Répercussions psychosociales de la drépanocytose sur les parents d’enfants vivant à Kinshasa, République Démocratique du Congo: une étude qualitative

Introduction: l’insuffisance des moyens de base pour le dépistage et la prise en charge de la  socioculturel Africain. D’où la nécessité de réaliser un travail de mise en sens du vécu et des émotions en vue d’information et de soutien psychologique des familles des drépanocytaires. Cette étude a eu pour  objectif d’identifier la nature des répercussions psychosociales de la drépanocytose chez les parents et chez les malades. Méthodes: une approche qualitative a été utilisée. Des entretiens ont été menés auprès des parents et des  patients drépanocytaires. Nos résultats ont fait l’objet d’une analyse thématique articulée sur les  circonstances de découvertes de la maladie, les répercussions de la maladie et la perception de la prise en charge. Résultats: nos interviews ont montré des répercussions psychosociales importantes chez les  parents d’enfants drépanocytaires et de stigmatisation des difficultés d’insertion sociale et scolaire pour les enfants drépanocytaires. Ces derniers sont les grands oubliés des récits de parents. La prise en charge est uniquement médicale avec des ressources très limitées et aucun accompagnement psychologique de la famille n’est assuré. Conclusion: la prise en charge de cette maladie nécessite la mise en place d’une politique de prise en charge basée sur une approche globale de la maladie.Key words: Drépanocytose, répercussions psychologiques, enfant, Kinshasa, République Démocratique du Cong

Influential factors and barriers to opt for the uptake of HIV testing among the adult population at HIV-care admission in an area in the DR Congo: What can we learn?

Introduction: To reverse the trends of the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic, reinforcement of personal protection and antiretroviral treatment (ART) initiation at right time are needed. The aim of the study was, a decade after expanding AIDS medical care, to explore facilitating factors or those contributing to uptake or delay of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) testing among individuals who access voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) in an urban area of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Material and methods: A cross-sectional survey carried out among individuals attending three VCT centres in Kinshasa, DRC. Results: A total of 388 individuals with mean age 42 (9.4) years were included. Among them 34% were married, and 96% were living at home. Morbid and social events were the most important reasons cited for uptake of HIV testing in urban areas. Among the most common barriers of the HIV testing observed, stigma was the first reason significantly prevalent cited among man while fear to know the HIV status, ignorance of seropositivity concepts and the existence of VCT screening were prevalent among females. Conclusions: Two main events influencing the uptake of HIV testing and commonly known barriers to this were cited. These results generate questions about a fringe of the population, and call for further research for improved prevention policy.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Évaluation du niveau d'information sur la drépanocytose des étudiants en médecine à Bruxelles, Belgique

Aim: The increasing prevalence of sickle cell disease (SCD) is an important issue in Belgium due to migrations from high prevalence areas. It has become the most common genetic disease in Belgium. The impact is important in terms of health service delivery, especially since Belgian physicians have little experience with the disease. This study was designed to determine the current level of knowledge about SCD among medical students at the Louvain's Catholic University, Brussels. Method: This study was part of a larger cross-sectional and descriptive study carried out at the Louvain's Catholic University in December 2010. Data were collected from medical students using self-administered structured questionnaires. Results: In this study, 152 students were enrolled. All respondents had heard about SCD, the majority during their medical school curriculum. All students (100%) thought SCD is an African disease. A majority recognized that SCD is a serious illness and that it is linked with malaria. Anemia was the most frequently cited symptoms (98.0%) followed by splenomegaly (77.5%). Only 51% reported pain as a symptom. A majority knew they would have patients with the disease in their future career but only 2.3% of students considered specializing in the field of SCD. Using criteria for scoring information delivery, awareness about SCD was among the lowest in Belgium. Conclusion: For Belgian medical students, SCD is an exotic disease. Too little information about SCD is delivered. Continuing medical education about SCD can be recommended for medical students in Belgium. © 2013.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Blood pressure according Hb status and sex.

<p>Blood pressure according Hb status and sex.</p

Characteristics of the population of the study.

<p>*Age range: 2–13 years.</p

Biological profile of renal function in studied population.

<p>*GFR: Glomerular filtration rate.</p