Plasma-derived medicinal products (PDMPs) are essential medicines required for the treatment of congenital, rare, and acquired diseases. At present, the market dynamics of these products have led to high dependence on a few producing countries, causing shortages, stockouts, and problems related to access in general. To help solve this problem, this document proposes a value model for PDMPs from a public health perspective, and considers the prospects, visions, and challenges to implementation in Colombia, as a case study.

Cardiovascular diseases remain the leading cause of premature morbidity and mortality globally, with hypertension as their main modifiable risk factor. In Latin America and the Caribbean, hypertension affects more than 30% of adults, yet control rates remain alarmingly low. The HEARTS in the Americas Initiative, led by the Pan American Health Organization, promotes a model of team-based care to enhance risk management for hypertension and cardiovascular diseases within primary health care.

Objective

To evaluate the usability of the International Classification of Diseases, 11th Revision (ICD-11) and its concordance and comparability with ICD-10, the version in use. ICD-11 introduces greater granularity than ICD-10, is designed for digital environments, and offers improvements over the previous version. 

In today's digital age, health data is increasingly coveted, and having legal rules to protect it is not enough to prevent its incorrect, imprudent, or improper use. Breaches of confidentiality, intrusions, and unrestricted access to personal data and sensitive data are a challenge for Latin American and Caribbean countries. This is due to the coexistence of diverse social actors, unspecific regulatory frameworks, data management aimed at reducing IT risks, inequalities in access, and technological-financial gaps, which can be analyzed from a governance perspective.

Civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems support individuals’ right to identity and their access to public services, and provide information useful for public health. Peru’s CRVS system uses applications that allow online medical certification of vital events. Since this information can be falsified, measures are required to ensure that the information entered is supported and not rejected, for example through the use of digital signatures.

This letter to the editor is only available in Spanish.
 

Objective

To document health advocacy strategies to influence public policies regulating new and emerging tobacco and nicotine products in Latin America and the Caribbean. 

Methods

We analyzed public documents on new and emerging tobacco and nicotine products including news sources and national legislation and interviewed public health advocates in Latin America and the Caribbean. The policy dystopia model was used to assess health advocacy strategies for regulation of these products. 

Objective

To report on the development and features of a mobile application (app) to guide the public and health professionals on pre-hospital emergency measures after snake envenomation. 

Methods

This was a four-stage methodological study conducted from June 2020 to July 2022. The app development included creating a mobile resource to guide pre-hospital care and to direct victims to hospitals that have antivenom. 

Objective

To evaluate handmade ovitraps as a sustainable auxiliary strategy to control Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.