Clinical management of diarrhoea in children

Diarrhoea is one of the commonest reasons children require health care in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Acute watery diarrhoea is the commonest form, and is due to viruses. Oral rehydration solution, zinc and continued breastfeeding are highly effective treatments that can be delivered in homes and health facilities. Antibiotics are not useful in acute watery diarrhoea--they make it worse. Deaths from acute watery diarrhoea should be rare if basic curative services are available. Persistent diarrhoea (lasting longer than 14 days) is commonly associated with other co-morbidities, including malnutrition, anaemia, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) infection, parasite (such as Giardia) or worm infections and environmental enteropathy. Educating parents on handwashing, food preparation, water purification, improvements in sanitation and the home environment, breastfeeding, nutrition and immunization are essential in preventing diarrhoea. Cholera appeared in PNG in 2009, causing over 500 deaths in all age groups. Cholera emerged because of limited access to safe, clean drinking water and poor sanitation. Addressing these will have beneficial effects not only on cholera but also on all causes of diarrhoea and many other common childhood infections.

Pigbel in the 21st century: still here, and still in need of an effective surveillance system

Pigbel remains a likely significant cause of morbidity and mortality in the highlands of Papua New Guinea (PNG), two decades after the administration of pigbel vaccination ceased. There is a need for an effective surveillance program for pigbel to better understand the disease burden and to target communities for preventive strategies. This paper reviews the epidemiology, pathogenesis, recent history and current data on the burden of pigbel in PNG. We propose a surveillance program based on clinical recognition of likely cases and laboratory confirmation using an ELISA assay for Clostridium perfringens type C beta-toxin. Research aimed at validating this approach in the clinical setting is outlined.