Intestinal Parasitic Infections: A Rare Coinfection by Ascaris lumbricoides and Eristalis tenax in a 10-month-old Infant in Cameroon

We report a rare case of coinfection by intestinal parasitosis and myiasis (Ascaris lumbricoides and Eristalis tenax) in a 10-month-old female infant living in Yaounde, an urban area in a low- and middle-income country. Incidental discovery was made following symptoms of acute vomiting and diarrhea with a massive release of an estimated thirty adult A. lumbricoides worms and E. tenax larvae through nasal, buccal, and anal routes. Diagnosis was based on the macroscopic appearance of the worms and the fly larvae. Treatment with benzimidazoles was initiated, with a resolution of symptoms within one week. This case highlights the challenges of public health eradication guidelines (such as the antihelminthic drugs marketing authorization) in our setting and discusses the protocols of management in less than 1-year-old infants in sub-saharan Africa, a region of high helminthic endemicity.

Osteogenesis Imperfecta in neonatal period in Cameroon: A case report

Early forms of Osteogenesis Imperfecta should be considered as main etiology of bone deformities in newborns. Prenatal diagnosis and genetic counseling should be improved in Africa. Management of these children remains difficult in low-income countries.

Chronic cutaneous candidiasis in children: should we stop there? Report of two cases associated with auto-immune polyendocrinopathy syndrome type I

Background

Auto-immune polyendocrinopathy syndrome type I is a rare genetic disease, usually revealed by chronic superficial candidiasis and autoimmune endocrine dysfunction in childhood.

Cases presentation

We report the cases of 2 children, a 4 years-11 months old boy and 13 years old adolescent, admitted and followed up in the endocrinology unit of the Mother and Child Centre of Chantal Biya’s Foundation for auto-immune polyendocrine syndrome type 1.

Conclusion

The occurrence of chronic cutaneous candidiasis in a child should always imply endocrine screening, to exclude auto-immune polyendocrine syndrome type I.

Observational study of disorders of sex development in Yaounde, Cameroon

Introduction According to the current classification of the Lawson Wilkins Pediatric Endocrine Society (LWPES) and the European Society for Pediatric Endocrinology (ESPE) of Disorders of Sex Development (DSD), etiologies vary around the world. Ethnic or genetic diversity probably explains this variability. We therefore conducted the present study on etiologies of DSDs in a country from central Africa. Methods We carried out an observational retrospective study at the Pediatric Endocrinology Unit of the Mother and Child Centre of the Chantal Biya Foundation in Yaounde, Cameroon from May 2013 to December 2019. All patients diagnosed with a DSD were included, and incomplete files excluded. Results We included 80 patients diagnosed with DSD during the study period. The 46,XX DSD were the most frequent in our study population (n = 41, 51.25%), with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) as the main diagnosis. The 46,XY DSD accounted for 33.75% and sex chromosome DSD group represented 15% of the study population. Conclusions DSDs are not an exceptional diagnosis in a Sub-Saharan context. 46,XX DSD are the most prevalent diagnosis in our setting. The diagnosis of all these affections is late compared to other centers, justifying advocacy for neonatal screening of DSDs in our context.

Dyshormonogenesis seems to be more frequent in a group of Cameroonian children with congenital hypothyroidism

Congenital hypothyroidism is a main congenital endocrine disorder, affecting 1 in 4000 births. It is not well described in sub-Saharan countries, and to draw attention to that issue, we decided to describe affected pediatric patients. We retrospectively analyzed the records of eight patients over a period of 6 years. We analyzed clinical sings of hypothyroidism and psychomotor development; hormonal assays and thyroid ultrasound were performed. We included four boys and four girls aged from 3 to 84 months at diagnosis with a median thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) level of 156.5 mUI/L. All except one present with a moderate psychomotor delay. Other clinical signs were classical for hypothyroidism. Thyroid ultrasound performed showed a goiter in half of patients, a normal gland in three of them and a hypoplasic gland in the last one, consonant with dyshormonogenesis. We therefore concluded that dyshormonogenesis seems to be more frequent in our context, and this raised the issue of neonatal screening of hypothyroidism in Africa.