10 MOST INFECTIOUS DISEASES IN WEST AFRICA

West Africa, if one includes the western portion of the Maghreb (Western Sahara, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia), occupies an area in excess of 6,140,000 km2, or approximately one-fifth of Africa. Outbreaks of diseases are costly wherever and whenever they occur. However,outbreaks come to an end.
Infectious diseases stemming from health infrastructural deficiencies,
such as poor sanitation and lack of adequate vaccine coverage,
as well as those linked to specific sociocultural factors, such
as airborne and sexually transmitted diseases,are among the leading cause of death in west africa. listed below are a few.

ONCHOCERCIASIS :Onchocerciasis also known as river blindness is the world's third leading infectious cause of blindness. Some 37 Million people are estimated to be infected and over 99% of those affected live in Africa. It is caused by Onchocerca volvulus also know as filirial worm, a nematode that can live for up to fifteen years in the human body. The worms spread throughout the body, and when they die, they cause intense itching and a strong immune system response that can destroy nearby tissue, such as the eye.

skin involvement typically consists of intense itching, swelling, and inflammation. Agrading System has been developed to categorize the degree of skin involvement:Acute Papular dermatitis - scattered pruritic papules; Chronic papular dermatitis -larger papule, resulting in hyperpigmentation; Lichenified dermatitis -hyperpigmented papules and plaques, with edema, lymphadenopathy, pruritusand common secondary bacterial infections; Skin atrophy - loss of elasticity, skin resembles tissue paper, 'lizard skin' appearance; Depigmentation - 'leopard skin'appearance, usually on anterior lower leg.Ocular involvement provides the common name associated with onchocerciasis,river blindness. The microfilariae migrate to the surface of the cornea. Punctatekeratitis occurs in the infected area. This clears up as the inflammation subsides.However, if the infection is chronic, sclerosing keratitis can occur, making theaffected area become opaque. Over time the entire cornea may becomeopaque, thus leading to blindness. There is some evidence to suggest that the effecton the cornea is caused by an immune response to bacteria present in the worms.



2. SYPHILIS is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the Spirochetal bacterium Treponema pallidum. The route of transmission of syphilis is almost always through sexual contact, although there are examples of congenital syphilis via transmission from mother to child in the uterus.The signs and symptoms of syphilis are numerous; before the advent of serological testing, precise diagnosis was very difficult. In fact, the disease was dubbed the"Great Imitator" because it was often confused with other diseases, particularly in its tertiary stage. Most persons with syphilis tend to be unaware of the infection and they can transmit the infection to sexual contacts or in the case of woman to her unborn child. If left untreated, syphilis can cause serious consequences such as stillbirth, prematurity and neonatal deaths. Adverse outcomes of pregnancies are preventable if the infection is detected and treated before mid-second trimester.Congenital syphilis kills more than 1 million babies a year worldwide but preventableif infected mothers are identified and treated appropriately as early as possible.World health Organization estimates that 12 million new cases of syphilis occur every year. In developing countries, 20-35% of women in child bearing age have syphilis.About 60% of pregnant women with syphilis will give birth to a dead baby and another 30% to live baby with congenital syphilis, a condition with mortality of up to70%.