A systematic review of epidemiology, risk factors, diagnosis, antifungal resistance, and management of invasive aspergillosis in Africa.

Invasive aspergillosis (IA) affects more than 300,000 people annually worldwide with a case fatality rate reaching 80%. However, in Africa despite the presence of risk factors for the development of IA, the burden of these fungal infections remained unknown. This systematic review aimed to update the available information on the epidemiology and the therapeutic management of IA in Africa.

[Polymorphisms in parasites and mutations in the resistance genes and in Nanoro area, Burkina Faso].

Introduction: from a genetic point of view P. falciparumis extremely polymorphic. There is a variety of parasite strains infesting individuals living in malaria endemic areas.

Plasmodium falciparum gametocyte carriage in symptomatic patients shows significant association with genetically diverse infections, anaemia, and asexual stage density.

Background: Multi-genotype malaria infections are frequent in endemic area, and people commonly harbour several genetically distinct Plasmodium falciparum variants. The influence of genetic multiplicity and whether some specific genetic variants are more or less likely to invest into gametocyte production is not clearly understood. This study explored host and parasite-related risk factors for gametocyte carriage, and the extent to which some specific P.

Determinants of Plasmodium falciparum multiplicity of infection and genetic diversity in Burkina Faso.

Background: Investigating malaria transmission dynamics is essential to inform policy decision making. Whether multiplicity of infection (MOI) dynamic from individual infections could be a reliable malaria metric in high transmission settings with marked variation in seasons of malaria transmission has been poorly assessed. This study aimed at investigating factors driving Plasmodium falciparum MOI and genetic diversity in a hyperendemic area of Burkina Faso.

Optimal Approach and Strategies to Strengthen Pharmacovigilance in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Cohort Study of Patients Treated with First-Line Artemisinin-Based Combination Therapies in the Nanoro Health and Demographic Surveillance System, Burkina Faso.

Background And Purpose: Resource-limited countries face challenges in setting up effective pharmacovigilance systems. This study aimed to monitor the occurrence of adverse events (AEs) after the use of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs), identify potential drivers of reporting suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) and monitor AEs among women who were inadvertently exposed to ACTs in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Patients And Methods: We conducted a prospective observational study from May 2010 to July 2012 in Nanoro Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS), Burkina Faso.

First trimester use of artemisinin-based combination therapy and the risk of low birth weight and small for gestational age.

Background: While there is increasing evidence on the safety of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) for the case management of malaria in early pregnancy, little is known about the association between exposure to ACT during the first trimester and the effect on fetal growth.

Methods: Data were analysed from prospective studies of pregnant women enrolled in Mozambique, Burkina Faso and Kenya designed to determine the association between anti-malarial drug exposure in the first trimester and pregnancy outcomes, including low birth weight (LBW) and small for gestational age (SGA). Exposure to anti-malarial drugs was ascertained retrospectively by record linkage using a combination of data collected from antenatal and adult outpatient clinic registries, prescription records and self-reported medication usage by the women.

Supporting evidence for a human reservoir of invasive non-Typhoidal Salmonella from household samples in Burkina Faso.

Background: Salmonella Typhimurium and Enteritidis are major causes of bloodstream infection in children in sub-Saharan Africa. This study assessed evidence for their zoonotic versus human reservoir.

Methods: Index patients were children with blood culture confirmed Salmonella infection recruited during a microbiological surveillance study in Nanoro, rural Burkina between May 2013 and August 2014.

Classical Cardiovascular Risk Factors and HIV are Associated With Carotid Intima-Media Thickness in Adults From Sub-Saharan Africa: Findings From H3Africa AWI-Gen Study.

Background Studies on the determinants of carotid intima-media thickness ( CIMT ), a marker of sub-clinical atherosclerosis, mostly come from white, Asian, and diasporan black populations. We present CIMT data from sub-Saharan Africa, which is experiencing a rising burden of cardiovascular diseases and infectious diseases. Methods and Results The H3 (Human Hereditary and Health) in Africa's AWI-Gen (African-Wits-INDEPTH partnership for Genomic) study is a cross-sectional study conducted in adults aged 40 to 60 years from Burkina Faso, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa.

Socioeconomic and environmental factors associated with malaria hotspots in the Nanoro demographic surveillance area, Burkina Faso.

Background: With limited resources and spatio-temporal heterogeneity of malaria in developing countries, it is still difficult to assess the real impact of socioeconomic and environmental factors in order to set up targeted campaigns against malaria at an accurate scale. Our goal was to detect malaria hotspots in rural area and assess the extent to which household socioeconomic status and meteorological recordings may explain the occurrence and evolution of these hotspots.

Methods: Data on malaria cases from 2010 to 2014 and on socioeconomic and meteorological factors were acquired from four health facilities within the Nanoro demographic surveillance area.

Gender differences in sociodemographic and behavioural factors associated with BMI in an adult population in rural Burkina Faso - an AWI-Gen sub-study.

Background: The global health transition is linked with an increased burden of non-communicable diseases with cardiovascular diseases leading the epidemic. In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the prevalence of obesity has increased during the past decades and there is a need to investigate the associated driving factors. In Burkina Faso obesity remains low, especially in rural areas.

Genomic and environmental risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases in Africa: methods used for Phase 1 of the AWI-Gen population cross-sectional study.

There is an alarming tide of cardiovascular and metabolic disease (CMD) sweeping across Africa. This may be a result of an increasingly urbanized lifestyle characterized by the growing consumption of processed and calorie-dense food, combined with physical inactivity and more sedentary behaviour. While the link between lifestyle and public health has been extensively studied in Caucasian and African American populations, few studies have been conducted in Africa.

First-trimester artemisinin derivatives and quinine treatments and the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes in Africa and Asia: A meta-analysis of observational studies.

Background: Animal embryotoxicity data, and the scarcity of safety data in human pregnancies, have prevented artemisinin derivatives from being recommended for malaria treatment in the first trimester except in lifesaving circumstances. We conducted a meta-analysis of prospective observational studies comparing the risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, and major congenital anomaly (primary outcomes) among first-trimester pregnancies treated with artemisinin derivatives versus quinine or no antimalarial treatment.

Methods And Findings: Electronic databases including Medline, Embase, and Malaria in Pregnancy Library were searched, and investigators contacted.

Assessment of the safety of antimalarial drug use during early pregnancy (ASAP): protocol for a multicenter prospective cohort study in Burkina Faso, Kenya and Mozambique.

Background: A major unresolved safety concern for malaria case management is the use of artemisinin combination therapies (ACTs) in the first trimester of pregnancy. There is a need for human data to inform policy makers and treatment guidelines on the safety of artemisinin combination therapies (ACT) when used during early pregnancy.

Methods: The overall goal of this paper is to describe the methods and implementation of a study aimed at developing surveillance systems for identifying exposures to antimalarials during early pregnancy and for monitoring pregnancy outcomes using health and demographic surveillance platforms.