Health effects of agrochemicals among farm workers in commercial farms of Kwekwe district, Zimbabwe.

Introduction: Farm workers are at a very high risk of occupational diseases due to exposure to pesticides resulting from inadequate education, training and safety systems. The farm worker spends a lot of time exposed to these harmful agrochemicals. Numerous acute cases with symptoms typical of agrochemical exposure were reported from the commercial farms.

Low tuberculosis case detection in Gokwe North and South, Zimbabwe in 2006.

Background: Case detection is an important component of tuberculosis control programmes. It helps identify sources of infection, treat them, and thus break the chain of infection.

Objective: To determine the reasons of low tuberculosis case detection in Gokwe Districts, Zimbabwe.

Quantitative differences in sputum smear microscopy results for acid-fast bacilli by age and sex in four countries.

Objective: To examine the influence of age and sex on the grading of tuberculosis (TB) sputum smear microscopy results.

Setting: Laboratories in Moldova, Mongolia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Methods: Data from nationally representative samples of laboratory registers were double-entered and validated, and discordances were resolved by rechecking against the registers.

Seasonal variation among tuberculosis suspects in four countries.

The objective of the study was to analyze monthly trends across a calendar year in tuberculosis suspects and sputum smear-positive cases based on nationally representative samples of tuberculosis laboratory registers from Moldova, Mongolia, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Out of the 47 140 suspects registered in the tuberculosis laboratory registers, 13.4% (6312) were cases.

Making pragmatic sense of data in the tuberculosis laboratory register.

Setting: Tuberculosis (TB) microscopy network in Moldova, Mongolia, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Objective: To evaluate how scrutinising the information recorded in the TB Laboratory Register can assist in improving the performance of the microscopy laboratory network and TB case management.

Methods: Review of records for completeness in registration of age, sex, reason for examination, analysis of variability patterns in serial smears and provision of exemplary statistical process charts of scanty positive results over time in the four countries.