Etiology of Bacterial Meningitis Among Children <5 Years Old in Côte d'Ivoire: Findings of Hospital-based Surveillance Before and After Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Introduction.

BACKGROUND: Bacterial meningitis remains a major disease affecting children in Côte d'Ivoire. Thus, with support from the World Health Organization (WHO), Côte d'Ivoire has implemented pediatric bacterial meningitis (PBM) surveillance at 2 sentinel hospitals in Abidjan, targeting the main causes of PBM: Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcus), Haemophilus influenzae, and Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcus). Herein we describe the epidemiological characteristics of PBM observed in Côte d'Ivoire during 2010-2016. METHODS: Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was collected from children aged <5 years admitted to the Abobo General Hospital or University Hospital Center Yopougon with suspected meningitis. Microbiology and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques were used to detect the presence of pathogens in CSF. Where possible, serotyping/grouping was performed to determine the specific causative agents. RESULTS: Overall, 2762 cases of suspected meningitis were reported, with CSF from 39.2% (1083/2762) of patients analyzed at the WHO regional reference laboratory in The Gambia. In total, 82 (3.0% [82/2762]) CSF samples were positive for bacterial meningitis. Pneumococcus was the main pathogen responsible for PBM, accounting for 69.5% (52/82) of positive cases. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine serotypes 5, 18C, 19F, and 6A/B were identified post-vaccine introduction. Emergence of H. influenzae nontypeable meningitis was observed after H. influenzae type b vaccine introduction. CONCLUSIONS: Despite widespread use and high coverage of conjugate vaccines, pneumococcal vaccine serotypes and H. influenzae type b remain associated with bacterial meningitis among children aged <5 years in Côte d'Ivoire. This reinforces the need for enhanced surveillance for vaccine-preventable diseases to determine the prevalence of bacterial meningitis and vaccine impact across the country.

ABO/Rh Blood Groups and Risk of HIV Infection and Hepatitis B Among Blood Donors of Abidjan, Côte D'ivoire.

Hepatitis B and HIV infection are two viral infections that represent real global public health problems. In order to improve their management, some hypotheses suggest that genetic predispositions like ABO and Rh blood groups would influence the occurrence of these diseases. The aim of the present study was to examine the association between ABO and Rhesus blood groups and the susceptibility to HIV infection and hepatitis B. We conducted a cross-sectional and analytical study in a population of voluntary blood donors in the Blood Transfusion Center of Abidjan. All blood donors who donated blood between January and June 2014 were tested for HBs antigen and anti-HIV antibodies (ELISA tests) and were ABO typed. The total number of examined blood donors during this period was 45,538, of which 0.32% and 8.07% were respectively infected with HIV and hepatitis B virus. O-group donors were more infected than non-O donors. Our study is an outline concerning the search for a link between ABO and Rh blood groups and hepatitis B and HIV infection. Further studies should be conducted to confirm the interaction between these two infections and contribute to the search for new therapeutic approaches.