To implement future malaria elimination strategies in French Guiana, a characterization of the infectious reservoir is recommended. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between October and December 2017 in the French Guianese municipality of St Georges de l'Oyapock, located along the Brazilian border. The prevalence of Plasmodium spp. was determined using a rapid diagnostic test (RDT) and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Demographic, house locations, medical history, and biological data were analyzed. Factors associated with Plasmodium spp. carriage were analyzed using logistic regression, and the carriage localization was investigated through spatial cluster analysis. Of the 1,501 samples analyzed with PCR, positive results totaled 90 and 10 for Plasmodium vivax and Plasmodium falciparum, respectively. The general PCR prevalence was 6.6% [5.3-7.9], among which 74% were asymptomatic. Only 13/1,549 were positive by RDT. In multivariate analysis, participants older than 15 years, living in a remote neighborhood, with a prior history of malaria, anemia, and thrombocytopenia were associated with an increased odds of Plasmodium spp. carriage. High-risk clusters of P. vivax carriage were detected in the most remote neighborhoods on the village outskirts and two small foci in the village center. We also detected a hot spot for both P. vivax and P. falciparum symptomatic carriers in the northwestern part of the village. The present study confirms a wide-scale presence of asymptomatic P. falciparum and P. vivax carriers in this area. Although they were more often located in remote areas, their geographic distribution was spatially heterogeneous and complex.

An outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 caused by the Gamma variant of concern infected 24/44 (55%) employees of a gold mine in French Guiana (87% symptomatic, no severe forms). The attack rate was 60% (15/25) among fully vaccinated miners and 75% (3/4) among unvaccinated miners without a history of infection.

Background: In the context of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the expansion of the more transmissible 20J/501Y.V3 (Gamma) variant of concern (VOC), mRNA vaccines have been made available in French Guiana, an overseas French territory in South America, from mid-January 2021. This study aimed to estimate the willingness to be vaccinated and the socio-demographic and motivational correlates among Health Care Workers (HCWs) in French Guiana. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted from January 22 to March 26, 2021 among a sample of HCWs in French Guiana. They were asked about their willingness to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and vaccine hesitancy, vaccine uptake and vaccines attitudes. Factors associated with willingness to get vaccinated have been analyzed with ordinal logistic regression, using Stata software. Results: A total of 579 HCWs were interviewed, including 220 physicians and 200 nurses most often working in hospital (54%) or in the liberal sector (22%). Overall, 65.6% of respondents reported that they were willing or had already been vaccinated against COVID-19, while 24.3% of respondents reported that they did not want to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and 11.2% were unsure. HCWs were more willing to get vaccine if they were older, were worried about COVID-19 and were confident in the management of epidemic. Conversely, participants were less likely to have been vaccinated or willing to if they were nurses or of another non-medical profession, born in French Guiana, feared adverse effects, or if they did not trust pharmaceutical companies and management of the epidemic by authorities. Conclusion: Negative attitudes towards vaccines are a major public health concern among HCWs in French Guiana when considering the current active epidemic with Gamma VOC. General vaccine hesitancy and concerns about future side effects in particular represent important barriers. Low confidence in government and science are significant in COVID-19 vaccine refusal among non-medical staffs. Public health messaging with information on vaccine safety should be tailored to address these concerns. The specific challenges of HCWs from French Guiana must be taken into account.

A naplasmoses are emerging tickborne zoonoses caused by intracellular bacteria of the Anaplasma genus. In total, 8 Anaplasma species and several candidate species have been described, including at least 5 species infecting humans (1,2). Of particular concern, the agent of human granulocytic anaplasmosis, A. phagocytophilum, has a specific tropism to polymorphonuclear neutrophils (1,3). Another species, provisionally named A. capra, recently described from asymptomatic goats, is now recognized as an agent of human intraerythrocytic anaplasmosis in China (4). The 3 other species detected in humans are major veterinary agents sporadically identified in few patients worldwide: A. ovis and A. bovis in erythrocytes and A. platys in platelets (1,5). Human anaplasmosis are consistently associated with persons who live in rural areas in habitats favorable to ticks or who work closely with domestic animals (1,6). However, recent surveys report the presence of novel Anaplasma species of undetermined zoonotic potential in wild fauna (1,2). The StudyWe assessed the presence of Anaplasma in blood samples of clandestine gold miners working in the Amazon rainforest of French Guiana. This 83,000 km 2 territory, located between Suriname and Brazil, is one of the regions of highest biodiversity in the world, with >280 species of wild mammals (7). The human population of French Guiana (≈284,000 inhabitants) is concentrated principally in a handful of towns spread along the coastline and the 2 main rivers (8). The interior is largely uninhabited and covered by dense rainforest, where illegal gold mining camps are located (9,10).We examined 363 archived DNA extracts obtained from human blood samples. We primarily collected these samples in 2019 as part of Malakit, a malaria survey in remote mining camps in French Guiana (11). To characterize the whole bacterial diversity, we typed DNA blood samples by using a high-throughput bacterial 16S rDNA (rrs) sequencing approach (bacterial barcoding) (12). Bacteria were characterized as operational taxonomic units (OTUs) and amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) and taxonomically assigned by using the Silva database (https://www.arb-silva.de).Examination of OTUs and ASVs revealed the presence of Anaplasma sequences in 1 DNA sample.No OTU or ASV assigned to the Anaplasma genus or to the Anaplasmataceae family was detected in the 362 other samples. We further conducted 2 independent Anaplasma-specific PCRs targeting a region of the 16S rDNA gene (544 bp) and the 23S-5S (ITS2) intergenic region (423 bp) using techniques described by Calchi et al. (13) and obtained amplicons of correct sizes for the positive sample. The Sanger sequencing of amplicons obtained with each pair of primers

Background Due to their genetic characteristics, their isolation in rainforest areas, and their traditional way of life, Amerindian populations are likely to suffer from a specific spectrum of dermatoses. However, there are few available data on such skin disorders. Our aims were to describe all skin disorders in two Amerindian villages of French Guiana. Methods This retrospective study concerned all patients who consulted in the HealthCentres of Camopi and Trois-Sauts between July 1, 2017, and December 31, 2018. We included all patients classified with an ICD code linked to a skin disorder. All medical records were cross-checked by two dermatologists to correct misclassifications.Results A total of 639 patients formed the study population, for 866 different skin disorders. Non-sexually transmitted infections represented 57.6% of all skin disorders, followed by eczema (11.5%) and bites/envenomations (9.1%). Bacteria were responsible for 238 skin infections, followed by fungi (141 cases) and parasites (69 cases, including 43 scabies, nine cutaneous leishmaniasis, and two tungiasis). We reported a low prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (10 cases) and an absence of skin cancers. ConclusionsThis study revealed the absence of skin cancer in the Amerindian population of the Upper Oyapock and the important burden of infectious and animal-related diseases. Future studies should assess a possible underestimation of sexually transmitted diseases in this area. Public health policies should target neglected diseases such as cutaneous leishmaniasis, tungiasis, scabies, and envenomations. Atopic dermatitis was a significant and unexpected cause of consultations. Dermatological conditions in the Amerindian villages of French Guiana have never been described. About 12,000 Amerindians live in this territory, divided into six different ethnic groups. Many of them live in cities where ethnic diversity makes their study difficult, and the selection of patients according to ª