Tropical doctor
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This study aims to explore the epidemiological characteristics of scarlet fever in Hefei City, China, and to provide a scientific basis for the prevention and control of the disease. A total of 731 cases were recruited from 2004 to 2008. ⋯ Our results indicated that the major risk factors for scarlet fever were: gender (male); age (3-6 years); time of disease onset (March to June); and area of residence (urban areas). Knowledge of these factors could help clinicians to provide the appropriate interventions for scarlet fever.
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Case Reports
Epileptiform seizures revealing neurocysticercosis: report of two clinical cases in Libreville, Gabon.
Neurocysticercosis (NCC) is the most common helminth infection of the central nervous system. It is caused by the larval form of the tapeworm Taenia solium and is increasingly recognized as a major cause of neurologic disease worldwide. Epilepsy is the usual mode of revelation. ⋯ Medical treatment with albendazole, anti-epileptic drugs and corticosteroids led to full recovery. NCC should be considered in tropical countries as a leading cause of epilepsy. Moreover, NCC should be included in the differential diagnosis of neurologic infections in HIV patients in endemic populations.
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Intestinal infestation of humans by Ascaris lumbricoides is endemic in India. The usual habitat of the adult worm is the jejunum. Hepatopancreatic ascariasis (HPA) is designated to a rare group of diseases caused by lodgement of adult worms in the bile or pancreatic ducts. This short report illustrates four rare cases of patients with HPA.
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The prevalence of soil-transmitted helminthiasis is close to half the population in Central America, with the marginalized peri-urban poor disproportionately affected. Previous single province helminth surveys conducted in Nicaragua have shown Ascaris lumbricoides to be the predominant species. In 2005, we conducted a cross-sectional study of 880 children in 10 Nicaraguan primary schools located in four provinces. ⋯ Tichuris trichiura was the most common infective species (34.7%). The prevalence and intensity of helminthiasis was heterogeneous in the provinces, with children educated in peri-urban schools most affected. Healthy policies are required that favour the peri-urban poor who have inadequate and declining access to water and sanitation.
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Recent reports from the island of Tanna in Vanuatu suggest that yaws has resurged. We carried out a serological and clinical survey to determine the prevalence and clinical presentation of yaws on the island. ⋯ Intramuscular benzathine penicillin is the currently recommended treatment for yaws. We suggest that a stat dose of oral azithromycin would be a more accessible treatment as it could be prescribed by village health workers and therefore enable yaws control to be more easily incorporated into other primary health-care programmes.