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This descriptive observational study aims to describe the epidemiological profile of children hospitalized for burns in Guyana, a French district which does not have a burn treatment centre, and direct prevention towards the populations most at risk. Retrospective analysis of 665 hospitalizations was made thanks to the coding of patients aged 0 to 18, hospitalized for burns between January 2010 and December 2022 at Cayenne Hospital Centre. Univariate and multivariate descriptive analyses were carried out on age, sex, municipality of origin, date of burn, duration of hospitalization, mode of burn, location, percentage and depth of burn. A total 416 children with "burn" coding were hospitalized over this period and 358 patients were included. Burns were more common in males (58%) and in children under 6 (75%). A majority of patients were townspeople and lived on the coast (70%). 9.5% of patients were transferred to Trousseau Hospital in Paris for more specialized care. 61% of burns were caused by hot water and 16.5% by flames. Duration of hospitalization was on average 8 days and the burnt skin surface was 9.5%. Children under 2 years old living in Cayenne and its suburbs are the most at risk of burns, but the most serious burns requiring a transfer to Paris are found in children over 3 years old living on the Maroni River and playing with flammable products., (© 2023 Euro-Mediterranean Council for Burns and Fire Disasters.)

Epilepsy is a major public health problem in developing countries. In addition to the high prevalence of epilepsy in some regions, there is an acute shortage of trained personnel, clinical equipment, and antiepileptic drugs. As a result of these problems, most patients do not have access to adequate treatment. Despite wake-up calls from the WHO, LICE, and BIE in 2001 using the slogan "Bring epilepsy out of the shadows", few national epilepsy control programs have been implemented in developing countries. Nevertheless reports describing several recent pilot projects have demonstrated that effective screening and management of the disease is feasible through primary health care systems. Phenobarbital should be the first choice for treatment of epilepsy in developing countries.

Epilepsy is, above all tropical, moreover, very african in its frequency and gravity. Data on the prevalence of epilepsy shows it to be two or three times more prevalent in tropical zones than in industrialized countries in non tropical areas, however it is rare to find data on the incidence and prognosis of epilepsy in sub-Saharan Africa. It is difficult to determine the relative contribution of each of the causes of epilepsy. Only a few case-control studies have been carried out in sub-Saharan Africa. Infectious diseases, in particular parasitic diseases such as neurocysticercosis or cerebral malaria, seem to be the cause of the majority of the cases of epilepsy. However it is necessary to do additional epidemiological studies to determine the etiologies of epilepsy more precisely in sub-Saharan Africa.