Prospective, randomized clinical trial of laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal inguinal hernia repair using conventional versus custom-made (mosquito) mesh performed in Cameroon: a short-term outcomes.

Background: Adverse economic conditions often prevent the widespread implementation of modern surgical techniques in third world countries such as in Sub-Sahara Africa.

Aim Of The Study: To demonstrate that a modern technique (laparoscopic totally extraperitoneal inguinal hernioplasty [TEP]) can safely be performed at significantly lower cost using inexpensive mesh material.

Settings: Douala University Hospital Gynecology, Obstetrics and Pediatrics and two affiliated centers, Ayos Regional Hospital and Edéa Regional Hospital in Cameroon.

Defining episodes of diarrhoea: results from a three-country study in Sub-Saharan Africa.

The study was conducted to assess the effect of definition of episode on diarrhoeal morbidity and to develop a means of adjusting estimates of morbidity for the definition of episode used. This paper reports on a cohort study of 374 children, aged 9-32 months, in three African countries, which recorded frequency and consistency of stool over a seven-month period. Different definitions of episode were applied to these data to assess their effect on annualized diarrhoeal morbidity.

Impact of waste disposal on health of a poor urban community in Zimbambwe.

Objective: To assess excreta and waste disposal facilities available and their impact on sanitation related diseases in Epworth, an informal settlement on the outskirts of Harare.

Design: Descriptive cross-sectional survey.

Setting: This was a community based study of Epworth informal settlement.

An evaluation of duckweed-based pond systems as an alternative option for decentralised treatment and reuse of wastewater in Zimbabwe.

A study was carried out in Zimbabwe to evaluate the performance of duckweed ponds as an option for treating and reusing wastewater in small, decentralised communities. The study focused on nitrogen and phosphorus removal, operational problems, and duckweed application. Two full-scale trial plants at Nemanwa and Gutu-Mupandawana growth points were used.

Spatio-temporal genetic variability in the schistosome intermediate host Biomphalaria pfeifferi.

Genetic variation among temporally and spatially defined populations of the schistosome intermediate host, Biomphalaria pfeifferi, was analysed using RAPD markers. Snails were collected from each of eight sites that were 1-20 km apart, on four occasions, over a 2-year period. High levels of genetic variability were found within populations, between populations and between collections.