Prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria amongst dogs in Africa: A meta-analysis review.

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a global public health threat for both human and veterinary medicine. Increasing evidence suggests that animals are important sources of AMR to humans; however, most of these studies focus on production animals. In order to determine the pattern of AMR in pets, mainly in dogs in Africa, a meta-analysis was performed with AMR studies conducted in African countries and published between January 2000 and January 2021 in four databases: Medline (PubMed), Scopus, Cab abstract and Google Scholar. Seven bacterial strains, namely Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Salmonella spp., Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus pyogenes, coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (SNC) and Staphylococcus pseudintermedius were included in this study. A total of 18 out of 234 indexed articles met the study criteria. The results revealed that multiple bacteria were resistant to various commonly used antibiotics including enrofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, gentamicin, amoxicillin, clavulanic acid, cotrimoxazole, streptomycin, tetracycline and chloramphenicol. Concerning multidrug resistance, E. coli strains came first with the highest prevalence of 98%, followed by P. aeroginosa (92%) and Salmonella spp. (53%). In contrast, the overall prevalence of multidrug resistance was low for S. aureus (18%) and S. pseudintermedius (25%). It is therefore urgent to find, as soon as possible, alternatives to replace these antibiotics, which have become ineffective in controlling these bacteria in dogs in Africa. Moreover, further metagenomic studies are needed to describe the full resistome and mobilome in dogs regardless of the bacteria.

Antimicrobial resistance and one health in the post COVID-19 era: What should health students learn?

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a critical worldwide health issue that jeopardizes our ability to fight illnesses. However, despite being a natural phenomenon, AMR is exacerbated in the world by inappropriate administration of an antimicrobial medication such as under-use or overuse by the general population, farmers, and various health professionals. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic has put the world in a shocking state. The pandemic exacerbated the problem of antimicrobial resistance, which was largely caused by irrational off-label use of antivirals, anthelmintics, antimalarials, and, most notably, macrolide antibiotics. As a result, monitoring the AMR progression during the pandemic has been critical. The One Health Approach is progressively becoming the most widely utilized and recommended approach in the ongoing fight against AMR. The aim of this article is to address the lack of teachings in AMR and the One Health Approach in health student training curricula, as well as to provide recommendations that can be implemented as we progress beyond the COVID-19 era.

Evaluation of the knowledge, attitudes and practices of students at the University of Abomey-Calavi on rabies in Benin Republic, West Africa.

INTRODUCTION: rabies is a vaccine-preventable viral zoonotic disease. Once clinical symptoms appear, rabies is fatal in almost 100% of cases. The objective of this study was to evaluate the knowledge, attitudes and practices of students at the University of Abomey-Calavi in Benin on rabies in order to explore the factors that promote the occurrence of this zoonosis. METHODS: for this purpose, a descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among 263 randomly-selected students. The collected data were analyzed by R software with logistic regression. RESULTS: out of all the 263 respondents, 53.2% (n=140) of the students claimed to have heard of canine rabies, compared to 47.5% (n=125) for human rabies. Stray dogs were recognized by 49.0% (n=129) as a prevailing source of rabies infection in people; bites from these dogs were considered as a means of rabies contagion (41.4%; n=109) and vaccination of dogs was considered by 32.7% (n=86) as a means of rabies control in both people and dogs. In case of a dog bite, 60.5% (n=159) of respondents would visit a western medicine human clinic first. For the fate of the biting dog, 18.6% (n=49) and 27.4% (n=72) of respondents, respectively, prefer to euthanize the dog or take the dog to the veterinarian for observation. Regarding the perceived consequences of inaction after a dog bite, 58.2% (n=140) mentioned the risk of rabies. Students in human or animal health were 3 times more aware on rabies. CONCLUSION: this study identifies the gaps in students´ knowledge, attitudes and practices about effective rabies prevention and control. It will therefore be necessary to intensify awareness and education campaigns among students who could be a good relay of information to other members in their communities.

Influenza vaccination during pregnancy: coverage rates and influencing factors in two urban districts in Sydney.

BACKGROUND: Pregnant women have an increased risk of complications from influenza. Influenza vaccination during pregnancy is considered effective and safe; however estimates of vaccine coverage are low. This study aimed to determine influenza vaccination coverage and factors associated with vaccine uptake in pregnant women in two Sydney-based health districts. METHODS: A random sample of women who delivered a baby in a public hospital in Sydney and South-Western Sydney Local Health Districts between June and September 2012 were surveyed using a computer assisted telephone interviewing service. RESULTS: Of the 462 participants (participation rate 92%), 116 (25%) reported receiving the influenza vaccine during their pregnancy. In univariate analysis, vaccination coverage varied significantly depending on antenatal care type, hospital of birth, and parity (p<0.05), but not for age category, highest level of education, country of birth, language spoken at home, or Aboriginal status. Women who received antenatal care through a general practitioner (GP) had 2.3 (95% CI 1.4-3.6) times the odds (unadjusted) of receiving the influenza vaccination than those who received their antenatal care through a public hospital. The main reason cited for vaccination was GP recommendation (37%), while non-recommendation (33%) and lack of knowledge (26%) were cited as main reasons for not receiving the vaccination. 30% of women recalled receiving a provider recommendation for the vaccination and these women had 33.0 times the odds (unadjusted) of receiving the vaccination than women who had not received a recommendation. In a multivariate model a provider recommendation was the only variable that was significantly associated with vaccination (OR 41.9; 95% CI 20.7-84.9). CONCLUSION: Rates of influenza vaccination during pregnancy are low. There is a significant relationship between healthcare provider recommendation for the vaccination and vaccine uptake. Increasing provider recommendation rates has the potential to increase coverage rates of influenza vaccination in pregnant women.

The mixed health messages of Millsberry: a critical study of online child-targeted food advergaming.

This paper offers a critical study of the contradictions of Millsberry.com, a General Mills (GM) advergaming website used to market GM's breakfast cereal brands to children. The paper takes a critical semiotic approach to argue that Millsberry.com sends players contradictory messages about health by simultaneously promoting nutritional wellness and consumption of high-sugar cereals, essentially conflating the two. Players on Millsberry.com create a virtual self (a Buddy) who lives in the fictional town of Millsberry, and a Buddy's health is tracked over time as players make nutritional choices for the Buddy. Health on Millsberry equates to eating from multiple food groups (nutritional balance) and eating only until full (caloric moderation). Yet both of these health messages are essentially undermined by play on the site. Nutritional balance is undermined by both the excessive promotion of high-sugar cereals and the differences between depictions of branded and unbranded foods. Caloric moderation is contradicted by digital advergames that operate on a logic of maximal consumption, by narratives of branded spokescharacters' endless appetites for cereal, and by giveaways of "free" boxes of virtual cereal that can be eaten by the Buddy in a single bite. The study concludes that such mixed messages about nutritional health are highly problematic, particularly given the alarming increase in diet and weight-related diseases among children.