Biomedical subjects
B Lindtjørn
Publications and source records attributed to B Lindtjørn.
Risk factors for fatal diarrhoea: a case-control study of Ethiopian children.
A retrospective case-control study of children less than 5 years of age with diarrhoea was conducted at a hospital in southern Ethiopia. 21 cases (deaths) and 84 controls were studied. Severe dehydration, fever, pneumonia, acute and chronic malnutrition and age greater than 12 months were risk factors significantly associated with death. A simple score system to identify children at risk of dying is presented.
Famine in southern Ethiopia 1985-6: population structure, nutritional state, and incidence of death among children.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of drought on mortality in children. DESIGN: Prospective epidemiological study forming part of nutritional monitoring during famine relief work. SETTING: 24 Food distribution sites in Arero and Borana provinces in southern Ethiopia. PATIENTS: A monthly average of 14,173 and 5,334 children under 5 were examined in 1985 and 1986, respectively. Altogether 148,966 child months (105,872 for 1985 and 43,094 for 1986) were available for analysis. INTERVENTION: The families of all children were supplied with food each month. Basic medical care was also provided. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Mortality in children under 5. RESULTS: A 40% increase in crude mortality was observed among children living in traditional and stable societies. The severe consequences were observed mainly among children living in relief shelters, where a threefold to fourfold increase in crude mortality was recorded among children. Increased childhood mortality was also associated with high prevalence of malnutrition, living in the most arid areas, and the dry season. A long period of food aid was needed to normalise the nutritional state, especially for children living in relief shelters. CONCLUSIONS: The most severe consequences of the widespread famine that occurred in the Arero and Borana provinces of southern Ethiopia during 1985-6 were seen among children living in relief shelters. Early food intervention may decrease the scale of migration and thus also reduce the severe consequences of a famine.
The Borana Project: a newly started research project on nutrition.
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Famine in southern Ethiopia 1985-1986. Malnutrition, diarrhoea and death.
During the 1985-86 famine children from two areas in Southern Ethiopia were studied to assess a possible association between malnutrition and diarrhoeal disease. Malnutrition did not increase the incidence of diarrhoeal disease. However, malnourished children were more severely affected by the infection. Nutritional rehabilitation reduced the demand for treatment of diarrhoea and probably contributed to a decrease in crude childhood mortality.
Famine in Ethiopia 1983-1985: kwashiorkor and marasmus in four regions.
Parts of southern Ethiopia were form 1983 to 1985 affected by drought and famine. This study describes the prevalence of marasmus and kwashiorkor in four drought-affected regions: Bale, Sidamo, Gamu Gofa and southern Shoa. An analysis of 37,511 children in the 1-5 year age group representing 212 communities has been performed. The study demonstrates that both marasmus and kwashiorkor are facets of drought. The epidemiologies of kwashiorkor and marasmus differ: marasmus is the most common form of acute malnutrition in all areas, while kwashiorkor is found in a limited number of communities only. These latter communities have a subsistence farming economy, most often in ensete-growing areas. In the lowland semi-arid regions, which have an agro-pastoralist economy, kwashiorkor is virtually absent. These epidemiological findings are discussed in relation to different theories of the aetiology and pathogenesis of kwashiorkor.
Essential drug list in a rural hospital. Does it have any influence on drug prescription?
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Cancer in southern Ethiopia.
A retrospective study of biopsies taken at three hospitals in Southern Ethiopia has been carried out to describe the cancer pattern in the Sidamo and Gamu Gofa regions. A histologically verified cancer diagnosis was recorded in 1154 patients. The bias that appear in the data are discussed. This includes aspects of hospital coverage, age and sex distribution and bias that arise from a lack of diagnostic facilities, especially to diagnose deep seated tumours. Taking these bias into consideration, the cancer pattern in Southern Ethiopia is outlined. Among men, hepatic carcinoma, lymphomas and superficial malignancies (skin cancers including melanomas and superficial soft tissue sarcomas) are the most common malignancies while among women, cervical, breast and ovarian cancers predominate. It is noted that most of the Kaposi's sarcomas recorded are from the Sidamo area. Hodgkin's disease and Burkitt's lymphoma are most common among childhood lymphomas, whereas non-Hodgkin lymphomas of other types dominate among adults. Cancer of the stomach is the second most common internal malignancy among both men and women.
Visceral leishmaniasis in the Dawa valley, south Ethiopia.
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Severe measles in the Gardulla area of southwest Ethiopia.
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Measuring acute malnutrition: a need to redefine cut-off points for arm circumference?
Two relatively age-independent indicators--weight-for-height and mid upper-arm circumference--have been widely used to assess acute malnutrition in drought-affected communities in southern Ethiopia. Compared with weight for height, arm circumference (with cut-off points of 12.5 cm and 13.5 cm) greatly exaggerates acute malnutrition prevalence rates. New cut-off points (11 cm and 13 cm) are therefore proposed which significantly reduce false-positive rates and make weight for height and arm circumference classifications more comparable in the assessment of acute malnutrition.
Kala-azar in south-west Ethiopia: seasonal variation in disease occurrence.
In a 12-year retrospective study of patients with kala-azar from Gidole Hospital in south-west Ethiopia it is demonstrated that most patients are diagnosed during the months August to November with another small peak from March to May. It is suggested that transmission is associated with two main periods of annual rainfall.
Xerophthalmia in the Gardula area of south-west Ethiopia.
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[Intestinal parasites. A study of 89 missionaries and children of missionaries in Southern Ethiopia].
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[Acute abdomen in Africa].
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Clinical features of rabies in man.
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Use of stix in examination of spinal fluid.
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