Troponine Ultra-sensible: Quelles Indications et Comment Interpréter les Résultats en Gériatrie Un cas d'Élévation de la Troponine chez une Octogénaire

La troponine T ultra-sensible (us), marqueur biologique spécifique du cœur, peut être élevée dans des conditions pathologiques autres que le syndrome coronarien aigu. Ces autres causes peuvent ou non être directement liées aux maladies cardiaques. Nous rapportons le cas d'une patiente de 85 ans présentant de multiples événements cardiovasculaires qui présentait une élévation de la troponine T us à 1088 pg/ml, probablement due à de multiples étiologies.   The ultra-sensitive troponin T (us), a specific biological marker of the heart, may be elevated in pathological conditions other than acute coronary syndrome. These other causes may or may not be directly related to heart disease. We report the case of an 85-year-old female patient with multiple cardiovascular events who presented an elevation of us troponin T to 1088 pg / ml, probably due to multiple etiologies

Troponine Ultra-sensible: Quelles Indications et Comment Interpréter les Résultats en Gériatrie Un cas d'Élévation de la Troponine chez une Octogénaire

La troponine T ultra-sensible (us), marqueur biologique spécifique du cœur, peut être élevée dans des conditions pathologiques autres que le syndrome coronarien aigu. Ces autres causes peuvent ou non être directement liées aux maladies cardiaques. Nous rapportons le cas d'une patiente de 85 ans présentant de multiples événements cardiovasculaires qui présentait une élévation de la troponine T us à 1088 pg/ml, probablement due à de multiples étiologies.   The ultra-sensitive troponin T (us), a specific biological marker of the heart, may be elevated in pathological conditions other than acute coronary syndrome. These other causes may or may not be directly related to heart disease. We report the case of an 85-year-old female patient with multiple cardiovascular events who presented an elevation of us troponin T to 1088 pg / ml, probably due to multiple etiologies

Facteurs Associés à l’Inobservance Thérapeutique chez les Patients Admis Pour Acidocétose Diabétique à l’Hôpital National de Niamey

Introduction: L’acidocétose diabétique est une complication aigue métabolique fréquente du diabète. L’inobservance thérapeutique, un des facteurs décompensant du diabète, peut être associé à plusieurs facteurs. Cette étude vise à identifier les facteurs associés à l’inobservance thérapeutique Patients et méthode : il s’agit d’une étude rétrospective réalisée dans le service de médecine interne de l’hôpital national de Niamey ayant inclus tous les diabétiques (type 1 et type 2) hospitalisés dans le service pour prise en charge d’une acidocétose. La liaison entre les variables qualitatives a été estimée à l’aide du test de Chi2 de Pearson et le test exact de ficher. Le test est significative si P<0,05. La quantification du risque a été calculée par l’estimation de l’Odds Ratio et de l’intervalle de confiance à 95%. Résultats : Au total 197 dossiers ont été retenus dont 58,89% de sexe féminin contre 41,11% de sexe masculin. L’âge moyen de nos patients était de 46,80 +/- 14,31 ans avec des extrêmes de 15ans et de 80 ans. Le diabète de type 2 était le plus représenté avec 80,71%. La majorité des patients (63,45%) avaient une durée d’évolution du diabète de cinq ans au plus. Les facteurs associés à l’inobservance thérapeutique sont : le genre, la durée d’évolution du diabète et la régularité ou non dans le suivi.  Conclusion : Cette étude fait un premier état des lieux sur les facteurs associés à l’inobservance thérapeutique des diabétiques admis pour acidocétose à Niamey. Une étude prospective à plus grande échelle est nécessaire pour une meilleure maitrise de la question afin de mieux prévenir cette inobservance.   Introduction: Diabetic ketoacidosis is a common acute metabolic complication of diabetes. Therapeutic non-compliance, one of the decompensating factors for diabetes, can be associated with several factors. This study aims to identify factors associated with therapeutic non-compliance. Patients and method: this is a retrospective study carried out in the internal medicine department of the National Hospital of Niamey that included all diabetics of one or more, hospitalized in the department for the management of ketoacidosis. The association between qualitative variables was estimated using Pearson's Chi2 test and the exact file test. The test is significant if P<0.05. The quantification of the risk was calculated by estimating the odds ratio and the 95% confidence interval. Results: A total of 197 applications were retained, of which 58.89% were female and 41.11% were male. The average age of our patients was 46.80 +/- 14.31 years with extremes of 15 years and 80 years. Type 2 diabetes was the most represented with 80.71%. The majority of our patients (63.45%) had a duration of evolution of up to 5 years. The factors associated with non-compliance with treatment are: gender, duration of development of diabetes and regularity or not in follow-up. Conclusion : This study makes a first inventory of the factors associated with the therapeutic non-compliance of diabetics admitted for ketoacidosis. A prospective study on a larger scale is necessary for a better control of the issue in order to better prevent this non-compliance

Patterns of healthcare seeking among people reporting chronic conditions in rural sub-Saharan Africa: findings from a population-based study in Burkina Faso.

OBJECTIVE: Non-communicable diseases are rapidly becoming one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet, little is known about patterns of healthcare seeking among people with chronic conditions in these settings. We aimed to explore determinants of healthcare seeking among people who reported at least one chronic condition in rural Burkina Faso. METHODS: Data were drawn from a cross-sectional population-based survey conducted across 24 districts on 52 562 individuals from March to June 2017. We used multinomial logistic regression to assess factors associated with seeking care at a formal provider (facility-based care) or at an informal provider (home and traditional treatment) compared to no care. RESULTS: 1124 individuals (2% of all respondents) reported at least one chronic condition. Among those, 22.8% reported formal care use, 10.6% informal care use, and 66.6% no care. The presence of other household members reporting a chronic condition (RRR = 0.57, 95%-CI [0.39, 0.82]) was negatively associated with seeking formal care. Wealthier households (RRR = 2.14, 95%-CI [1.26, 3.64]), perceived illness severity (RRR = 3.23, 95%-CI [2.22, 4.70]) and suffering from major chronic conditions (RRR = 1.54, 95%-CI [1.13, 2.11]) were positively associated with seeking formal care. CONCLUSION: Only a minority of individuals with chronic conditions sought formal care, with important differences due to socio-economic status. Policies and interventions aimed at increasing the availability and affordability of services for early detection and management in peripheral settings should be prioritised

Determinants of unmet need for family planning in rural Burkina Faso: a multilevel logistic regression analysis

Background: Unmet need for family planning has implications for women and their families, such as unsafe abortion, physical abuse, and poor maternal health. Contraceptive knowledge has increased across low-income settings, yet unmet need remains high with little information on the factors explaining it. This study assessed factors associated with unmet need among pregnant women in rural Burkina Faso. Method: We collected data on pregnant women through a population-based survey conducted in 24 rural districts between October 2013 and March 2014. Multivariate multilevel logistic regression was used to assess the association between unmet need for family planning and a selection of relevant demand- and supply-side factors. Results: Of the 1309 pregnant women covered in the survey, 239 (18.26%) reported experiencing unmet need for family planning. Pregnant women with more than three living children [OR = 1.80; 95% CI (1.11–2.91)], those with a child younger than 1 year [OR = 1.75; 95% CI (1.04–2.97)], pregnant women whose partners disapproves contraceptive use [OR = 1.51; 95% CI (1.03–2.21)] and women who desired fewer children compared to their partners preferred number of children [OR = 1.907; 95% CI (1.361–2.672)] were significantly more likely to experience unmet need for family planning, while health staff training in family planning logistics management (OR = 0.46; 95% CI (0.24–0.73)] was associated with a lower probability of experiencing unmet need for family planning. Conclusion: Findings suggest the need to strengthen family planning interventions in Burkina Faso to ensure greater uptake of contraceptive use and thus reduce unmet need for family planning

Responding to policy makers' evaluation needs: combining experimental and quasi-experimental approaches to estimate the impact of performance based financing in Burkina Faso.

BACKGROUND: The last two decades have seen a growing recognition of the need to expand the impact evaluation toolbox from an exclusive focus on randomized controlled trials to including quasi-experimental approaches. This appears to be particularly relevant when evaluation complex health interventions embedded in real-life settings often characterized by multiple research interests, limited researcher control, concurrently implemented policies and interventions, and other internal validity-threatening circumstances. To date, however, most studies described in the literature have employed either an exclusive experimental or an exclusive quasi-experimental approach. METHODS: This paper presents the case of a study design exploiting the respective advantages of both approaches by combining experimental and quasi-experimental elements to evaluate the impact of a Performance-Based Financing (PBF) intervention in Burkina Faso. Specifically, the study employed a quasi-experimental design (pretest-posttest with comparison) with a nested experimental component (randomized controlled trial). A difference-in-differences approach was used as the main analytical strategy. DISCUSSION: We aim to illustrate a way to reconcile scientific and pragmatic concerns to generate policy-relevant evidence on the intervention's impact, which is methodologically rigorous in its identification strategy but also considerate of the context within which the intervention took place. In particular, we highlight how we formulated our research questions, ultimately leading our design choices, on the basis of the knowledge needs expressed by the policy and implementing stakeholders. We discuss methodological weaknesses of the design arising from contextual constraints and the accommodation of various interests, and how we worked ex-post to address them to the best extent possible to ensure maximal accuracy and credibility of our findings. We hope that our case may be inspirational for other researchers wishing to undertake research in settings where field circumstances do not appear to be ideal for an impact evaluation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered with RIDIE (RIDIE-STUDY-ID- 54412a964bce8 ) on 10/17/2014

Can Combining Performance-Based Financing With Equity Measures Result in Greater Equity in Utilization of Maternal Care Services? Evidence From Burkina Faso.

BACKGROUND: As countries reform health financing systems towards universal health coverage, increasing concerns emerge on the need to ensure inclusion of the most vulnerable segments of society, working to counteract existing inequities in service coverage. To this end, selected countries in sub-Saharan Africa have decided to couple performance-based financing (PBF) with demand-side equity measures. Still, evidence on the equity impacts of these more complex PBF models is largely lacking. We aimed at filling this gap in knowledge by assessing the equity impact of PBF combined with equity measures on utilization of maternal health services in Burkina Faso. METHODS: Our study took place in 24 districts in rural Burkina Faso. We implemented an experimental design (clusterrandomized trial) nested within a quasi-experimental one (pre- and post-test design with independent controls). Our analysis relied on self-reported data on pregnancy history from 9999 (baseline) and 11 010 (endline) women of reproductive age (15-49 years) on use of maternal healthcare and reproductive health services, and estimated effects using a difference-in-differences (DID) approach, purposely focused on identifying program effects among the poorest wealth quintile. RESULTS: PBF improved the utilization of few selected maternal health services compared to status quo service provision. These benefits, however, were not accrued by the poorest 20%, but rather by the other quintiles. PBF combined with equity measures did not produce better or more equitable results than standard PBF, with specific differences only on selected outcomes. CONCLUSION: Our findings challenge the notion that implementing equity measures alongside PBF is sufficient to produce an equitable distribution in program benefits and point at the need to identify more innovative and contextsensitive measures to ensure adequate access to care for the poorest. Our findings also highlight the importance of considering changing policy environments and the need to assess interferences across policies

Nutritional status of children under five years and associated factors in 24 districts of Burkina Faso

Malnutrition in children is a serious health problem, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa, with heavy socioeconomic burdens. The prevalence of stunting remains high in Burkina Faso. There is a need to further investigate undernutrition and identify the major factors contributing to its persistence. We aimed to assess the nutritional status of children aged under five years and the associated factors of undernutrition in Burkina Faso. We conducted a second study using a baseline household survey of the impact assessment of a performance-based financing program. The analysis focused on data of 10,032 children aged 0-59 months collected from households in 537 villages. Anthropometric indicators were assessed using the World Health Organization standards, and their association with children, mothers, and households' characteristics were assessed using logistic regression. Stunting occurred in 40.1% of children, wasting in 25.1%, and underweight in 34%. Children having both stunting, wasting, and underweight were 7.3%. Stunting and underweight was associated with the sex. Stunting was associated with ethnic groups: Fulani with AdjOR = 1.20 (95%CI: 1.01-1.42), household economic level: poorest AdjOR = 1.25 (95%CI: 1.10-1.43), two and more children aged under five years in households: AdjOR = 1.16 (95%CI: 1.05-1.27), distance more than 5km from household to health facility: with Adj OR = 1.21 (95%CI: 1.10-1.35) and household food insecurity. This study identified the modifiable factors that determine the high prevalence of undernutrition in Burkina Faso. Strategies and interventions to improve the health and economic status of the community are needed to reduce the occurrence of undernutrition