Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0024530 (malaria)
 44,886 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Antioxidant and/or free radical scavenger vitamins (A, E) as beta carotene are unequally distributed among intertropical peoples from Africa. In Ivory coast for example the values observed are clearly enhanced in the regions where Palm oil is usually eaten than in savanna regions. Primary liver cancer (PLC) is more frequently observed in savanna regions. Furthermore it has been recently suggested that retinoic acid which is derived from vitamin A and beta carotene could interact with the genes which are involved in the primary liver carcinogenesis. In PLC patients as in subjects suffering from sickle cell anaemia, malaria, kwashiorkor or marasmus, and AIDS, the plasma levels of vitamin A, Vitamin E and beta carotene are decreased. Though disturbances in the digestion of fats that may be observed in some pathologies (mainly in Kwashiorkor) affect the discussion of the results, haemolysis and/or acute phase reaction with increased respiratory burst are always observed. That explain, at least in part, the lowering of lipophilic-antioxidant-vitamin plasma levels. As a consequence crude palm oil addition or vitamin A and E therapy would enhance the natural defences against the deleterious effects of the oxidative stress induced by these affections. It is worth checking about.
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PMID:[Antioxidant and/or free radical scavenger vitamins in tropical medicine]. 130 94

In 1992, the worst drought in recorded history hit southern Africa. It especially affected the eastern area of Swaziland where staff at a rural district hospital, Good Shepherd Hospital in Siteki, struggled to treat rising numbers of ill and malnourished people. 10% of the population in this area reached the advanced stage of starvation. Almost 50% did not have enough food to meet their nutritional needs. Women had to travel as far as 15 miles to retrieve water from tankers and sometimes wait for days because other water sources evaporated. Maize did not grow. The subsistence farmers and their families, who made up most of the population, were able to use food stored from the year before, but it only postponed hunger. They sold their cattle (their symbol of wealth), borrowed money, and migrated to cities, leaving children and grandparents to provide for themselves. This area also had an influx of refugees from Mozambique who tended to receive more food than the natives. The incidence, but not the types, of diseases increased much during the drought. These diseases included diarrhea, respiratory infections, measles, marasmus, kwashiorkor, and vitamin deficiencies. The drought did reduce the incidence of malaria, however. Nongovernmental organizations helped with food and in measuring the effects of the drought, e.g., with anthropometric surveys of young children. The international community offered to send Swaziland more than 100,000 tons of cereal, but by December 1992 the cereal had not arrived. The people distributed the limited food to those most in need. The limited maize available for distribution was yellow, but the people were accustomed to white maize and believed yellow maize to be poisonous. When droughts occur, the crux of the problem in developing countries is the pressure exerted by multinational lending institutions to earn foreign currency to pay interest on national debt.
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PMID:Another African disaster. 846 97

Morbidity and mortality due to malaria and marasmic kwashiorkor were determined from hospital records in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital over five years. Malaria was found to be a significant cause of morbidity but was responsible for only 3.5% of the deaths that occurred during the period. This represents 0.3% of all infant deaths and 2.0% of deaths in children aged 1-4 years. The percentage of malaria deaths, 4.4% (1983), 5.2% (1984), 3.0% (1985) and 1.9% (1986), respectively showed a downward trend but went up again to 2.8% (1987), probably due to the treatment failures ascribed to chloroquine in the area. Malnutrition on the other hand, resulted in 174 deaths as opposed to 42 deaths due to malaria in children under six years of age. More of these deaths due to malnutrition (40.8%) occurred in children aged 2-3 years, just as the case with malaria (33.3%). 20.7% of these deaths occurred in infants. These results suggest that the pride of place, as a number one killer, goes to malnutrition while malaria is a serious cause of morbidity.
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PMID:A retrospective study of malaria and malnutrition in the University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Nigeria. 229 27

The registry of patients at the hospital of Kampene, Zaire, covering the period 1986-87 was examined to determine the hospital's rate of utilization and accessibility, to evaluate mortality, and to ascertain the prevalence of infectious diseases. The 1986 data of the hospital laboratory indicated a high incidence of infectious and parasitic diseases: ancylostomiasis (33.6%); ascariasis (22.9%); schistosomiasis (3.4%); multiple intestinal parasitic infections (10.9%); malaria (43%), often chloroquine-resistant; filariasis (70.8%); and alcohol-acid resistant tuberculosis bacilli (15%). Sexually-transmitted diseases such as vaginitis (80%) were caused by polygamy, prostitution, and promiscuity, HIV serodiagnosis could not be performed because of a lack of equipment. A high infant mortality rate was caused by neonatal tetanus, toxic gastroenteritis, measles (5.1% lethality: 2 died out of 39 cases), and epidemic cerebrospinal meningitis. Malnutrition caused kwashiorkor and avitaminosis. 792 births were registered at the maternity ward in 1986: 52.8% were male and 47.2% were female; 48 (6.1%) were stillborn or died in the following days; 104 (13.1%) were born prematurely; and 24 (3.1%) were twins. Cesarean section was performed in 43 cases (5.4%). There was a total of 15,099 outpatient visits during a 1-year period. The bed occupancy rate of the surgical ward ranged between .7 and .8 during 1987. Recovery and hospitalization days per doctor or health assistant were very high compared to Italian standards. The lethality of malaria was a high 1.8%, but malnutrition rated even higher: 21.4%. The utilization of the hospital was high, Maternal-child protection measures, especially in the area of nutrition, require the training of community health workers and traditional birth attendants; however, cost-benefit considerations limit resources and the implementation of primary health care is curtailed by economic and cultural factors.
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PMID:[Health care organization and health in a region of Zaire]. 248 74

An analysis is presented of data on all 30 129 inpatient admissions to a mission hospital in the West Nile District of Uganda in the 27 year period from July 1951 to August 1978. For most of this period the hospital was staffed by the same two doctors. For each patient admitted, a record was made of their age (adult or child), sex, place of residence, duration of stay in hospital, diagnosis and vital status at discharge. The annual number of admissions increased steadily from around 300 in 1952 to over 1600 in 1966 and subsequently declined to about 900 in 1977. Sixty-five per cent of admissions were medical, 12% surgical, 11% obstetric and 9% gynaecological. Thirty per cent of admissions were children (aged 0-9 years). Forty-five per cent of admissions were from those resident in the same county as the hospital and another 20% were from an immediately adjacent county. Infective and parasitic conditions (including respiratory diseases) accounted for over 60% of admissions among children and over 38% of admissions among adults (excluding obstetric patients). The six most common causes of admission were: uncomplicated delivery (2308 admissions), pneumonia (2020), hookworm (1999), malaria (1806), schistosomiasis (1742) and diarrhoea (1041). In total 1960 deaths were recorded (6.5% of all admissions). High case fatality rates were observed for tetanus (61%), immaturity (54%), meningitis (38%), kwashiorkor (21%), other malnutrition (19%) and anaemia (19%). A striking increase in the number of admissions for measles was observed in the period 1976 to 1978. Admission rates for schistosomiasis (S. mansoni) appeared to be highest from counties adjacent to the Nile and 104 deaths were recorded among the 1742 patients with this as the primary diagnosis. Admissions for diabetes, as a percentage of all admissions increased from 0.2% in 1951-54 to 1.5% at the end of the study period. Marked seasonal variations in admission patterns were found for diarrhoea, measles, meningitis and respiratory infections, the last two, but not diarrhoea, being most common in the wettest months. Admissions for malaria showed no strong seasonal associations. Despite the limitations of hospital-based data, it is argued that the data analysed provide a reasonable indication of the important causes of severe morbidity and mortality in the district. Furthermore, some of the changes in admission patterns over time are likely to represent true changes in disease rates rather than artefacts of diagnosis or referral. The analyses presented indicate the value of simple record systems, carefully maintained.
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PMID:Admissions to a rural hospital in the West Nile District of Uganda over a 27 year period. 378 13

The antibody response to group C meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine was studied in a Nigerian village. Household clustering of poor responders to immunization was detected. Age had a marked effect on antibody response, maximal titres being obtained only in those over the age of 10 years. Children with malaria parasitaemia had a lower antibody response than those without parasitaemia and subjects with the genotype AA had a lower antibody response than those with the genotype AS. The antibody response to the vaccine was not influenced by mild degrees of malnutrition but children with clinical marasmus or kwashiorkor were excluded from the study.
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PMID:The immune response to a meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine in an African village. 677 65

One of the major factors in the development of severe protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) is infection, such as diarrhea, upper respiratory infection, and malaria. Social and environmental factors include family size, access to land and occupation of parents, and exposure of rural populations to urban centers. Breast milk has been shown to play a role in the prevention of infections; however, the mother must be well-nourished to provide the optimum product. Traditional foods available to rural children in most developing countries are difficult to digest and low in energy and protein and inadequate nutritional education prevents the inclusion of good protein sources in children's diets. Severe PEM, called marasmus and kwashiorkor is indicated by wasting of muscles, absence of subcutaneous fat, wrinkled skin, thin and sparse hair, and weakness. The basic treatment for severe PEM is dietary. Treatment of kwashiorkor and marasmus is divided into 3 stages: 1) attending to acute problems, 2) restoring nutritional balance, and 3) ensuring nutritional rehabilitation. Care must be taken to ensure a minimum daily intake of 3-4 gm of protein and 120-150 Kcal of energy/kg of body weight. There must be, in addition, replacement of vitamin A, zinc, potassium, magnesium, and iron. An initial regimen which has been advocated is based on dry skim milk, sugar, and vegetable oil, divided into 6-12 feedings/day, which prevents vomiting. It is not necessary to remove lactose from the diet, and other animal protein sources such as meat and meat extracts are also well accepted. Soy and vegetable protein have been used successfully. In treating mild and moderate PEM it is important to ensure the intake of these food supplements by the child and to avoid a major substitution effect in the household diet. It is crucial for the physicians, nutritionists, public health workers, and educators to convince parents about the safety of using foods that are fed only to adults and older children. In addition nutritional and health education must not be restricted to the rehabilitation of the child but the prevention of nutritonal deterioration of the entire family and sometimes to the entire community.
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PMID:Infantile malnutrition in the tropics. 681 12

Tens of thousands of Cambodian refugees are entering Thailand. Many of the new arrivals are survivors of months of starvation and are critically ill with marasmus, kwashiorkor, beriberi, anemia, malaria, diarrhea, and respiratory diseases. With volunteer medical help, field hospitals are treating patients under primitive conditions that are gradually improving. Based on experience at the Sa Kaeo refugee camp, a brief survey of the nutritional and other diseases likely to be encountered is given for the potential volunteer who may be unfamiliar with tropical medicine.
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PMID:Medical care of Cambodian refugees. 735 64

Although the association between nutritional status and mortality risk is obvious for extreme malnutrition, the issue is not so clear for mild to moderate undernutrition. We have investigated this association in children of 0-5 years in the rural area of Bwamanda, Zaire, where an integrated development project, with good medical facilities, has operated for 20 years. A random cluster sample of 5167 children was taken; newborn infants and immigrants were included at six quarterly survey rounds from October, 1989, until February, 1991. All surveys included clinical and anthropometric assessment of nutritional status. Deaths were recorded up to April, 1992; there were 246 deaths. Marasmus, kwashiorkor, and other causes of death were defined by the verbal autopsy method and checked against medical records kept at the central hospital and the peripheral dispensaries. As expected, we found an increased risk of death in severe malnutrition. When deaths directly attributed to marasmus or kwashiorkor were excluded, mild to moderate stunting or wasting were not associated with higher mortality in the short term (within 3 months of the previous study round) or in the long term (from 3-30 months after study entry). The commonest causes of death were malaria and anaemia. Extreme marasmus and kwashiorkor caused 16% of deaths, and are important causes of death even in this favoured area with an integrated development project. Nutritional interventions should be targeted more selectively so that children with moderate malnutrition can be protected from progression to marasmus or kwashiorkor.
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PMID:Influence of nutritional status on child mortality in rural Zaire. 810 46

Verbal autopsies (VA) are widely used by population and health scientists to determine individual causes of death in areas where most deaths occur at home and well-documented clinical data on cause of death are usually unavailable. VA interviews are based upon key symptoms and signs recalled by relatives of the deceased. In order to assess the reliability of the technique, the accuracy with which mothers and normal guardians recognize and recalled specific symptoms and clinical signs over time was assessed in the cases of 491 children who died on the pediatric wards of 2 district hospitals in Ifakara, Tanzania, and Kilifi, Kenya. The bereaved were interviewed 3 days to 24 months after child death. Recall after 1 month was similar to recall after 6 months for most signs and symptoms except neonatal tetanus for which false positives reported by mothers increased with time after death. Kwashiorkor, measles, trauma, generalized convulsions, and neonatal tetanus were reported with a high degree of accuracy. Symptoms and signs commonly used to describe malaria, respiratory tract and diarrhea- related deaths, however, were reported by mothers to have been present during terminal illness in 43% of cases where the features were absent. Finally, recall abilities differed between the 2 communities studied.
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PMID:Maternal recall of symptoms associated with childhood deaths in rural east Africa. 822 43


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