Seroepidemiology of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women and detection of infection acquired during pregnancy in Cotonou, Benin.

Assessing the prevalence of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women and the associated risk factors is the first step in defining policy for the prevention of congenital toxoplasmosis in a given population. An epidemiological study was conducted during prenatal consultations at the CHU-MEL of Cotonou (Benin) between September 2018 and April 2021 and recruited 549 pregnant women to determine the seroprevalence and potential factors associated with Toxoplasma gondii infection. Toxoplasma gondii IgG/IgM antibodies were detected using an enzyme-linked fluorescence assay (ELFA) technique, an IgG avidity test and an IgG/IgM comparative Western blot to diagnose the maternal toxoplasmosis serological status, the possibility of an infection acquired during pregnancy and congenital infection, respectively.

Using antenatal care as a platform for malaria surveillance data collection: study protocol.

Background: While many malaria-endemic countries have health management information systems that can measure and report malaria trends in a timely manner, these routine systems have limitations. Periodic community cross-sectional household surveys are used to estimate malaria prevalence and intervention coverage but lack geographic granularity and are resource intensive. Incorporating malaria testing for all women at their first antenatal care (ANC) visit (i.

The use of video job-aids to improve the quality of seasonal malaria chemoprevention delivery.

Mobile phones are increasingly used in community health programmes, but the use of video job-aids that can be displayed on smart phones has not been widely exploited. We investigated the use of video job-aids to support the delivery of seasonal malaria chemoprevention (SMC) in countries in West and Central Africa. The study was prompted by the need for training tools that could be used in a socially distanced manner during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Asymptomatic infection among primary schoolchildren and -mediated malaria transmission: A cross-sectional study in Ouidah; south-western Benin.

Understanding the contribution of asymptomatic carriers in malaria transmission might be helpful to design and implement new control measures. The present study explored the prevalence of asymptomatic and symptomatic infections (asexual and sexual stages) and the contribution of asymptomatic carriers to -mediated malaria transmission in Ouidah (Benin). Thick and thin blood smears were examined from finger-prick blood specimens using light microscopy, and the density of both asexual and sexual stages of species was calculated.

Entomological Characteristics of Malaria Transmission across Benin: An Essential Element for Improved Deployment of Vector Control Interventions.

Entomological surveillance in Benin has historically been limited to zones where indoor residual spraying was performed or where long-standing sentinel surveillance sites existed. However, there are significant country-wide gaps in entomological knowledge. The National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) assessed population dynamics of Anopheles vectors and malaria transmission in each of Benin’s 12 departments to create an entomological risk profile.

Malaria Burden and Associated Risk Factors in an Area of Pyrethroid-Resistant Vectors in Southern Benin.

Malaria remains the main cause of morbidity and mortality in Benin despite the scale-up of long-lasting insecticidal nets (LLINs), indoor residual spraying, and malaria case management. This study aimed to determine the malaria burden and its associated risk factors in a rural area of Benin characterized by high net coverage and pyrethroid-resistant mosquito vectors. A community-based cross-sectional survey was conducted in three districts in southern Benin.

Plasmodium falciparum msp1 and msp2 genetic diversity in parasites isolated from symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria subjects in the South of Benin.

Symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria patients are considered as the reservoirs of human Plasmodium. In the present study, we have evaluated the Plasmodium falciparum merozoite surface protein-1 (Pfmsp1) and protein-2 (Pfmsp2) genetic diversity among the symptomatic and asymptomatic malaria infection from health facilities in Cotonou, Benin Republic. A cross-sectional study recruited 158 individuals, including 77 from the asymptomatic and 81 from the symptomatic groups.

Upsurge of malaria transmission after indoor residual spraying withdrawal in Atacora region in Benin, West Africa.

Background: In Benin, malaria vector control mostly relies on long-lasting, insecticidal-treated bed nets (LLINs) and indoor residual spraying (IRS) operations. From 2011 to 2016, an IRS programme has been implemented in Atacora region. However, in 2017 the programme was withdrawn from two other regions in the northern part of the country, with hopes that gains would be relatively sustained because of the seasonality of malaria transmission.

Assessment of treatment impact on lymphatic filariasis in 13 districts of Benin: progress toward elimination in nine districts despite persistence of transmission in some areas.

Background: Lymphatic filariasis (LF) is still a public health burden in many developing countries. In Benin, a West African country, at least 6.6 million people are at risk for LF.

Implications of insecticide resistance for malaria vector control with long-lasting insecticidal nets: a WHO-coordinated, prospective, international, observational cohort study.

Background: Scale-up of insecticide-based interventions has averted more than 500 million malaria cases since 2000. Increasing insecticide resistance could herald a rebound in disease and mortality. We aimed to investigate whether insecticide resistance was associated with loss of effectiveness of long-lasting insecticidal nets and increased malaria disease burden.

Low use of artemisinin-based combination therapy for febrile children under five and barriers to correct fever management in Benin: a decade after WHO recommendation.

Background: Artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), used to treat uncomplicated malaria cases, is one of the main strategies of malaria control and elimination. One of the main objectives of the Benin National Malaria Control Program's (NMCP) strategic plan is to ensure that at least 80% of uncomplicated malaria is treated with ACT within 24 h. Therefore, it was of great interest to measure whether the country case management of fever amongst children under five, adhered to the NMCP's strategic plan and look into the barriers to the use of ACT.

Insecticide-treated nets provide protection against malaria to children in an area of insecticide resistance in Southern Benin.

Background: Malaria control is heavily reliant on insecticides, especially pyrethroids. Resistance of mosquitoes to insecticides may threaten the effectiveness of insecticide-based vector control and lead to a resurgence of malaria in Africa.

Methods: In 21 villages in Southern Benin with high levels of insecticide resistance, the resistance status of local vectors was measured at the same time as the prevalence of malaria infection in resident children.

[Prevalence and factors associated with cryptococcal antigenemia in HIV-infected patients in Cotonou/Benin].

Objective: Determine the prevalence of cryptococcal antigenemia and associated factors in HIV-infected patients in Cotonou in order to introduce systematic screening in national guidelines.

Patients And Methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study conducted from June to September 2015 in four outpatient treatment centers with adult patients infected with HIV, receiving or not antiretroviral treatment with a number of CD4≤200cell/μL and who have given their informed consent to participate in the study. For each enrolled patient, after signing the informed consent form, it was made a clinical examination and administration of a questionnaire to collect general information, treatment and biological data.

Lack of artemisinin resistance in Plasmodium falciparum in northwest Benin after 10 years of use of artemisinin-based combination therapy.

Aim: In Benin, artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) has been recommended as the first-line treatment for uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria since 2004. The emergence in Southeast Asia of parasites that are resistant to artemisinins poses a serious threat to global control of this disease. The presence of artemisinin resistance genotypes in parasite populations in Benin is currently unknown.

Therapeutic efficacy of artemether-lumefantrine for the treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria in northwest Benin.

Background: Artemether/lumefantrine (Coartem(®)) has been used as a treatment for uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum infection since 2004 in Benin. This open-label, non-randomized study evaluated efficacy of artemether-lumefantrine (AL) in treatment of uncomplicated falciparum malaria in children aged 6-59 months in two malaria transmission sites in northwest Benin.

Methods: A 42-day therapeutic efficacy study was conducted between August and November 2014, in accordance with 2009 WHO guidelines.

[Place of vulvovaginal candidiasis in the lower genital tract infections and associated risk factors among women in Benin].

Objective: Determine the place of vulvo-vaginal candidiasis (VVC) in the lower genital infections and seek risk factors among women in Benin.

Patients And Methods: The study was conducted in the laboratory of mycology of Hôpital de la Mère et de l'Enfant Lagune (Homel) from 1st March to 31st July, 2013. It involved all the women who were asked a vaginal swab and gave their consent in written form.

[Evaluation of a rapid diagnostic test in the diagnosis of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women in Cotonou (Bénin)].

The aim of the study was to evaluate the performance of the ImmunoComb® Toxo IgG and ImmunoComb® Toxo IgMassays (rapid diagnostic test) in the laboratory diagnosis of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women in Cotonou. We interviewed 266 pregnant women, who first answered an epidemiological questionnaire, and collected blood samples for measurement of IgG and IgM anti T. gondii antibodies with the ImmunoComb toxo assays and with the ARCHITECT CIMA method.

[Epidemiology of urinary schistosomiasis among school children in Péhunco area, Northern Benin. Malacological survey].

Schistosomiasis is a public health problem in Benin but prevalence estimates vary widely. Parasitological (from May to September 2010) and malacological surveys (from September 2010 to June 2012) were conducted to determine the current status of urinary schistosomiasis among 1 585 schoolchildren from 18 primary schools of Péhunco area, North-West Benin, using two parasitological tests. Pupils were enrolled with a mean age of 11 years (from 7 to 16 years-old age) and 51.

[Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis among schoolchildren of Nikki and Pèrèrè, two northeastern towns of Benin].

Infection with schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and the burden of disease associated with parasites is enormous. A study was performed to determine the transmission and prevalence of human schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis among school children of Nikki and Perere, two north eastern towns of Benin, bordering Republic of Nigeria. Parasitological investigations by urine filtration and Kato-Katz conducted on 1,344 school children indicated a mean prevalence of S.

Low prevalence of the molecular markers of Plasmodium falciparum resistance to chloroquine and sulphadoxine/pyrimethamine in asymptomatic children in Northern Benin.

Background: In Benin, very few studies have been done on the genetics of Plasmodium falciparum and the resistance markers of anti-malarial drugs, while malaria treatment policy changed in 2004. Chloroquine (CQ) and sulphadoxine pyrimethamine (SP) have been removed and replaced by artemisinin-combination therapy (ACT). The objective of this study was to determine the genetic diversity of P.

Genetic polymorphism of merozoite surface protein-1 and merozoite surface protein-2 in Plasmodium falciparum isolates from children in South of Benin.

The aim of this study was to determine the genetic diversity of Plasmodium falciparum by analyzing the polymorphism of the msp-1 and msp-2 genes and the multiplicity of infection in children with uncomplicated malaria in southern Benin. Blood samples of children with fever or history of fever with thick smear positive P. falciparum were collected on filter paper.

Prevalence of the molecular marker of Plasmodium falciparum resistance to chloroquine and sulphadoxine/pyrimethamine in Benin seven years after the change of malaria treatment policy.

Background: In Benin, the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) changed the policy of malaria treatment in 2004 following increasing of failure rate of treatment with chloroquine (CQ) and sulphadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP). The objective of this study was to determinate the prevalence of Plasmodium falciparum molecular markers that are associated with resistance to CQ and SP in Benin seven years after the new policy was instituted.

Methods: The study was conducted in southern Benin, a region characterized by a perennial malaria transmission.

Predictive factors of plasma HIV suppression during pregnancy: a prospective cohort study in Benin.

Objective: To investigate the factors associated with HIV1 RNA plasma viral load (pVL) below 40 copies/mL at the third trimester of pregnancy, as part of prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) in Benin.

Design: Sub study of the PACOME clinical trial of malaria prophylaxis in HIV-infected pregnant women, conducted before and after the implementation of the WHO 2009 revised guidelines for PMTCT.

Methods: HIV-infected women were enrolled in the second trimester of pregnancy.