ABSTRACT
Tuberculosis is an important public health problem in Gabon, and the DOTS strategy recommended by the World Health Organisation has not been successfully applied. In 2006, 45% of patients abandoned treatment during the first phase. A pilot cross-sectional study was thus conducted from September 1 to November 30, 2006, at the Nkembo Tuberculosis Centre in Libreville, Gabon. Thirty patients with positive microscopy results who returned after having interrupted treatment completed a standardised questionnaire. They were mainly young men: their mean age was 33 years old and the male/female ratio was 2.7. Reasons for having abandoned treatment were a lack of money to pay for it (43%) and an impression that they had been cured (23%). The motivations for resuming treatment were the return of symptoms (73%). The risk of drug resistance requires that the Gabonese government play a greater role in the fight against tuberculosis.
Subject(s)
Antitubercular Agents/therapeutic use , Tuberculosis/drug therapy , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Female , Gabon , HIV Seronegativity , HIV Seropositivity/epidemiology , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Motivation , Patient Compliance , Patient Dropouts/psychology , Sex Ratio , Surveys and Questionnaires , Tuberculosis/psychologyABSTRACT
The primary vector at the origin of the 2007 outbreak in Libreville, Gabon is identified as Aedes albopictus, trapped around the nearby French military camp. The Chikungunya virus was isolated from mosquitoes and found to be identical to the A226V circulating human strain. This is the first field study showing the role of the recently arrived species Aedes albopictus in Chikungunya virus transmission in Central Africa, and it demonstrates this species' role in modifying the epidemiological presentation of Chikungunya in Gabon.
