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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1987

[Malaria and pregnancy. Comparative study of Central Africa and Western Africa].

The transmission of malaria occurs mainly in and following the rainy season (intermittent transmission) in the Sahelian zone of Africa. On the other hand in rainy Equatorial Africa the transmission of malaria is continuous so that it is stable and can give rise to continuous antigenic stimulation in pregnant women which in turn gives rise to passive early high level immunity in the infant. 150 couples of mother and cord blood and 206 placentae were studied. We found 12.1% of carriers of blood parasites in the blood as compared with 1.6% in the cord bloods (exclusively P. falciparum). Where there were medium quantities of fluorescent antibodies in the mothers 74% could be found in the cord serum. Two methods were used to measure antimalarial antibodies as evidence of infection and also partly protective: the first method was indirect immunofluorescence, and the second was co-electrosyneresis. There was a narrow correlation between the level of precipitant antibodies in the mothers who were infected and in the fetal cord bloods. Anatomo-pathological examination of the placenta showed that 2 out of the 206 had parasites in them, 9 out of the 206 had fibrin deposits around the villi and 6.8% of the placentae showed lesions of malaria. On the other hand, in West Africa there was very little maternal morbidity as evidence by fever and anaemia, or of fetal morbidity. There was no single case of congenital malaria. The levels of the plasma indices in the towns could be explained because of prophylaxis which was both controlled and uncontrolled.

Africa, Central↗
PubMed1987

[Ascariasis in Western Africa. Epidemiological review].

This paper draws, on the basis of available published reports, an outline of the epidemiological distribution of ascariasis in West Africa. This parasitic disease is easily transmitted in all humid areas which receive more than 1,400 mm rainfall every year. The endemicity pattern is typical of a contamination of the household environment. On the contrary, it is absent, with few exceptions, from a larger part of the region where drier conditions, combined with a series of specific socio-cultural factors, prevent the transmission from being anything else but sporadic. However, the author, although he recognizes that the maintenance of a short living parasite in a population is problematical under sporadic transmission conditions, warns that urban development in the future may very well result in a rapid spread of infections with ascaris.

Africa, Western↗
PubMed2000

The eradication of contagious bovine pleuropneumonia from south western Africa. A plan for action.

Contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) caused by the Mycoplasma mycoides subspecies mycoides SC is one of the major plagues affecting cattle. With the imminent eradication of rinderpest from Africa, CBPP will become the major epidemic disease on the continent, because the majority of countries in sub-Saharan Africa have the infection in their cattle. There is an enclave of CBPP on the borders of Angola, Botswana, Namibia, and Zambia. There has been endemic infection in the cattle herds on the borders of Angola and Namibia for more than 100 years, with irregular spread from these animals to the cattle of Botswana or Zambia. However, much of Angola and Namibia and all of Botswana and Zambia are currently free from the disease. This paper explains the origins of the problem and describes the current disease situation. A plan for the eradication of CBPP from this area is proposed and discussed. If this plan is successful it will release valuable resources to tackle other constraints on livestock and food production. Furthermore, it will act as a model for the eradication of CBPP from the remainder of the continent.

Africa↗
PubMed1999

[Pregnancy and delivery in western Africa. High risk motherhood].

According to the World Health Organization, 585,000 women die each year from a pregnancy-related cause, 99% of whom are from developing countries. The first International Conference on Safe Motherhood in 1987 sensitized the world community to this drama. Ever since, maternal mortality and its medical causes are better known. The maternal mortality ratio is highest in West Africa (1,020 maternal deaths per 100,000 live borns) when it is 27/100,000 in industrialized countries. Direct obstetric causes account for 80% of the deaths: hemorrhage, infection, dystocia, hypertension and abortion. Indirect causes are essentially anemia, malaria, hepatitis C and AIDS. Severe maternal morbidity is 6 to 10 times more frequent than maternal mortality but it also leads to handicaps which end up often in women's social rejection. However, WHO estimates that 95% of these deaths and handicaps are avoidable, and at a low cost.

Africa, Western↗
PubMed1999

[Pregnancy and delivery in western Africa. Towards a lower risk motherhood?].

The maternal mortality ratio is the health indicator displaying the greatest disparity between industrialized and developing countries. Medical causes have been better known since a decade ago but the non medical causes must be studied to develop appropriate strategies. Socio-economic causes play an important role but the poor performances of the maternal health services are directly responsible for the great majority of the deaths. The lack of qualified personnel, the poor management of those who are qualified, the misallocation of the rare resources, the poor relationships between health personnels and their clients, the shortages of supplies, essential drugs and blood lead to a poor quality of care to pregnant women. The Safe Motherhood Initiative has led to the development of simple but efficient strategies which would allow to dramatically reduce maternal and neonatal mortality as well as handicaps. This requires a political commitment of the governments of West Africa but, in spite of the strong advocacy of major donor agencies and international organizations, programs have yet to be implemented.

Africa, Western↗