BackgroundIn 1986, the Government of Mali launched its Expanded Program on Immunization (EPI) with the goal of vaccinating, within five years, 80% of all children under the age of five against six target diseases: diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, poliomyelitis, tuberculosis, and measles. The Demographic and Health Survey carried out in 2001 revealed that, in Kita Circle, in the Kayes region, only 13% of children aged 12 to 23 months had received all the EPI vaccinations. A priority program was implemented in 2003 by the Regional Health Department in Kayes to improve EPI immunization coverage in this area.MethodsA cross-sectional survey using Henderson's method (following the method used by the Demographic and Health Surveys) was carried out in July 2006 to determine the level of vaccination coverage among children aged 12 to 23 months in Kita Circle, after implementation of the priority program. Both vaccination cards and mothers' declarations (in cases where the mother cannot make the declaration, it is made by the person responsible for the child) were used to determine coverage.ResultsAccording to the vaccination cards, 59.9% [CI 95% (54.7-64.8)] of the children were fully vaccinated, while according to the mothers' declarations the rate was 74.1% [CI 95% (69.3-78.4)]. The drop-out rate between DTCP1 and DTCP3 was 5.5%, according to the vaccination cards. The rate of immunization coverage was higher among children whose mothers had received the anti-tetanus vaccine [OR = 2.1, CI 95% (1.44-3.28)]. However, our study found no difference associated with parents' knowledge about EPI diseases, distance from the health centre, or socio-economic status. Lack of information was one reason given for children not being vaccinated against the six EPI diseases.ConclusionThree years after the implementation of the priority program (which included decentralization, the active search for missing children, and deployment of health personnel, material and financial resources), our evaluation of the vaccination coverage rates shows that there is improvement in the EPI immunization coverage rate in Kita Circle. The design of our study did not, however, enable us to determine the extent to which different aspects of the program contributed to this increase in coverage. Efforts should nevertheless be continued, in order to reach the goal of 80% immunization coverage.Abstract in FrenchSee the full article online for a translation of this abstract in French.

Single-stage surgery for sigmoid volvulus carries a high risk of death when it is performed in patients with poor general condition. Indications for surgery must take into account the patient's general condition and the viability of the torsed sigmoid colon.

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Purpose: To describe the aspects of the positive diagnosis of large goiters. Patients and Methods: We conducted a retrospective and prospective study including 115 patients from January, 2009 till December, 2014 (6 years) in Central Hospital of University of Point G in Bamako (Mali). The diagnosis of large goiters was based on the measurements of the anterior neck swelling. Thus large goiter was defined as any goiter including the height or width was greater than or equal to 10 cm (centimeters). Results: We operated 115 cases of large goiters on 760 goiters operated either 15.1%. The average age of patients was 44, 43 years ±14, 3 with extremes of 9 and 80 years. There was 101 women (87.8%) and 14 men (12.2%) with a sex ratio of 7.2 in favor of women. The signs of compression were dyspnea in 40% of cases (46/115), dysphonia in 13.0% (15/115), and dysphagia in 8.6% (10/115). The average height of goiter was 12.1 cm ± 3.5 cm with extremes of 10 and 29 cm and the average width was 14.4 cm ± 5.4 cm with extremes of 10 and 32 cm. Thyroid ultrasound found large goiters multinodular in 100%. Cervical radiography found the tracheal deviation in 48.2% (42/87), tracheal compression in 20.6% (18/87), plunging goiters in 11.5% (10/87). Cytology found a benign goiter in 97.4% of cases (112/115), malignant (thyroid cancer) in 2.6% of cases (3/115). Conclusion: Diagnosis of large goiters was based on the measurement of the swelling in our context. The signs of compression are the severity of this condition.