In Niger, the tuberculosis (TB) screening among people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (PLHIV) is nonsystematic and the use of additional tests is very often limited. The objective of this research is to evaluate the performance and the cost-effectiveness of various paraclinical testing strategies of TB among adult patients with HIV, using available tests in routine for patients cared in Niamey. This is a multicentric prospective intervention study performed in Niamey between 2010 and 2013. TB screening has been sought in newly diagnosed PLHIV, before ART treatment, performing consistently: a sputum examination by MZN (Ziehl-Nielsen staining) and microscopy fluorescence (MIF), chest radiography (CR), and abdominal ultrasound. The performance of these different tests was calculated using sputum culture as a gold standard. The various examinations were then combined in different algorithms. The cost-effectiveness of different algorithms was assessed by calculating the money needed to prevent a patient, put on ART, dying of TB. Between November 2010 and November 2012, 509 PLHIV were included. TB was diagnosed in 78 patients (15.3%), including 35 pulmonary forms, 24 ganglion, and 19 multifocal. The sensitivity of the evaluated algorithms varied between 0.35 and 0.85. The specificity ranged from 0.85 to 0.97. The most costeffective algorithm was the one involving MIF and CR. We recommend implementing a systematic and free direct examination of sputum by MIF and a CR for the detection of TB among newly diagnosed PLHIV in Niger.

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Epidemiological study was conducted to determine the prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis and intestinal helminth co-infection among primary school pupils in Wamakko Local Government, Sokoto State, Nigeria. Urine and stool samples were collected from 400 pupils and analyzed using filtration and formol-ether concentration techniques respectively. Out of 400 samples, 63(32.8%) were co-infected with Schistosoma haematobium and one or more intestinal helminths. The co-infection of S. haematobium with Ascaris lumbricoides was most prevalent (74.6%), while S. haematobium with A. lumbricoides, hookworm, and S. haematobium with A. lumbricoides and S. mansoni had the least prevalence (1.6% each). Being male, 10-12 years of age and not washing hands before and after meals were the major risk factors for the spread of urinary schistosomiasis and intestinal helminths co-infection in the study area. An integrated strategy that involves the provision of health education to the communities, regular treatments, provision of safe water supply and sanitation facilities is highly recommended.

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Anaemia has been reported to be the key feature of trypanosomiasis and is used as the primary indicator of when to treat the infection. Therefore, this study was designed to evaluate the anti-anaemic potential of the hydro-ethanolic extract of Waltheria indica in albino rats with parasitaemia – induced anaemia. Three groups of 6 rats each were challenged with Trypanosoma brucei brucei to induce anaemia and treated with 300mg/kg bw orally for 5 days, 3.5mg/kg Berenil® once intraperitoneally and distilled water. All the rats developed anaemia, manifested by significantly reduced values of Packed Cell Volume (PCV), Haemoglobin (Hb)concentration and Red Blood Cells (RBC) count within 5 days of infection compared with the pre-infection values. Treatment with Berenil and Waltheria indica hydro-ethanolic extract at 300mg/kg bw led to remarkable improvement in the values of the PCV, Hb and RBC, however, the restoration was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in the animals treated with the ethanol extract of the plant. Results of the study also indicated the absence of the effect of both parasitaemia and treatment on the levels of erythrocyte indices (Mean Cell Volume, Mean Cell Haemoglobin and Mean Cell Haemoglobin Concentration) of the infected rats. Therefore, the plant could be of use in the management of African sleeping sickness and other ailments related to anaemia.