Health-related quality of life and associated factors in breast cancer patients in Abidjan (Ivory Coast).

Objective: The main objective of this study was to assess health-related quality of life, and to investigate associated factors in breast cancer patients living in Ivory Coast.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study that took place from August 1, 2022 to October 31, 2022 in the Medical Oncology Department of the Treichville University Hospital. Seventy-six breast cancer patients participated in the study.

Predicting factors of blood pressure normalization in hypertensive patients after short-term follow-up.

Introduction: Normalization of blood pressure in hypertensive patients is a major challenge for practitioners. Knowledge of the factors associated with normalization of blood pressure could help optimize management of these hypertensive patients. In this study, we analysed the factors predictive of this in a population of hypertensive patients followed as outpatients in a specialised department.

Aortic root enlargement versus stentless valve implantation for avoidance of patient-prosthesis mismatch in patients with small aortic root: protocol for a systematic review.

Introduction: Avoiding patient-prosthesis mismatch (PPM) in patients with small aortic annulus (SAA) during aortic valve replacement (AVR) is still a challenging surgical problem. Among surgical options available, aortic root enlargement (ARE) and stentless valve implantation (SVI) are the two most commonly used strategies. This systematic review will be conducted searching for superiority evidence based on comparative studies between these two options.

Influence of Shade in Cocoa Agroforestry Systems on Physicochemical and Functional Characteristics of Cocoa Beans in Bonon, Central-West Côte d'Ivoire.

Côte d'Ivoire remains the world's leading producer of cocoa beans. However, cocoa farming is now recognized as a primary cause of deforestation in the country. To combat deforestation, the Ivorian government recently advocates for agroforestry, a farming technique involving the cultivation of cocoa trees with fruit or forest trees.

Functional host-specific adaptation of the intestinal microbiome in hominids.

Fine-scale knowledge of the changes in composition and function of the human gut microbiome compared that of our closest relatives is critical for understanding the evolutionary processes underlying its developmental trajectory. To infer taxonomic and functional changes in the gut microbiome across hominids at different timescales, we perform high-resolution metagenomic-based analyzes of the fecal microbiome from over two hundred samples including diverse human populations, as well as wild-living chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas. We find human-associated taxa depleted within non-human apes and patterns of host-specific gut microbiota, suggesting the widespread acquisition of novel microbial clades along the evolutionary divergence of hosts.

TH1/TH2 repolarization in induction of immune tolerance to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs during the management of sickle cell disease vaso-occlusive crisis.

Respiratory manifestations related to the intake of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) during the treatment of the painful vaso-occlusive crisis of sickle cell disease are either a type I hypersensitivity mechanism of the Gell and Coombs classification, or a pharmacological mechanism of NSAIDs. The use of NSAIDs is essential in the Abidjan school because of the absence of therapeutic alternatives in the management of the inflammatory crisis of this disease. The induction of tolerance to NSAIDs initiated by the authors has had clear clinical success.

Incidental finding of Pott's disease with abscesses of the psoas simulating an appendicular syndrome.

Pott's disease or tuberculous spondylodiscitis is the disco-vertebral localization of Koch's bacillus. It causes progressive spinal lesions, with abscesses forming in the perivertebral soft tissues and epidural spaces. Medical imaging plays an indisputable role in the diagnosis and management of Pott's disease.

Are IL-1 family cytokines important in management of sickle cell disease in Sub-Saharan Africa patients?

Introduction: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is the most common genetic disease found in Africa and throughout the world. It is responsible for a high rate of hemolysis, systemic inflammation, and modulation of the immune system with the involvement of immunological molecules, such as cytokines. IL-1β is a major inflammatory cytokine.

Prevalence and Risks Factors of Prehypertension in Africa: A Systematic Review.

Background: Hypertension is one of the major factors for high mortality of adults in Africa. However, complications occur at lower values than those previously classified as hypertension. Thus, prehypertension is considered as a new category of hypertension and a major risk factor for developing clinical hypertension relative to those with normotension, it has been linked with increased future risk of hypertension as well as cardiovascular diseases.

Artemisinin-Based Combination Therapy Synergized with Medicinal Plants to Induce Musculotoxic Effects.

Introduction: Multivisceral, neurological, hepatic, and renal damage has been witnessed following the use of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) and herbal medicine. These multiple organ damages make us think of muscle damage. The objective was to study the myotoxicity of the combination of ACTs with medicinal plants.

Culture, school pregnancies, and society: pubertal rites in Côte d'Ivoire.

It is essential to understand the relationship between pubertal rites and the goals of socioeconomic insertion of children to school. Formal education promotes girls' rights and contributes to the creation of an egalitarian society. It empowers women to make better informed life choices.

Biochemical properties, nutritional values, health benefits and sustainability of palm oil.

Palm oil (PO), although subject of controversies, is the most consumed oil and the first source of oil widely produced. In this review, we discussed its biochemical composition in fatty acids, carotenoids, vitamin E, its phenolic compounds, and its nutritional benefits. We addressed its biochemical properties in relation with the stereospecific distribution of its unsaturated fatty acids at the sn-2 position in triacylglycerols.

Process of Attack on Cashew Tree Branches by (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) and the Relationship between These Attacks and the Phenological Stages in the Gbêkê Region (Central Côte d'Ivoire).

Cerambycidae attacks were studied from October 2015 to September 2017 in three cashew tree orchards in the locality of Brobo in central Côte d'Ivoire. One hundred fifty-three (153) cashew trees, arranged on a diagonal from each orchard, were selected for sampling. The attacked plants and the branches cut per tree were counted every 15 days.

Addressing Uptake of HIV Testing and Linkage to Care Among Men in Côte d'Ivoire: An Evaluation of the Brothers for Life Program Implementation.

Background: Historically, men in sub-Saharan Africa have worse outcomes along the HIV care continuum than women. Brothers for Life (BFL) is a community-based behavior change intervention for men, adapted for Côte d'Ivoire, involving group discussions that address salient gender norms and promote HIV prevention, testing, and linkage to care with support from peer navigators. The goal of this study was to describe the BFL program as implemented in Côte d'Ivoire, evaluate program implementation, and report uptake of HIV testing and treatment among BFL participants.

Preventive Beneficial Effect of an Aqueous Extract of Phyllanthus amarus Schum. and Thonn. (Euphorbiaceae) on DOCA-Salt-Induced Hypertension, Cardiac Hypertrophy and Dysfunction, and Endothelial Dysfunction in Rats.

This study investigated the preventive effect of an aqueous extract of the whole plant of Phyllanthus amarus (AEPA) on blood pressure, cardiac, and endothelial function in the deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA) salt-induced hypertensive rat model. Male Wistar rats were assigned into 5 groups receiving either vehicle (control and DOCA salt), DOCA salt combined with AEPA at 100 or 300 mg/kg, or AEPA (100 mg/kg) alone for 5 weeks. In addition, DOCA salt-treated rats were allowed free access to water containing 1% NaCl.

Comparative Antidiabetic Activity of Aqueous, Ethanol, and Methanol Leaf Extracts of and Their Effectiveness in Type 2 Diabetic Rats.

Native to Mexico, Mill. (avocado) is a fruit tree whose different parts (leaf, bark, roots, and stone) are used in traditional medicine especially against diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to investigate the beneficial effects of 28-day treatment with aqueous, ethanolic, and methanolic leaf extracts on glucose homeostasis in type 2 diabetic mellitus using Wistar rats.

Highly diversified shrew hepatitis B viruses corroborate ancient origins and divergent infection patterns of mammalian hepadnaviruses.

Shrews, insectivorous small mammals, pertain to an ancient mammalian order. We screened 693 European and African shrews for hepatitis B virus (HBV) homologs to elucidate the enigmatic genealogy of HBV. Shrews host HBVs at low prevalence (2.

Immunohistochemical Evaluation of Ki-67 and Comparison with Clinicopathologic Factors in Breast Carcinomas.

Background: Patients primarily received tamoxifen based on their menopausal status due to the lack of immunohistochemistry. A recent study has shown that hormonal receptors were not correlated with menopausal status, and thus, indicating that they present limited therapeutic and prognostic significance in breast cancer management. This study aimed to evaluate Ki-67 value and analyze its association with clinicopathologic parameters in breast cancer patients.

HER2 overexpression and correlation with other significant clinicopathologic parameters in Ivorian breast cancer women.

Background: The overexpression of HER2 is associated with worse prognosis of breast cancer which responds favourably to anti-HER2 therapy. The objective of this study was to determine the frequency of HER2 and its association with clinicopathologic factors in breast cancer in Ivory Coast.

Methods: The study included 608 patients who were histologically diagnosed with invasive primary breast carcinoma.

Perceptions and practice of health care workers regarding hepatitis B vaccination, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire, 2016.

Barriers to immunization are seen in both the general population and the health care workforce. We conducted this study to determine the perception of health workers on vaccination and the immunization of their patients. This cross-sectional descriptive analytical study was carried out among the medical staff in Bouaké, from 10 January to 07 March 2016.

Immunohistochemical determination of estrogen and progesterone receptors in breast cancer: relationship with clinicopathologic factors in 302 patients in Ivory Coast.

Background: Breast cancer is a heterogeneous and a hormone-dependent disease. The detection of the estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PgR) is crucial for prognostic evaluation and treatment choice of breast cancer for clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the expression of the hormonal receptors, their distribution, and their correlation with clinicopathologic prognostic parameters for the improvement of the patients' treatment in Ivory Coast.