Malaria is a major public health problem in the Cote d'Ivoire where it is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of health care ...Malaria is a major public health problem in the Cote d'Ivoire where it is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of health care providers on the diagnosis and therapeutic procedures used to ensure the management of uncomplicated malaria in the health district of Abidjan. A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2008 to December 2008 among 169 caregivers who treated 1,691 cases of uncomplicated malaria. Results: The knowledge of the caregivers of the national guidelines regarding malaria was sufficient (89%). A diagnosis of uncomplicated malaria was established only on clinical arguments (70%). The percentage of patients who were prescribed artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) was 86%. However, 25% of the antimalarials drugs that were prescribed to patients (oral quinine, artemisinin derivatives monotherapy, and herbal medicine) did not meet the recommendations on first choice treatment as suggested by the national program against malaria. These results indicate sufficient knowledge of the national guidelines for the treatment of malaria by health care providers as evidenced by acceptable prescriptions for ACTs despite an incomplete knowledge of the guidelines.展开更多
文摘Malaria is a major public health problem in the Cote d'Ivoire where it is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes and practices of health care providers on the diagnosis and therapeutic procedures used to ensure the management of uncomplicated malaria in the health district of Abidjan. A cross-sectional study was conducted from November 2008 to December 2008 among 169 caregivers who treated 1,691 cases of uncomplicated malaria. Results: The knowledge of the caregivers of the national guidelines regarding malaria was sufficient (89%). A diagnosis of uncomplicated malaria was established only on clinical arguments (70%). The percentage of patients who were prescribed artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) was 86%. However, 25% of the antimalarials drugs that were prescribed to patients (oral quinine, artemisinin derivatives monotherapy, and herbal medicine) did not meet the recommendations on first choice treatment as suggested by the national program against malaria. These results indicate sufficient knowledge of the national guidelines for the treatment of malaria by health care providers as evidenced by acceptable prescriptions for ACTs despite an incomplete knowledge of the guidelines.