The Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health study was conducted across 7 diverse research sites and relied on standardized clinical and laboratory methods for the accurate and meaningful interpretation of pneumonia etiology data. Blood, respiratory specimens, and urine were collected from children aged 1–59 months hospitalized with severe or very severe pneumonia and community controls of the same age without severe pneumonia and were tested with an extensive array of laboratory diagnostic tests. A standardized testing algorithm and standard operating procedures were applied across all study sites. Site laboratories received uniform training, equipment, and reagents for core testing methods. Standardization was further assured by routine teleconferences, in-person meetings, site monitoring visits, and internal and external quality assurance testing. Targeted confirmatory testing and testing by specialized assays were done at a central reference laboratory.

objective A trial was conducted in Burkina Faso and Mali to investigate whether addition of azithromycin to the antimalarials used for seasonal malaria chemoprevention reduces mortality and hospital admissions of children. We tested the sensitivity of nasal isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae obtained during this trial to azithromycin and other antibiotics.methods Azithromycin or placebo was administered monthly, in combination with the antimalarials used for seasonal malaria chemoprevention, for four months, over the annual malaria transmission seasons of 2014, 2015, and 2016. Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from 2773 Burkinabe and 2709 Malian children on seven occasions: in July and December each year prior to and after drug administration, and at a final survey in early 2018. Pneumococci were isolated from nasopharyngeal swabs and tested for sensitivity to azithromycin and other antibiotics.results A total of 5482 samples were collected. In Burkina Faso, the percentage of pneumococcal isolates resistant to azithromycin among children who had received it increased from 4.9% (95% CI: 2.4%, 9.9%) before the intervention to 25.6% (95% CI: 17.6%, 35.7%) afterward. In Mali, the increase was from 7.6% (95% CI: 3.8%, 14.4%) to 68.5% (95% CI: 55.1%, 79.4%). The percentage of resistant isolates remained elevated (17.7% (95% CI: 11.1%, 27.1%) in Burkina Faso and 19.1% (95% CI: 13.5%, 26.3%) in Mali) among children who had received azithromycin 1 year after stopping the intervention. An increase in resistance to azithromycin was also observed in children who had received a placebo but it was less marked.conclusion Addition of azithromycin to the antimalarial combination used for seasonal malaria chemoprevention was associated with an increase in resistance of pneumococci to azithromycin and erythromycin, which persisted 1 year after the last administration of azithromycin.

Le Plateau central appartient au système agro-sylvo-pastoral nord soudanien du Burkina Faso. Les jachères qu'on y trouve ont des âges divers et jouent un rôle important dans la production (cueillette, chasse, cultures). Les enquêtes par questionnaires semi-structures ont appréhendé la perception et l'utilisation des ligneux dans les champs et les jachères. Elles portent sur 38 ligneux à usages multiples dont 6 se rencontrent dans toutes les provinces. Il s'agit de Adansonia digit ata (Baobab), Lannea microcarpa (Raisinier), Tamarindus indica (Tamarinier), Bombax costatum (Kapokier), Parkia biglobosa (Néré) et Butyrospermum paradoxum (Karité), ces deux dernières espèces étant les plus employées. Beaucoup d'espèces ont un intérêt alimentaire pour le bétail et se rencontrent dans toutes les provinces mais leur intensité d'utilisation diffère d'un lieu à l'autre. Si toutes les productions ligneuses fourragères sont directement utilisées, seulement 25% des espèces fruitières le sont, les 75% autres étant vendues directement ou après transformation.

Context: Since the outbreak of the SARS-COV2 epidemic turned into a COVID-19 pandemic, international bodies such as the WHO as well as governments have announced projections for morbidity and mortality indicators related to COVID-19. Most of them indicated that the health situation would be worrying.Although using artificial intelligence with mathematical algorithms and/or neural networks, the results of the SIR models were poorly performing and not very accurate in relation to the observed reality in the African states in general and in Senegal in particular. Hence the imperative need to configure the modelling process and approach considering local contexts. Method: The model implemented is a mixed prediction model based on the Bucky model developed by OCHA and adapted to the context.The construction of the mixed model was done in two steps (basic model with publicly available data, such as those from United Nations-like organisations such as OCHA or WHO for Senegal), (adding more specific data collected through the mixed epidemiological survey). This survey was conducted in Senegal in six localities (Dakar, Thies, Diourbel, Kedougou, Saint-Louis and Ziguinchor) chosen according to the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19. In total, 1000 individuals distributed in proportion to the size of the regions were interviewed in April 2021.

This paper presents the results of two qualitative surveys in Senegal and in Mali, which include questions about hesitancy to the COVID-19 vaccine between April and June 2021. It took place within a larger 2-year research project involving researchers in Senegal, Mali and Canada which examines the uses of artificial intelligence technologies in the fight against COVID-19. The study involved 1000 respondents in Senegal and 555 in Mali. The researchers found that overall, 55% of respondents in Senegal and 52% of respondents in Mali did not plan to be vaccinated. Hesitancy was much higher in youth aged 15-35 in both cases, with 70% of youth in Senegal and 57% of youth in Mali not planning to be vaccinated, compared to only 42% of elderly in Senegal and 37% of elderly in Mali. The researchers did not find disparities between male and female respondents in Senegal but found some in Mali. They also found that those who had a member of the family with chronic disease (diabetes or hypertension) were slightly more likely to want to be vaccinated. Reasons for vaccine hesitancy fell in several categories, including fear of vaccine side-effects, disbelief in vaccine efficacy or usefulness, and general distrust in the public health system.