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  1. Fulltext Occupational Health and Safety in the Palm Oil Industry: A Systematic Review
    Myzabella N, Fritschi L, Merdith N, El-Zaemey S, Chih H, Reid A
    Int J Occup Environ Med, 2019 10;10(4):159-173.
    PMID: 31586381 DOI: 10.15171/ijoem.2019.1576
    BACKGROUND: The palm oil industry is the largest contributor to global production of oils and fats. Indonesia and Malaysia are the largest producers of palm oil. More than a million workers are employed in this industry, yet there is a lack of information on their occupational health and safety.

    OBJECTIVE: To identify and summarize occupational hazards among oil palm plantation workers.

    METHODS: A search was carried out in June 2018 in PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Ovid. Relevant publications were identified by a systematic search of four databases and relevant journals. Publications were included if they examined occupational hazards in oil palm plantation workers.

    RESULTS: 941 publications were identified; of these, 25 studies were found eligible to be included in the final review. Of the 25 studies examined, 19 were conducted in Malaysia, 2 in Costa Rica, and one each in Ghana, Indonesia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, and Cameroon. Oil palm plantation workers were found to be at risk of musculoskeletal conditions, injuries, psychosocial disorders, and infectious diseases such as malaria and leptospirosis. In addition, they have potential exposure to paraquat and other pesticides.

    CONCLUSION: In light of the potential of palm oil for use as a biofuel, this is an industry with strong growth potential. The workers are exposed to various occupational hazards. Further research and interventions are necessary to improve the working conditions of this already vast and growing workforce.

    Matched MeSH terms: Cameroon/epidemiology
  2. First evidence of local circulation of Plasmodium ovale curtisi and reliability of a malaria rapid diagnostic test among symptomatic outpatients in Douala, Cameroon
    Kojom Foko LP, Kouemo Motse FD, Kamgain Mawabo L, Pande V, Singh V
    Infect Genet Evol, 2021 07;91:104797.
    PMID: 33676011 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2021.104797
    The performances of a commonly used Plasmodium falciparum-detecting rapid diagnostic test (RDT) were determined in symptomatic individuals living in Cameroon. Discrepancies between RDT and light microscopy (LM) results were further investigated, with a focus on non-falciparum malaria (NFM) which are still largely understudied in sub-Saharan Africa (sSA) countries. In the present study, a total of 355 individuals aged 1-65 years were enrolled in the study. Their signs/symptoms and sociodemographic characteristics were documented. The RDT reliability was evaluated using LM as gold standard method. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) of Plasmodium 18S gene was performed for samples with discordant results between LM and RDT (i.e., RDT-/LM+, and RDT+/LM-). The PCR amplicons of NFM species were sequenced and BLASTed. The prevalence of malaria infection by LM was 95.7% (95% CI: 93.1-97.4%). The sensitivity and specificity of RDT for P. falciparum detection was 94.0% and 66.7%, respectively. By PCR assay, P. ovale curtisi (PoC) was found in 5 of the 30 discordant samples, and on sequence analysis these isolates were found to be phylogenetically closer to sequences reported from China-Myanmar border and Malaysia. This is the first report on molecular characterization of P. ovale subspecies in Cameroon. The study also outlines the good diagnostic performances of the RDT for detection of P. falciparum. Though, the presence of PoC indicated the importance of having RDTs targeting the NFM species in malaria diagnosis and treatment, which is presently limited in the country.
    Matched MeSH terms: Cameroon/epidemiology
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