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Introduction: the epidemiological profile of oral diseases is characterised by disparities between specific groups. The purpose of this study was to assess oral health status of Baka Pygmies in Dimako, Cameroon., Methods: we conducted a cross-sectional study from January 1 to June 14, 2021 in the Baka camps in Dimako. A total of 205 individuals aged 12 years and older were recruited using non-probabilistic, consecutive sampling. Data were collected using a semi-structured, administered questionnaire then entered with CSPro 7.5, and analyzed with SPSS version 26. Multivariate analysis was used to identify factors associated with oral diseases, using their Odds ratios and p-values. The significance threshold was set at 0.05., Results: the most common diseases were dental caries and gingivitis, with prevalence rates of 80.4% and 64.8%, respectively. Factors associated with dental caries included age 12 to 25 years (adjusted OR=1.48; p=0.001), insufficient knowledge (adjusted OR=3.5; p=0.034), and inadequate practices (adjusted OR=1.8; p=0.013). Factors associated with gingivitis were primary education level (adjusted OR=5.2; p=0.04), approximate attitudes (adjusted OR=2.2; p=0.014) and harmful practices (adjusted OR=1.9; p=0.02)., Conclusion: dental caries and gingivitis are prevalent among the Baka Pygmies. It is necessary to strengthen their education and improve their access to oral healthcare., Competing Interests: Les auteurs ne déclarent aucun conflit d'intérêt., (Copyright: Lionel Berthold Keubou Boukeng et al.)

Introduction: COVID-19 is an infectious and contagious disease declared as public health emergency of international concern in 2020. Given its high morbidity and mortality, one of the responses to this pandemic is vaccination, which has posed a serious problem of acceptance among the population in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and Cameroon in particular. Thus, the purpose of this study was to contribute to a better response to the pandemic in Cameroon by measuring the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccine. We carried out a comparative analysis of morbidity and mortality in vaccinated COVID-19 patients versus unvaccinated COVID-19 patients hospitalized in the three most affected regions of Cameroon., Methods: we conducted a Case-control study with patients vaccinated against COVID-19 as Cases and patients not vaccinated against COVID-19 as controls. We observed the occurrence of severe clinical manifestations in vaccinated and unvaccinated COVID-19 patients during hospitalization to study the influence of vaccination on the outcome of these patients over the period from May 01, 2021, to March 31, 2022; in the COVID management units of Yaoundé Central Hospital, Douala General Hospital, Douala Laquintinie Hospital and Bafoussam Regional Hospital., Results: we conducted our study in 218 hospitalized COVID-19 patients, 109 vaccinated and 109 unvaccinated patients, 51.4% of whom were women. Arterial hypertension (60.6%) and diabetes (27.5%) were more prevalent in unvaccinated patients. The median length of hospital stay was 07 days for vaccinated patients and 05 days for unvaccinated patients. Coma (0.7% in vaccinated patients and 79.8% in unvaccinated patients), consciousness disorders (8.3% in vaccinated patients and 57.8% in unvaccinated patients), headaches (46.8% in vaccinated patients and 18.3% in unvaccinated patients), pneumonia (78% in vaccinated patients and 78.9% in unvaccinated patients), malaria (31.2% in vaccinated patients and 19.3% in unvaccinated patients), pulmonary embolism (14.7% in vaccinated patients and 22% in unvaccinated patients) and venous thromboembolism (1.1% in vaccinated patients and 14.7% in unvaccinated patients) were the main severe clinical manifestations. The prevalence of mortality was 1.8% in vaccinated patients and 79.8% in unvaccinated patients., Conclusion: four out of 1000 vaccinated patients were less likely to die during hospitalization compared to unvaccinated patients. This reinforces the importance of vaccination in controlling COVID-19 infection., Competing Interests: Les auteurs ne déclarent aucun conflit d'intérêts., (Copyright: Jean Yves Bevela et al.)

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is a public health concern worldwide. The clinical manifestations include underweight and oral lesions. The objective of this study was to assess the relationship between oral pathologies and underweight among HIV-positive patients in Yaoundé, Cameroon., Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study between February 1st and 30th June 2021 at Yaoundé Central Hospital in Cameroon. A total of 205 HIV positive patients aged at least 18 years were recruited via consecutive sampling. The questionnaire consisted of sociodemographic information, anthropometric data, dietary habits, HIV history and treatment and oral examination data. The data were analysed with R software. Multivariate analysis was used to assess the risk of being underweight among HIV-positive patients with oral pathologies. A p value < 0.05 was considered to indicate statistical significance., Results: The prevalence of oral pathologies was 52.7% (95% CI: 45.6-59.6), and the main pathologies were candidiasis (40.5%, 95% CI: 33.7-47.5) and linear erythema (32.2%, 95% CI: 25.9-39.1). The prevalence of underweight was 20% (95% CI: 14.88-26.26). Binary logistic regression revealed that HIV-positive patients with oral pathologies were 10.89 (95% CI: 2.28-16.63) times more likely to be underweight than were HIV positive and AIDS patients without oral pathologies (p = 0.002)., Conclusion: Oral candidiasis and linear erythema were common in HIV positive and AIDS patients. HIV-positive and AIDS patients with these oral pathologies were at higher risk of being underweight than were those without oral pathologies. The effective medical care of these patients must include oral and nutritional management., (© 2024. The Author(s).)