Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis

IntroductionVisceral Leishmaniasis, also known as kala-azar, is a potentially fatal, neglected tropical disease caused by the protozoan parasite Leishmania and transmitted through infected sandflies. It is one of the major global public health problems and contributors to economic crisis among peopl...

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Main Authors: Abebe Kassa Geto, Gete Berihun, Leykun Berhanu, Belay Desye, Chala Daba
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2024-11-01
Series:Frontiers in Public Health
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1488741/full
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author Abebe Kassa Geto
Gete Berihun
Leykun Berhanu
Belay Desye
Chala Daba
Chala Daba
author_facet Abebe Kassa Geto
Gete Berihun
Leykun Berhanu
Belay Desye
Chala Daba
Chala Daba
author_sort Abebe Kassa Geto
collection DOAJ
description IntroductionVisceral Leishmaniasis, also known as kala-azar, is a potentially fatal, neglected tropical disease caused by the protozoan parasite Leishmania and transmitted through infected sandflies. It is one of the major global public health problems and contributors to economic crisis among people. Though different studies investigated human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa, the findings were inconsistent and inconclusive enough, and there is no representative data on this devastating public health concern. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the pooled prevalence and risk factors associated with human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa.MethodsThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA 2020) guidelines were followed for this study. Databases such as PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, LIVIVO, African Journals Online, African Index Medicus (AIM), HINARI, Science Direct, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, and Google were used to retrieve all the relevant articles. The search was carried out from 23 May 2024 to 17 July 2024. Data were analyzed using STATA 17 software to determine the pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis with a 95% confidence interval using a random-effects model.ResultIn this meta-analysis, thirty-nine articles with 40,367 study participants were included. The overall pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa was 26.16% [95%; CI: 19.96, 32.36%; I2 = 99.67%; p = 0.00]. Gender, age, family size, presence of termite hill/mound, presence of cattle/domestic animals, outdoor sleeping, presence of VL infected family member/s, and presence of water source/pathway near home were the risk factors significantly associated with human visceral leishmaniasis.ConclusionThe recorded pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa underscores the urgent need for comprehensive intervention strategies. This includes rigorous health education for residents, covering the disease’s cause, transmission, vector breeding sites, and prevention mechanisms.
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spelling doaj-art-ae2db533bf324bfbb129efef00fa440f2024-11-26T08:06:49ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Public Health2296-25652024-11-011210.3389/fpubh.2024.14887411488741Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysisAbebe Kassa Geto0Gete Berihun1Leykun Berhanu2Belay Desye3Chala Daba4Chala Daba5Department of Nursing and Midwifery, Dessie Health Science College, Dessie, EthiopiaDepartment of Environmental Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Debre Markos University, Debre Markos, EthiopiaDepartment of Environmental Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wollo University, Dessie, EthiopiaDepartment of Environmental Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wollo University, Dessie, EthiopiaDepartment of Environmental Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Wollo University, Dessie, EthiopiaNational Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, AustraliaIntroductionVisceral Leishmaniasis, also known as kala-azar, is a potentially fatal, neglected tropical disease caused by the protozoan parasite Leishmania and transmitted through infected sandflies. It is one of the major global public health problems and contributors to economic crisis among people. Though different studies investigated human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa, the findings were inconsistent and inconclusive enough, and there is no representative data on this devastating public health concern. Therefore, this systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to determine the pooled prevalence and risk factors associated with human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa.MethodsThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA 2020) guidelines were followed for this study. Databases such as PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, LIVIVO, African Journals Online, African Index Medicus (AIM), HINARI, Science Direct, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, and Google were used to retrieve all the relevant articles. The search was carried out from 23 May 2024 to 17 July 2024. Data were analyzed using STATA 17 software to determine the pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis with a 95% confidence interval using a random-effects model.ResultIn this meta-analysis, thirty-nine articles with 40,367 study participants were included. The overall pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa was 26.16% [95%; CI: 19.96, 32.36%; I2 = 99.67%; p = 0.00]. Gender, age, family size, presence of termite hill/mound, presence of cattle/domestic animals, outdoor sleeping, presence of VL infected family member/s, and presence of water source/pathway near home were the risk factors significantly associated with human visceral leishmaniasis.ConclusionThe recorded pooled prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis in Eastern Africa underscores the urgent need for comprehensive intervention strategies. This includes rigorous health education for residents, covering the disease’s cause, transmission, vector breeding sites, and prevention mechanisms.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1488741/fullEastern Africahumanoutdoor sleepingtermite hillvisceral leishmaniasis
spellingShingle Abebe Kassa Geto
Gete Berihun
Leykun Berhanu
Belay Desye
Chala Daba
Chala Daba
Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Frontiers in Public Health
Eastern Africa
human
outdoor sleeping
termite hill
visceral leishmaniasis
title Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
title_full Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
title_fullStr Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
title_full_unstemmed Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
title_short Prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in Eastern Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis
title_sort prevalence of human visceral leishmaniasis and its risk factors in eastern africa a systematic review and meta analysis
topic Eastern Africa
human
outdoor sleeping
termite hill
visceral leishmaniasis
url https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2024.1488741/full
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