TITLE:
Prevalence of Coinfection with Malaria and HIV among Children in Yaoundé, Cameroon: A Cross-Sectional Survey Performed in Three Communities in Yaoundé
AUTHORS:
Tebit E. Kwenti, Emilienne Edo, Besong S. Ayuk, Tayong D. B. Kwenti
KEYWORDS:
Malaria, HIV, Coinfection, Plasmodium falciparum, Prevalence, Children, Yaoundé, Cameroon
JOURNAL NAME:
Yangtze Medicine,
Vol.1 No.3,
September
27,
2017
ABSTRACT: Background: Malaria and HIV are endemic in Cameroon. But data on the prevalence of coinfection with malaria and HIV in Cameroonian children are essentially absent. This study was aimed at determining the prevalence of coinfection with malaria and HIV among children in Yaoundé, so as to advice control policies. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, children (≤15 years) were recruited from 3 communities in Yaoundé namely: Efoulan, Biyem-assi and Cité-verte. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect demographic data. Participants were screened for malaria parasites by the examination of Giemsa-stained blood films meanwhile participants were screened for HIV following Cameroon’s national algorithm. The Pearson’s chi-square test was performed as part of the statistical analyses. Statistical significance was set at p Result: Three hundred and ten (310) children took part in the study. The mean age (±SD) of the participants was 75.64 (±63.23) months and a majority of them were males (56.1%). The prevalence was 19.7%, 4.8% and 1.2% for malaria, HIV, and coinfection with malaria and HIV respectively. The prevalence of malaria was associated with age (p = 0.009) meanwhile the prevalence of HIV was associated with study site (p = 0.024). Plasmodium falciparum was the only species identified as causing malaria in the target population. Conclusion: A substantial prevalence of malaria, HIV and coinfection with malaria and HIV was observed in this study. Efforts should be strengthened to control and eventually eliminate these diseases in the target population.