an argument that the epidemic is likely to be attenuated in some countries with similar socioeconomic and cultural structures. However, even an attenuated epidemic may overwhelm weak health systems, emphasizing the importance of prevention. These prevention strategies should be tailored to the unique social and cultural networks of individual countries, which may facilitate the spread of SARS-CoV-2. It is also equally important to maintain services for the major infectious diseases in the region, such as tuberculosis and malaria. A breakdown of treatment and prevention services for these conditions may even overshadow the projected morbidity and mortality from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒 2（SARS-CoV-2）在撒哈拉以南非洲的传播轨迹和影响尚不清楚，但在不同国家之间似乎有所不同，大多数国家报告的病例数量较低。我们以津巴布韦的情况为例，提出一个论点，即在具有类似社会经济和文化结构的一些国家，疫情可能会减弱。然而，即使是减弱的疫情也可能使薄弱的卫生系统不堪重负，这强调了预防的重要性。这些预防策略应根据个别国家独特的社会和文化网络进行调整，这可能会促进 SARS-CoV-2 的传播。同样重要的是，要维持该地区针对结核病和疟疾等主要传染病的服务。这些疾病的治疗和预防服务的崩溃甚至可能使预计的 2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）发病率和死亡率相形见绌。
