African health sciences
-
African health sciences · Dec 2020
Meta AnalysisA systematic review and meta-analysis of the prevalence and predictors of anemia among children in Ethiopia.
Anemia is a wide-spread public health problem characterized by a decrease in hemoglobin concentration and/ or red blood cell volume below an established cut-off value. In developing countries including Ethiopia, about half of children are estimated to be anemic. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine the pooled prevalence of anemia and its predictor factors among children in Ethiopia. ⋯ In this study, one in three children were anemic in Ethiopia. It is a moderate public health problem in children in this study. Low literacy, low socioeconomic status as well as rural residence of the families and helminthic infection of the children were found to be predictors of anemia in the children. Community and school-based interventions should be strengthened to improve the problem.
-
African health sciences · Dec 2020
The epidemiology of seasonal influenza after the 2009 influenza pandemic in Africa: a systematic review.
Influenza infection is a serious public health problem that causes an estimated 3 to 5 million cases and 250,000 deaths worldwide every year. The epidemiology of influenza is well-documented in high- and middle-income countries, however minimal effort had been made to understand the epidemiology, burden and seasonality of influenza in Africa. This study aims to assess the state of knowledge of seasonal influenza epidemiology in Africa and identify potential data gaps for policy formulation following the 2009 pandemic. ⋯ Significant progress has been made since the last pandemic in understanding the influenza epidemiology in Africa. However, efforts still remain for most countries to have sufficient data to allow countries to prioritize strategies for influenza prevention and control.