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Biomedical subjects

O Sanfo

Publications and source records attributed to O Sanfo.

3 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

[Cataract in Burkina Faso: factors of choice between modern and traditional surgical procedures].

Despite advances in cataract surgery, many peoples in the Sub-Saharan region are still treated by the traditional lens couching technique. The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors leading to the choice of lens couching for cataract treatment. A total 34 patients (40 eyes) from the northern Burkina Faso who underwent lens couching were examined and interviewed. Most patients (56%) did not understand the etiology of cataracts and attributed the disease to fate. Nor did they know of any other cataract treatment than lens couching. Only 13 patients (38.2%) would recommend modern cataract treatment and 52% suggested that health workers should come out into the villages and operate as traditional healers do. In spite of its potentially dramatic complications, lens couching is still the only method of cataract treatment known in some communities of Burkina Faso. Public information campaigns are needed to put an end to the ancestral practice of lens couching.

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PubMedDate not supplied

Trachoma, flies and environmental factors in Burkina Faso.

The presence of flies is one of the earliest risk factors for trachoma and it has been suggested that flies could act as vectors for transmission of chlamydiae. A national trachoma survey was conducted in 1997 in Burkina Faso to (i) study the relationship between trachoma occurrence, flies, dirty faces and some environmental factors, and (ii) investigate the role of flies in the presence of trachoma. The country was stratified into eight groups of provinces and a random sample of 30 clusters was selected in each group. All children aged < 10 years were examined for the diagnosis of active trachoma (trachomatous inflammation which was follicular and/or intense) and the dirtiness of the face and the presence of flies on the face were recorded. The children's carers were questioned about the number of baths given and daily face-washing. Household heads were asked about ownership of cattle and small ruminants. The presence of latrines, a stable, and garbage collection inside the yard was noted. Among 16,514 children examined, 27.0% had active trachoma and 3.3% intense inflammatory trachoma. Flies were present on 11.2% of children's faces and 82.4% and 19.7% of these children had active and intense inflammatory trachoma, respectively. Among the 30.2% of children with dirty faces, 70.2% had active and 10.2% intense inflammatory trachoma. In multivariate analysis, at least one daily bath showed a protective effect on both active and intense inflammatory trachoma. Face-washing twice daily was found to be significantly protective for active trachoma in some regions. A strong association was demonstrated between the presence of flies and dirty faces (odds ratio = 334, 95% confidence interval 202-546). The presence of flies on children's faces, dirty faces and trachoma appeared to be strongly associated. Although the presence of flies may be a marker of socio-economic status and is probably linked with other trachoma risk factors, our data indicated that interventions targeting fly control should be an important issue in controlling trachoma.

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