Determination of the Plasmodium vivax relapse pattern in Camopi, French Guiana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Malaria is a major public health problem in French Guiana, where <it>Plasmodium vivax </it>has become the dominant malaria species since 2000. As in others endemic areas, it is important to specify the pattern of vivax malaria relapses and to try to discriminate efficiently re-infections from relapses.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This study was conducted in children born between January 1, 2001 and December 31, 2008 in Camopi, an Amerindian village located in the Amazon forest (n = 325), using an open cohort design. Primary and secondary attack rates of <it>P. vivax </it>were calculated using survival analysis. With the difference between the primary and secondary rates, this study aimed to estimate indirectly <it>P. vivax </it>relapse rate and evaluate its time evolution.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Of the 1042 malaria attacks recorded, 689 (66%) were due to <it>P. vivax </it>(without mixed infection). One hundred and fifty one children had their primary attack with <it>P. vivax </it>and 106 had their two first attacks with <it>P. vivax</it>. In the absence of primaquine treatment, it was shown that <it>P. vivax </it>relapses mainly occurred during the first three months after the first attack. Thirty percent of children never had a relapse, 42% had a relapse before the first month after primary attack, 59% before the second month and 63% before the third month.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This study confirmed that the relapse pattern in Camopi was compatible with the pattern described for the <it>P. vivax </it>Chesson (tropical) strain. In addition, due to the relapse rate time evolution, a simple arbitrary classification rule could be constructed: before 90 days after the primary attack, the secondary attack is a relapse; after 90 days, it is a re-infection. Adapted management of malaria cases based on these results could be devised.</p

Environmental, entomological, socioeconomic and behavioural risk factors for malaria attacks in Amerindian children of Camopi, French Guiana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Malaria is a major health issue in French Guiana. Amerindian communities remain the most affected. A previous study in Camopi highlighted the predominant role of environmental factors in the occurrence of malaria. However, all parameters involved in the transmission were not clearly identified. A new survey was conducted in order to clarify the risk factors for the presence of malaria cases in Camopi.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>An open cohort of children under seven years of age was set up on the basis of biologically confirmed malaria cases for the period 2001-2009. Epidemiological and observational environmental data were collected using two structured questionnaires. Data were analysed with a multiple failures multivariate Cox model. The influence of climate and the river level on malaria incidence was evaluated by time-series analysis. Relationships between <it>Anopheles darlingi </it>human biting rates and malaria incidence rates were estimated using Spearman's rank correlation.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The global annual incidence over the nine-year period was 238 per 1,000 for <it>Plasmodium falciparum</it>, 514 per 1,000 for <it>Plasmodium visa </it>and 21 per 1,000 for mixed infections. The multivariate survival analysis associated higher malaria incidence with living on the Camopi riverside vs. the Oyapock riverside, far from the centre of the Camopi hamlet, in a home with numerous occupants and going to sleep late. On the contrary, living in a house cleared of all vegetation within 50 m and at high distance of the forest were associated with a lower risk. Meteorological and hydrological characteristics appeared to be correlated with malaria incidence with different lags. <it>Anopheles darlingi </it>human biting rate was also positively correlated to incident malaria in children one month later.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Malaria incidence in children remains high in young children despite the appearance of immunity in children around three years of age. The closeness environment but also the meteorological parameters play an important role in malaria transmission among children under seven years of age in Camopi.</p

Is dengue and malaria co-infection more severe than single infections? A retrospective matched-pair study in French Guiana

BACKGROUND: Dengue and malaria are two major arthropod-borne infections in tropical areas, but dual infections were only described for the first time in 2005. Reports of these concomitant infections are scarce and there is no evidence of more severe clinical and biological pictures than single infections. METHODS: To compare co-infections to dengue alone and malaria alone, a retrospective matched-pair study was conducted between 2004 and 2010 among patients admitted in the emergency department of Cayenne hospital, French Guiana. RESULTS: 104 dengue and malaria co-infection cases were identified during the study period and 208 individuals were matched in two comparison groups: dengue alone and malaria alone. In bivariate analysis, co-infection clinical picture was more severe than separated infections, in particular using the severe malaria WHO criteria. In multivariate analysis, independent factors associated with co-infection versus dengue were: masculine gender, CRP level > 50 mg/L, thrombocytopaenia < 50 10(9)/L, and low haematocrit <36% and independent factors significantly associated with co-infections versus malaria were red cells transfusion, low haematocrit < 36%, thrombocytopaenia < 50 10(9)/L and low Plasmodium parasitic load < 0.001%. CONCLUSIONS: In the present study, dengue and malaria co-infection clinical picture seems to be more severe than single infections in French Guiana, with a greater risk of deep thrombocytopaenia and anaemia

Influence of climate and river level on the incidence of malaria in Cacao, French Guiana

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The epidemiological profiles of vector-borne diseases, such as malaria, are strongly associated with environmental conditions. An understanding of the effect of the climate on the occurrence of malaria may provide indirect insight into the anopheles mosquito vectors endemic to a particular region. The association between meteorological and hydrographical factors and the occurrence of malaria was studied in a village in French Guiana during an epidemic caused essentially by <it>Plasmodium vivax</it>.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A cohort of confirmed cases of <it>P. vivax </it>malaria occurring between 2002 and 2007 was studied to search for an association between the number of new infection episodes occurring each month, mean, maximum and minimum monthly temperatures, cumulative rainfall for the month and the mean monthly height of the river bordering the village, with the aid of time series. Cross-correlation analysis revealed that these meteorological factors had large effects on the number of episodes, over a study period of 12 months.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Climatic factors supporting the continuance of the epidemic were identified in the short-term (low minimum temperatures during the month), medium-term (low maximum temperatures two months before) and long-term (low maximum temperatures nine months before and high lowest level of the river 12 months before). Cross-correlation analysis showed that the effects of these factors were greatest at the beginning of the short rainy season.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The association between the river level and the number of malaria attacks provides clues to better understand the environment of malaria transmission and the ecological characteristics of the vectors in the region.</p

Compliance with the current recommendations for prescribing antibiotics for paediatric community-acquired pneumonia is improving: data from a prospective study in a French network

International audienceBACKGROUND: Lower respiratory tract infection is a common cause of consultation and antibiotic prescription in paediatric practice. The misuse of antibiotics is a major cause of the emergence of multidrug-resistant bacteria. The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency, changes over time, and determinants of non-compliance with antibiotic prescription recommendations for children admitted in paediatric emergency department (PED) with community-acquired pneumonia (CAP).METHODS: We conducted a prospective two-period study using data from the French pneumonia network that included all children with CAP, aged one month to 15 years old, admitted to one of the ten participating paediatric emergency departments. In the first period, data from children included in all ten centres were analysed. In the second period, we analysed children in three centers for which we collected additional data. Two experts assessed compliance with the current French recommendations. Independent determinants of non-compliance were evaluated using a logistic regression model. The frequency of non-compliance was compared between the two periods for the same centres in univariate analysis, after adjustment for confounding factors.RESULTS: A total of 3034 children were included during the first period (from May 2009 to May 2011) and 293 in the second period (from January to July 2012). Median ages were 3.0 years [1.4-5] in the first period and 3.6 years in the second period. The main reasons for non-compliance were the improper use of broad-spectrum antibiotics or combinations of antibiotics. Factors that were independently associated with non-compliance with recommendations were younger age, presence of risk factors for pneumococcal infection, and hospitalization. We also observed significant differences in compliance between the treatment centres during the first period. The frequency of non-compliance significantly decreased from 48 to 18.8 % between 2009 and 2012. The association between period and non-compliance remained statistically significant after adjustment for confounding factors. Amoxicillin was prescribed as the sole therapy significantly more frequently in the second period (71 % vs. 54.2 %, p < 0.001).CONCLUSIONS: We observed a significant increase in the compliance with recommendations, with a reduction in the prescription of broad-spectrum antibiotics, efforts to improve antibiotic prescriptions must continue

Corruption Kills: Estimating the Global Impact of Corruption on Children Deaths

BACKGROUND: Information on the global risk factors of children mortality is crucial to guide global efforts to improve survival. Corruption has been previously shown to significantly impact on child mortality. However no recent quantification of its current impact is available. METHODS: The impact of corruption was assessed through crude Pearson's correlation, univariate and multivariate linear models coupling national under-five mortality rates in 2008 to the national "perceived level of corruption" (CPI) and a large set of adjustment variables measured during the same period. FINDINGS: The final multivariable model (adjusted R(2)= 0.89) included the following significant variables: percentage of people with improved sanitation (p.value<0.001), logarithm of total health expenditure (p.value = 0.006), Corruption Perception Index (p.value<0.001), presence of an arid climate on the national territory (p = 0.006), and the dependency ratio (p.value<0.001). A decrease in CPI of one point (i.e. a more important perceived corruption) was associated with an increase in the log of national under-five mortality rate of 0.0644. According to this result, it could be roughly hypothesized that more than 140000 annual children deaths could be indirectly attributed to corruption. INTERPRETATIONS: Global response to children mortality must involve a necessary increase in funds available to develop water and sanitation access and purchase new methods for prevention, management, and treatment of major diseases drawing the global pattern of children deaths. However without paying regard to the anti-corruption mechanisms needed to ensure their proper use, it will also provide further opportunity for corruption. Policies and interventions supported by governments and donors must integrate initiatives that recognise how they are inter-related

Value of open data in epidemiology : using ecological studies in infectious epidemiology

Les études écologiques sont maintenant considérées comme prometteuses en raison de leur capacité à intégrer dans un même modèle autant des facteurs individuels que populationnels. Le mouvement récent de l’open data pourrait jouer un rôle important dans la pérennisation des démarches multidisciplinaires. Cette thèse montre que l’association des méthodes écologiques aux données publiques permet d’éclairer sous un angle nouveau des problématiques des maladies infectieuses.En Guyane Française, des méthodes écologiques dites de séries temporelles couplées aux données climatiques libres ont contribué à une meilleure compréhension du rôle du climat sur la dynamique de la transmission du paludisme, de la leishmaniose cutanée ainsi que de l’histoplasmose disséminée. L’utilisation de méthodes écologiques sur des données libres de la littérature scientifique concernant la séroprévalence toxoplasmose dans les populations humaines a permis d’identifier les principaux facteurs influençant le niveau de séroprévalence globale et indirectement du risque de toxoplasmose congénital associé. L’association de données onusiennes à des méthodes écologiques a permis de montrer qu’une prévalence importante d’ascaridiose est associée à une réduction par 10 de l’incidence du paludisme et l’impact significatif de la corruption sur la mortalité juvéno-infantile et sur les résistances aux anti-tuberculeux. Ces études montrent que l’association des méthodes écologiques aux données publiques permet d’éclairer sous un angle nouveau des problématiques des maladies infectieuses. Ce type d‘étude fournit la flexibilité nécessaire à l’étude des interactions complexes des nombreux déterminants de la santé.Ecological studies are now considered promising because of their ability to integrate as well as individual factors than populational ones in the same model. The recent open data movement could play an important role in the sustainability of multidisciplinary approaches. The studies developed in this thesis show that the combination of ecological methods with open data could give original results in the issues of infectious diseases.In French Guiana, ecological methods called time series, coupled with open climate data, have contributed to a better understanding of the role of climate on the dynamics of malaria, cutaneous leishmaniasis and disseminated histoplasmosis. The use of ecological methods with open data from the scientific literature concerning toxoplasmosis seroprevalence in human populations has permitted to identify the main factors influencing the level of overall seroprevalence and indirectly to estimate the associated risk of congenital toxoplasmosis.The combination of UN data to ecological methods has shown that a high prevalence of ascariasis is associated with a reduction from 10 in the incidence of malaria and that corruption has a significant impact on child mortality and resistance to TB.The various studies developed in this thesis show that the combination of ecological methods to public data sheds a new light on the issues of infectious diseases. This type of study provides the flexibility to study the complex interactions of many determinants of health

Predictive Factors of HIV Status Disclosure to Sex Partner in Pregnant Women in Cayenne, French Guiana

International audienceBackground: The aim of this study was to identify the predictive factors of HIV disclosure to the sex partner in HIV pregnant women in Cayenne (French Guiana). Methods: A case control study was conducted including all deliveries in Cayenne from 2003 to 2010. For each case, a standardized questionnaire including epidemiological, clinical, and biological data was administered. Thirty-four women in the first group and 95 in the control group were included in the study. Results: The logistic regression showed that the variables that independently predicted HIV disclosure to the sex partner were the existence of a profession (OR=5.62, IC95% =1.3-24.26, p=0.021), disclosure to the doctor (OR=12.65, IC95% =2.87-55.8, p<0.001), the negative representations of HIV (OR=5.99, IC95% =1.17-30.69, p=0.032). The partner's HIV status was also linked to the outcome (OR=0.01, IC95% =0.001-0.07, p<0.001). Conclusion: These predictive factors should be considered in positive prevention programs and prevention of mother to child transmission