Effects of pesticide applications on respiratory health of Ethiopian farm workers

The effects of pesticide use on the respiratory health of agricultural farm workers were studied in 203 farm workers and 131 controls. The farm workers were sprayers, supervisors, technicians, and pest assessors. Pulmonary function was found to be remarkably poor among the non-smoker supervisors, followed by the non-smoker sprayers, as compared with that of the non-smoker controls. The means (SD) of FVC and FEV1 for supervisors and sprayers were 2.88 (0.41), 3.05(0.50) and 2.74(0.38), 2.89(0.54), respectively, p < 0.05. The non-smoker technicians had the most respiratory symptoms, with wheezing and breathlessness being the most frequent (35.7% in 14 technicians). Farm workers with various job experiences are subject to reduction of pulmonary function and frequent complaints of respiratory symptoms that could possibly lead to chronic respiratory health problems.     

Demographic impact of AIDS in a low-fertility urban African setting: projection for Addis Ababa,Ethiopia

The study estimated the potential demographic impact of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in a low-fertility urban setting in sub-Saharan Africa. The prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) projected using a deterministic mathematical model was put into the AIDS Impact Model (AIM) of the SPECTRUM Policy Modelling System to estimate the potential demographic impact ofAIDS in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Demographic indicators from 1984 (the start of the HIV epidemic in Ethiopia) to 2024, including and excluding the HIV epidemic, were compared. Addis Ababa is experiencing a demographic transition in which the total fertility rate has declined from 3.8 to below replacement level over the last 20 years. The prevalence of HIV is predicted to stabilize at 10% in adults, resulting in a total number of people living with HIV at 200,000 and a cumulative number of deaths due to AIDS at 50,000. About 60% of adult deaths can be attributable to AIDS by 2000. The epidemic is predicted to reduce life expectancy by 10 and 17 years in 2000 and 2024 respectively, and to turn to negative, the rate of natural increase after 2009. Accordingly, the rate of natural increase will be -0.18%, -0.35%, and -0.71% per annum by 2009, 2014, and 2024 respectively. Population growth is expected to continue with or without HIV, as a result of high net in-migration, although data for migration are scanty. In a low-fertility urban society of Africa, this study shows the potential for the HIV/AIDS epidemic to turn the rate of natural increase to negative.     

Effects of ethanol extract of Moringa stenopetala leaves on guinea-pig and mouse smooth muscle.

The fresh leaf ethanol (LE) extract of Moringa stenopetala was tested in guinea-pig ileum and mouse duodenum and in uterus strips. There were significant dose and time dependent reductions of the acetylcholine (AC) response with initial stimulatory effects in both the guinea-pig ileum and the mouse duodenum preparations. Spontaneous rhythmic contractions were greatly reduced, suggesting an antispasmodic property of the crude LE extract. The LE extract showed some oxytocic activity on uterus strips of guinea-pigs and mice. The results are indicative of the traditional use of the leaves of Moringa stenopetala for stomach pain and to expel retained placentae by women.     

From birth to adulthood in rural Ethiopia: the Butajira Birth Cohort of 1987

Long‐term birth cohorts from developing countries are uncommon. Here a unique birth to 18‐years cohort based on all births during 1987 in a rural area of Ethiopia is presented. This was the first year of the ongoing Butajira Rural Health Programme, since when the sampled population has been followed up in regular household visits. A total of 1884 livebirths in 1987 formed the cohort, corresponding to a birth rate of 0.31 per woman per year; the male : female ratio was 1.10. Perinatal mortality was 22 per 1000 livebirths, and infant mortality 65 per 1000 livebirths. Survival from birth to 18 years was 760 per 1000. Living in Butajira town had a considerable survival advantage compared with the surrounding villages. Most deaths were due to infections. Four per cent of the cohort experienced the death of their mothers before the age of 18 years, and 15 of the girls delivered their own children, suggesting that 1 in 25 women may bear a child before their eighteenth birthday in this community. The children in the cohort received no consequent special care or attention, and so they probably accurately represent the harsh realities of growing up in rural Ethiopia at the turn of the Millennium. The huge gaps between their experience and that of their contemporaries in more affluent settings are a scandal of the 21st century.     

In vivo antimalarial activity of essential oils from Cymbopogon citratus and Ocimum gratissimum on mice infected with Plasmodium berghei

The essential oils obtained by hydrodistillation from fresh leaves of Cymbopogon citratus and Ocimum gratissimum growing in Cameroon were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The main constituents of the oil of Ocimum gratissimum were gamma-terpinene (21.9 %), beta-phellandrene (21.1 %), limonene (11.4 %) and thymol (11.2 %), while the oil of Cymbopogon citratus contained geranial (32.8 %), neral (29.0 %), myrcene (16.2 %) and beta-pinene (10.5 %). The effects of these oils on the growth of Plasmodium berghei were investigated. Both oils showed significant antimalarial activities in the four-day suppressive in vivo test in mice. At concentrations of 200, 300 and 500 mg/kg of mouse per day, the essential oil of C. citratus produced the highest activity with the respective percentages of suppression of parasitaemia: 62.1 %, 81.7 % and 86.6 %. The corresponding values for the oil of O. gratissimum at the same concentrations were 55.0 %, 75.2 % and 77.8 %, respectively. Chloroquine (10 mg/kg of mouse, positive control) had a suppressive activity of 100 %.     

Knowledge and attitudes towards antiretroviral therapy among factory workers participating in a cohort on HIV and AIDS, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

This study investigates barriers that may pose a threat to a successful implementation of an antiretroviral treatment (ART) program in Ethiopia. As prelude to the provision of ART among factory workers participating in a cohort study on HIV and AIDS in Ethiopia, we measured knowledge and attitudes towards several aspects of ART and provided an educational intervention. The proportion of participants having good knowledge on issues concerning adherence was found reasonably good (67.7%), concerning the benefit of ART was intermediate (37.7%) and concerning eligibility was very low (16.8%). Knowledge concerning eligibility improved somewhat after the provision of the educational intervention. Only one third of HIV infected persons discloses their HIV status to their partner. Several aspects that could impact adherence to ART will be discussed, such as ART knowledge, social support, willingness to take ART, and disclosure of serostatus, taking the cohort study site into account. Results indicate a tremendous need to educate cohort participants before and during introduction of ART. Efforts to increase knowledge of ART, and especially knowledge of eligibility criteria to start ART, seem warranted, as well as encouragement to identify social support and disclose HIV serostatus, as these factors directly impact the success of an ART program.     

Low CD4 T cell counts before HIV-1 seroconversion do not affect disease progression in Ethiopian factory workers

BACKGROUND: Human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-uninfected Ethiopians have lower CD4 T cell counts than do other populations in Africa and industrialized countries. We studied whether this unique immunological profile results in shorter survival times in HIV-1-infected Ethiopians. METHODS: Data from an open cohort study of 149 HIV-1-infected factory workers in Ethiopia for 1997-2002 were used. To estimate survival times, a continuous-time Markov model was designed on the basis of CD4 T cell counts and World Health Organization clinical staging. By use of a random-effects model, decline in CD4 T cell counts was compared between HIV-1-infected Ethiopian and Dutch individuals. RESULTS: Median survival times were in the range of 9.1-13.7 years, depending on the approach used. This range is similar to that for populations in industrialized countries before the advent of antiretroviral therapy. Ethiopians had a lower annual decline in CD4 T cell counts than did Dutch individuals, which remained when groups with similar CD4 T cell count categories were compared. Moreover, the slower decline in CD4 T cell counts was not due merely to lower HIV-1 RNA loads or an absence of syncytium-inducing/X4 HIV-1 subtype C strains in Ethiopians. CONCLUSIONS: Low baseline CD4 T cell counts do not imply shorter survival times in Ethiopians than in other populations, presumably because of a slower decline in CD4 T cell counts.