Liver and Kidney Biochemical Profile of Typhoid Fever Patients at the Dschang District Hospital, West Cameroon: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Typhoid fever remains prevalent in developing countries and most often affects liver and kidney. This study aimed to assess biochemical disturbances of the liver and kidney in patients with typhoid fever at the Dschang District Hospital, appreciate the implication of the disease duration as well as the type and the duration of treatment.Methods and materials:  This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Dschang District Hospital, Cameroon. A total of 263 participants and a structure questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic data. Stool culture was used for the diagnosis of typhoid fever. Liver and kidney biomarkers were access using spectrophotometric technic. Results: By these technics, 112 healthy individuals (Control Group, CG), and 151 patients diagnosed with typhoid fever (Study Group, SG) were obtained. A significant lower level of albumin (p<0.05) was noted in SG compare to CG while other biochemical parameters of the liver and kidney function (ALT, AST, T-BILI, C-BILI, ALP, γ-GT, urea and creatinine) presented a significant higher levels at varying degrees, especially for ALT (p <0.001), AST, ALP, urea and creatinine (p <0.01), T-BILI, C-BILI and γ-GT (p <0.05). Relatively to the variation of biochemical parameters with respect to the duration of illness in the patients before their arrival to the hospital, except albumin which had a significant (p<0.05) decreased level from the first to the third week of the disease, ALT and AST had a significant (p<0.05) increased level from the first to the third week of the disease and, T-BILI, C-BILI, UC-BILI, ALP and γ-GT from the second to the third week of the disease. Relatively to the type of drug intake, the serum level of ALT, γ-GT, albumin and creatinine were significantly increased (p<0.05) with fluoroquinolones and indigenous (medicinal plants) intake while the serum level of AST, T-BILI, C-BILI, UC-BILI, ALP, urea and creatinine clearance were significantly (p<0.05) increased only with indigenous intake. Relatively to the duration of treatment, except creatinine clearance that significantly (p<0.05) decreased at the third week of treatment, the serum level of ALAT, ASAT, C-BILLI, ALP, γ-GT and albumin were significantly (p<0.05) increased from the first to the third week of the treatment, the serum level of T-BILI, UC-BILI and urea from the second to the third week of the treatment, and the serum level of creatinine at the third week of the treatment. There was a significant correlation between disease duration, drug intake duration and the serum level of ALT, AST, total bilirubin, conjugated bilirubin, unconjugated bilirubin, ALP, γ-GT, urea, creatinine, albumin and creatinine clearance. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest that typhoid fever negatively affects the proper functioning of the liver and kidneys, which varies depending on the duration of the illness, self-medication with conventional drugs such as fluoroquinolones and medicinal plants, and the duration of treatment

Title: Primary Dysmenorrhea: Associated Symptoms, Impact and Management among Females in the Menoua Division of the West Region of Cameroon. Cross-sectional Study Running Title: Primary Dysmenorrhea in the Menoua Division

Primary dysmenorrhea, or painful menstruation in the absence of pelvic pathology is a common and often debilitating gynecological condition that affects between 45% and 95% of women at reproductive age. The current study aimed to assess the prevalence of dysmenorrhea and associated menstrual symptoms and their self-management techniques among females. This cross-sectional study was conducted in the Menoua Division, which has six subdivisions namely: Fokoue, Dschang, NKongni, Penka Michel, Santchou and Fongo tongo .For this purpose, 668 women aged from 12 to 38 years were considered. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. The main results revealed that dysmenorrhea was reported on almost two-thirds of the women (66.17%). In the 442 girls who reported dysmenorrhea Severe pain was reported by 20.71 % of respondents. More than one-third of the respondents (39.75%) reported using pain relief medications with 23.38 % of herbal medicine and 76.54 % of synthetic medicines. The gastrointestinal problems (diarrhoea and vomiting were the most common symptoms experienced. Less than 19.41% of respondents reported having consulted a doctor for their dysmenorrhea, while most of them consulted friends and family.Dysmenorrhea is a very common problem among university students. A number of symptoms were related to dysmenorrhea. Even though it is common, and may not have a pathological cause, few women seek medical advice. Increasing the awareness might help in relieving the burden of this common health problem

COMPARISON OF PERFORMANCE OF TWO WIDAL TEST TECHNIQUES WITH STOOL CULTURE IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF TYPHOID FEVER AT THE DSCHANG DISTRICT HOSPITAL, WEST CAMEROON

Objective: This study is aimed to compare the performance of two Widal test techniques with stool culture in the diagnosis of typhoid fever. Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed at the Dschang District Hospital in patients clinically suspected to have typhoid fever, whose stool was collected for stool culture. Furthermore, venous blood was collected and the serum was tested by both Widal slide agglutination test and Widal tube titration test. Results: The results showed that out of 750 participants include in the study, 325 (43.33%) were positive for Widal slide agglutination test, 174 (23.20%) for Widal tube titration test, and 159 (21.20%) for stool culture. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of Widal slide agglutination test with respect to stool culture were 97.48%, 71.23%, 47.69%, and 99.22%, respectively, but 100%, 97.46%, 91.37%, and 100% for the Widal tube titration test. With the stool culture, Widal slide agglutination test had a moderate agreement (kappa = 0.47), but Widal tube titration test had an absolute agreement (kappa = 0.94). Conclusion: Widal tube titration test should be used in place of Widal slide agglutination test in the diagnosis of typhoid fever in the case of limited access to stool culture test

Assessment of the sensitivity of water resources in the intertropical zone: a bibliographical study with perspectives

Study of the vulnerability of water resources contributing to consumer health in the inter-tropical zone. The aim of this paper is to present the state of the art on the protection of water resources in the inter-tropical zone in order to identify gaps in knowledge that improve drinking water supply. To achieve this, a documentary search online was carried out to assess the progression of work over time. What emerges from this literature review is that the method for assessing intrinsic and specific vulnerability in bedrock areas is practically non-existent. A discrepancy exists and reflects the difference in a coincidence of the level of vulnerability when several methods of determining vulnerability are used in the same study site. The issue of validation is still problematic, as it lies in the fact that a property that is not precisely defined cannot be unambiguously deduced from the measured quantity. The characterisation of specific pollutants and their propagation in the saturated or groundwater zone are not taken into account. All the different components of the water cycle are not always taken into account during a groundwater vulnerability study, yet each water resource is part of a closely related component of the water cycle. HIGHLIGHTS The aim of this paper is to present the state of the art on the protection of groundwater that improve drinking water supply.; Several indices have been identified in the literature.; However, these indices reveal that groundwater vulnerability assessment procedures are not well understood, are poorly used, and remain a challenge for underdeveloped countries.; There is an urgent need to apply effective corrections to the methods of protecting water resources in the intertropical zone for drinking water supply.