In 1986 a survey to determine the distribution of HTLV-I infection was conducted in Gabon in a representative sample of adults and children. Five samples were taken in adults and 2 samples in children living in urban and rural areas. Samples were taken by the cluster sampling technique, i.e., clusters of randomly selected households. Sera were tested for IgG antibodies to HTLV-I by ELISA. ELISA-positive sera were retested by Western blot. The study comprised 1,874 adults and 684 children, all apparently healthy. In the adults the crude prevalence rates of anti-HTLV-I antibodies ranged from 5.0% in urban areas to 10.5% in the southern province. In rural areas, the age-adjusted prevalence rate (9. I %) was significantly higher than in urban areas (5.0%) @
Diarrheal morbidity and mortality in children less than 5 years old were studied in Bangui, Central African Republic, by a cluster survey. We found a high prevalence of diarrheal disease with an estimated annual incidence of 7 episodes of diarrhea per child per year. The estimated annual mortality rate for children less than 5 years old was 28.6 per 1,000 and 85.8 per 1,000 for infants; 51.6% of deaths were reported to be associated with diarrhea. During the survey, stool specimens were collected from 133 children with current diarrhea and 117 control children to study the etiologic agents of diarrheal disease in the community. An enteric pathogen was identified in 58% of diarrheal children's stools and 48% of stools of well children. A statistically significant association between diarrhea and rotavirus was found, with it being isolated from 8 of 33 (24%) of stools of infants with diarrhea compared to 0 of 25 (0%) of control infants. Isolation rates for Campylobacter jejuni, Entamoeba histolytica, pathogenic Escherichia coli, and other bacterial enteropathogens did not differ significantly between children with diarrhea and control children.
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