Aims: This study was carried out to determine the rate of co-infection of Malaria/typhoid fever among patients attending the hospital. Study Design: The study was a hospital based cross-sectional. Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out at the Centre Medical Camrail, de Bassa (CMCD), Douala, Littoral Region, Cameroon, from April to May 2015. Methods: One hundred and sixty (160) blood and stool Samples were collected. Blood samples were subjected to microscopic examination used for the malaria parasite. Widal agglutination slide and tube test were performed for the identification of antibodies to Salmonella typhi and stool culture used for isolation of Salmonella species. Results: Overall malaria prevalence was 19.4% (31/160) with a geometric mean parasite density (GMPD) of 788.62±1945.763 parasites/µL of blood. The overall prevalence of typhoid fever by stool culture was 32.5% (52/160) while malaria/typhoid fever and malaria/non-typhoidal salmonella co-infection rates were 29% (9) and 7% (3) respectively. Of the positive malaria samples, 03 (4%) were identified as Salmonella typhi, 4 (5.3%) as S. typhimirium, 02 (2.6%) as S. paratyphi A and 03 (4%) as S. paratyphi B. They were no significant relationship between malaria and typhoid fever (χ2=.609; p= .738). Typhoid fever was grossly under diagnosed by Widal test 1.25% (2/160) compared to stool culture 34.4% (55/160). Conclusion: The study showed the rate of co-infections of malaria and typhoid fever is relatively high. Malaria was the most prevalent disease among febrile patients in the study area. There was a substantial result discrepancy between Widal test and stool culture for the diagnosis of typhoid fever.
Aims: The study aimed to assess an update of the burden of schistosomiasis among primary school children. Study Design: The study was a school-based cross-sectional study carried out among children aged between 4 to 15 years old. Place and Duration of Study: The study took place in Njombé, Littoral Region, Cameroon from March to April 2017. Methodology: Urine and stool samples were collected were collected from 412 school-aged children and examined using the urine filtration method and the Kato-Katz technique respectively. A questionnaire was administered to assess their water related activities. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 2.0. Logistic regression and odds ratio was used to measure association and strength between variables respectively. P-value < .05 at 95% CI was considered as statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of schistosomiasis was 9.7%, with 7,8% and 1,9% of school children infected with S. mansoni and S. haematobium, respectively and 0.7% co-infection with both species. The intensities of S. haematobium and S. mansoni infection were 2.1 eggs per 10 mL of urine, 94 eggs per gram of stool respectively. The multiple regression analysis revealed that itching after bathing in backwater (Odds ratio (OR)= 2.427, confidence interval (CI): 1.080 - 5454, P=.03). And school children attending EPB Alpha (OR= 2.024), CI: 1.203 – 4.804, P=.011). were predictors of schistosomiasis infection. However, significant association was found between schistosomiasis and playing in the stream and the presence of the river and back water in the vicinity of schools. Conclusion: There was a drastic decline in the prevalence of schistosomiasis infection in school children in Njombé compared to previous reports. The decrease is attributed to the bi-annual deworming campaign by the Public Health Authorities.
Ready-to-eat (RTE) food sold to school going children at school premises can not only provide essential nutrient and energy but also a route for foodborne diseases (FBD). However, there is a paucity of data on microbiological assessment of RTE food sold in primary schools in Douala. The aims of this study was to investigate the microbiological quality of food sold in primary schools and to evaluated the food safety knowledge and practice of vendors to promote a safer school-based food for a better health and well-being of our children. Socio-demographic characteristics and the hygienic practices of 60 RTE food vendors were collected using structured questionnaire. A total of 60 food samples from three different food items (beans, spaghetti and meat) were analyzed for the presence of bacterial and fungal pathogens. Twenty-five grams of each food sample was transferred in to 225 ml of buffered peptone water and homogenized. The homogenates were serially dilute and a volume of 0.1 ml dilution was spread on solid media and incubated at 35-37°C for 24 hours and 5 days. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was done for isolated species using Muller Hinton agar and data was entered in excel and exported to SPSS version 20.0. For analysis. The overall prevalence of bacterial pathogens was 23.1% (26/60) and the total mean enterobacteriaceae count (MEC) was 8.203333x10 4 CFU/ml in which the value ranged from 3.4 x10 4 -2.06 x 10 5 CFU/ml. The total mean fungal count (MFC) was 1.0341x10 5 CFU/g which varied from 0 -2.8x10 5 CFU/ml. Of the total of 60 samples examined, 93.3% (56/60) were found positive for S. aureus of which 15% (09/60) of isolates were contaminated. Citrobacter freundii was isolated in 23.4% (14/60) of RTE food. The greatest number of S. aureus was found in beans and the lowest number in spaghetti. These findings indicated that, the ready-to-eat food sold to primary school children in Douala metropolis represent an important potential health risk to school going children. There is a need for Public Health authority to establish guidelines and standards in order to safeguard the wellbeing of the school going children.
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