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Background: According to UNAIDS 2019, 52% of people worldwide living with HIV is on antiretrovirals (ARVs), HIV positive women representing 80% of them. This study aimed at highlighting the determinants of adherence to ARVs for HIV positive women enrolled in PMTCT programs in the West and North Regions of Cameroon. Methods: A descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study was carried out from February to September 2019 in three treatment centres in the West (Bafoussam Regional Hospital and Dschang District Hospital) and North (Garoua Regional Hospital) regions in Cameroon. Data were collected using a questionnaire administered face to face and encoded in Excel 2013, then analyzed using SAS version 7.8. P-values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant Results: One thousand (1000) women were interviewed. The mean age was 17 ±2 years (Range: 12 -- 67 years); 231 (23.1%) were single. Overall, the prevalence of ARTadherence was 68.6%. After multivariate analysis using multiple logistic regression; having one HIV-infected children (aOR=60.9; 95%CI=[7.6; 489.1]; P=0.001), nondisclosure of serological status with the spouse/boyfriend (aOR=25.2; 95%CI=[9.2; 68.9]; P<0.001), not being educated (aOR=7.7; 95%CI=[4.4; 13.3]; P<0.001); and taking ARVs once or less daily (aOR=50; 95%CI=[20.0; 100.0]; P<0.001) were four risk factors for nonadherence. Conclusion: ART-adherence among Cameroonian pregnant women is still very far below UNAIDS target (95%), with four potential key determinants identified. As we are progressively moving towards the elimination of HIV vertical transmission in 2030 as advocated by UNAIDS, local policies should be reinforced in order to consolidate the strides made so far. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Plasmodium vivax infection is known to be rare in West/Central Africa, the most accepted explanation being the lack of expression of erythroid Duffy antigen in the local human populations. Duffy negativity prevents the parasite to exploit the entry mechanism on the red blood cell surface. However, there are a growing number of reported vivax infections in Duffy-negative individuals. Data on P. vivax circulation in Cameroon are limited. The aim of the study was to evaluate the P. vivax presence, and its association with the Duffy genotype in West Cameroon. Results: Overall, 484 blood samples were collected consecutively from febrile outpatients attending the Dschang's Hospital (West Cameroon) during a 3-months period. Plasmodium vivax infection was detected by PCR in 5.6% (n = 27/484) of the cases, representing 38.6% (n = 27/70) of all Plasmodium infections detected. All P. vivax infected individuals showed a Duffy-negative genotype, and the frequency of Duffy-positive individuals in the whole tested population was 1.7%. Conclusions: The results of this study confirm the circulation of P. vivax in Cameroon, as well as that the lack of expression of Duffy-antigen does not confer full protection against vivax malaria acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Awareness is a preventive action to instill in individuals certain concepts to improve their health. It is an essential element in the prevention of sexually transmitted infection (STI)/HIV and early pregnancies among adolescents. In 2012, the prevalence of HIVin Cameroon was estimated at 4.3%. The young population appear to be the most affected (3.2%); very close to that of the Dschang Health District (Cameroon; 3.1%) in the 15-19 years age group. Theaimof this study was to evaluate the contribution of the Mobile Caravan project on the preventive aspect of STI/HIV/AIDS among youths of Dschang in 10 secondary schools within three years. 2029 students joined the project's activities and 58.55% of them belonged to the age group of 16-21 years. Most students attended private schools. Nearly 3/4 of students (1515/2029) had an acceptable level of knowledge regarding STI/HIV/AIDS, which increased in number each year (from 641 to 716 students between 2012 and 2014). The Level of knowledge was significantly determinedby the study cycle (P=0.0004), the type of school (P=0.0027) and the year ofimplementation of activities (P=0.0026). The caravan project has greatly contributed to improving young peoples' awareness on STI/HIV/AIDSin Dschang Municipality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Poor infant feeding practices are common in Africa, resulting in physical and intellectual developmental impairments. Good feeding practices are crucial, especially in the first year of growth. HIV/AIDS has worsened the clinical and nutritional status of both mothers and their children, exacerbating high rates of malnutrition. The aim of this study was to assess by participative approach, the nutritional status of infants from mothers tested positive to HIV in the health district of Dschang. Methods: This is a cross sectional study with a period of recruitment of 2 years (2010-2012). Data Collection was done by the aim of a personal slip followed by training to strengthen the nutritional and hygienic capacity of targeted parents. Height and weight of infants were measured and body mass index (BMI) calculated. Results: Significant difference (p = 0.05) was noticed in height-for-age z-score (HAZ) of girls aged between 1 to 2 years compared to 1-year old girls as well as to boys of all ages, defining them as stunted. Furthermore, the weight-for-age z-score (WAZ) results indicate that both girls and boys of all age are in moderate state of malnutrition. The results of BMI thinness classified according to gender and age groups, indicates that most infants (68/130, 52.3%) showed grade 2 thinness predominantly in 2-years old both boys and girls. However, no participants fall within the normal category for age and sex, as well as overweight and obesity categories. Conclusion: Undernutrition exists among infants from mothers tested positive to HIV residing in Dschang, as most of the infants are underweight, and malnourished. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines, "safe drinking-water must not represent any significant risk to health over a lifetime of consumption, including different sensitivities that may occur between life stages". Traditional methods of water analysis are usually complex, time consuming and require an appropriately equipped laboratory, specialized personnel and expensive instrumentation. The aim of this work was to apply an alternative method, the Micro Biological Survey (MBS), to analyse for contaminants in drinking water. Preliminary experiments were carried out to demonstrate the linearity and accuracy of the MBS method and to verify the possibility of using the evaluation of total coliforms in 1 mL of water as a sufficient parameter to roughly though accurately determine water microbiological quality. The MBS method was then tested "on field" to assess the microbiological quality of water sources in the city of Douala (Cameroon, Central Africa). Analyses were performed on both dug and drilled wells in different periods of the year. Results confirm that the MBS method appears to be a valid and accurate method to evaluate the microbiological quality of many water sources and it can be of valuable aid in developing countries.