Biomedical subjects

F Mhalu

Publications and source records attributed to F Mhalu.

41 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMed1987

Prevalence of HIV infection in healthy subjects and groups of patients in Tanzania.

During 1986 sera from 2508 individuals representing various groups of healthy subjects and patients in Dar es Salaam (the capital city of Tanzania), Bukoba (the capital of Kagera region in the northwest corner of Tanzania), Arusha (in the northeast of Tanzania) and Mbeya (in the southwest of Tanzania) were screened for antibodies to HIV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). All ELISA-positive sera were also tested by Western blot analysis. In Dar es Salaam HIV antibodies were demonstrated in 3.6% of 192 pregnant women, 5.2% of 784 blood donors, 29.0% of 224 barmaids, 8.0% of 50 male bar workers, 9.25% of 400 male and 12.2% of 90 female patients attending a clinic for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), 85.7% of 35 patients with herpes zoster and in 97.6% of 84 patients clinically suspected of AIDS. Among the barmaids the seropositivity rate was higher in younger women (45%) than in middle-aged women (11%). Only three (4.6%) out of 65 HIV-seropositive barmaids had HIV-related symptoms. The prevalence of HIV seropositivity among healthy low-risk subjects was highest in Bukoba, namely 16% of 100 pregnant women and 13.9% of 36 blood donors, while in Arusha only one (0.7%) of the 144 pregnant women and none of 41 bar workers, none of 42 blood donors and none of 61 patients with STD were positive. In Mbeya, 3.4% of 118 pregnant women and 11.8% of 34 men with STD were seropositive. Thus the prevalence of HIV infection differs considerably in various population groups and in various parts of Tanzania.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed1980

Asymptomatic gonorrhoea in women attending family planning clinics in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Results of a pilot study.

In an attempt to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic gonorrhoea in women in Tanzania urban areas, 405 women attending family planning clinics in Dar es Salaam had cervical swabs cultured on a selective gonorrhoea medium for Neisseria gonorrhoea. Twenty-nine of them (7.1%) were found with the organism despite absence of symptoms of the disease at the time of screening. Twenty (69%) of those with N. gonorrhoea came back after two weeks for results and all were treated with a single dose of penicillin. Only four (13.8%) of their male contacts came forward for treatment. In view of this high prevalence rate, it is recommended that gonorrhoea and other sexually transmitted diseases be regarded as among the most prevalent communicable diseases in the country necessitating control measures. Consideration should be given to screening for gonorrhoea in antenatal and family planning clinics as is now the case for syphilis. The material cost of gonococcal screening per individual was estimated at 10 T shillings (US$ 1.25) which is well above the health ministry's capability.

Adult↗

PubMed1975

Bacterial skin infections in preschool and school children in coastal Tanzania.

In coastal Tanzania, 1,855 preschool and school children were studied for pyoderma (superficial bacterial infections of the skin exclusive of secondarily infected scabies) and for scabies. The predisposing personal, socleoeconomic, and hygienic variables for both conditions were studied also. Pyoderma lesions and some secondarily infected scabies were cultured aerobically for bacterial isolates and the predisposing factors were determined by interviews, home visits, and physical examinations. Pyoderma was present in 6.9% and scabies in 16.6% of the children; both combined totalled 23.5% of the children. Both conditions were more common in rural than in urban environments, but scabies was most common in populations with poor socioeconomic and hygienic conditions. The predisposing factors included trauma, insect bites, hot and damp coastal weather, and poor socioeconomic and hygienic conditions.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Response to podophyllotoxin treatment of genital warts in relation to HIV-1 infection among patients in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Forty-two Tanzanian patients with genital warts were treated with 0.5% podophyllotoxin solution (Wartec) for 3 days. Thirteen patients (30.9%) were cured and a further 7 patients (16.7%) had more than 50% of lesions cleared at 6 weeks, while 19 patients were resistant to treatment. Three patients had a recurrence of lesions after an initial response. Thirty-three patients were tested for serological evidence of infection with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and 15 (45.5%) patients were shown to be HIV-1 antibody positive. The response to treatment was analysed in relation to HIV antibody status. The cure rate was significantly higher in HIV seronegative patients (8/18 = 44.4%) compared to HIV seropositive patients (1/15 = 6.7%) (P = 0.018). We conclude that podophyllotoxin treatment provides a useful non-hospital based treatment for genital warts, but HIV infection appears to contribute to the failure of treatment for genital warts.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Breast cancer during the HIV epidemic in an African population.

Both human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and certain malignancies including breast cancer occur predominantly in premenopausal women in an African population. Cancers that are associated with HIV infection are Kaposi's sarcoma (KS), non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) and invasive cervical carcinoma. Recently, cases of breast cancer have been reported in patients with HIV infection but an association between breast cancer and HIV infection has yet to be determined. The present study investigated for association between HIV infection and breast cancer. Among the 101 patients studied, 50 were cases with breast cancer while the remaining 51 were referents with conditions other than mammary cancer. Patients with breast cancer 30 years of age and below recorded in the Cancer registry during 1974-1987 constituted 8% while those recorded during the ongoing AIDS epidemic amounted to only 2%. When a similar comparison was undertaken among patients below 50 years there was also an overall decrease in the proportion of patients from 76.1 to 58.0%. Conversely, in the age groups above 50 years the breast cancer cases increased from 33.9 to 42% respectively (chi2=1.83 on 1df, p=0.18). The overall prevalence of HIV infection among the control group was 35.5% (95% CI=22.2-48.4) while among breast cancer patients it was 6% (95% CI=0.6-12.6). Women below 50 years of age with breast cancer were less likely to be HIV positive; OR=0.18: (95% CI=0.04-0.76) chi2=5.95; p=0.01. However, there is no basis to suggest that HIV infection is protective against this malignancy. AIDS associated mortality commonly occurs in the second and third decades of life and probably these deaths have changed the demographic of the disease in an African population. The impact of AIDS associated mortality on cancer registries needs attention.

Adult↗