OBJECT: Hydrocephalus is one of the most common brain disorders in children throughout the world. The majority of infant hydrocephalus cases in East Africa appear to be postinfectious, related to preceding neonatal infections, and are thus preventable if the microbial origins and routes of infection can be characterized. In prior microbiological work, the authors noted evidence of seasonality in postinfectious hydrocephalus (PIH) cases. METHODS: The geographical address of 696 consecutive children with PIH who were treated over 6 years was fused with satellite rainfall data for the same time period. A comprehensive time series and spatiotemporal analysis of cases and rainfall was performed. RESULTS: Four infection-onset peaks were found to straddle the twice-yearly rainy season peaks, demonstrating that the infections occurred at intermediate levels of rainfall. CONCLUSIONS: The findings in this study reveal a previously unknown link between climate and a neurosurgical condition. Satellite-derived rainfall dynamics are an important factor in driving the infections that lead to PIH. Given prior microbial analysis, these findings point to the importance of environmental factors with respect to preventing the newborn infections that lead to PIH.
OBJECT: Hydrocephalus is one of the most common brain disorders in children throughout the world. The majority of infanthydrocephalus cases in East Africa appear to be postinfectious, related to preceding neonatal infections, and are thus preventable if the microbial origins and routes of infection can be characterized. In prior microbiological work, the authors noted evidence of seasonality in postinfectious hydrocephalus (PIH) cases. METHODS: The geographical address of 696 consecutive children with PIH who were treated over 6 years was fused with satellite rainfall data for the same time period. A comprehensive time series and spatiotemporal analysis of cases and rainfall was performed. RESULTS: Four infection-onset peaks were found to straddle the twice-yearly rainy season peaks, demonstrating that the infections occurred at intermediate levels of rainfall. CONCLUSIONS: The findings in this study reveal a previously unknown link between climate and a neurosurgical condition. Satellite-derived rainfall dynamics are an important factor in driving the infections that lead to PIH. Given prior microbial analysis, these findings point to the importance of environmental factors with respect to preventing the newborn infections that lead to PIH.
Authors: Michael J Boivin; Angelina M Kakooza; Benjamin C Warf; Leslie L Davidson; Elena L Grigorenko Journal: Nature Date: 2015-11-19 Impact factor: 49.962
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Authors: Julius Kiwanuka; Joel Bazira; Juliet Mwanga; Dickson Tumusiime; Eunice Nyesigire; Nkangi Lwanga; Benjamin C Warf; Vivek Kapur; Mary Poss; Steven J Schiff Journal: PLoS One Date: 2013-08-27 Impact factor: 3.240
Authors: Joseph N Paulson; Brent L Williams; Christine Hehnly; Nischay Mishra; Shamim A Sinnar; Lijun Zhang; Paddy Ssentongo; Edith Mbabazi-Kabachelor; Dona S S Wijetunge; Benjamin von Bredow; Ronnie Mulondo; Julius Kiwanuka; Francis Bajunirwe; Joel Bazira; Lisa M Bebell; Kathy Burgoine; Mara Couto-Rodriguez; Jessica E Ericson; Tim Erickson; Matthew Ferrari; Melissa Gladstone; Cheng Guo; Murali Haran; Mady Hornig; Albert M Isaacs; Brian Nsubuga Kaaya; Sheila M Kangere; Abhaya V Kulkarni; Elias Kumbakumba; Xiaoxiao Li; David D Limbrick; Joshua Magombe; Sarah U Morton; John Mugamba; James Ng; Peter Olupot-Olupot; Justin Onen; Mallory R Peterson; Farrah Roy; Kathryn Sheldon; Reid Townsend; Andrew D Weeks; Andrew J Whalen; John Quackenbush; Peter Ssenyonga; Michael Y Galperin; Mathieu Almeida; Hannah Atkins; Benjamin C Warf; W Ian Lipkin; James R Broach; Steven J Schiff Journal: Sci Transl Med Date: 2020-09-30 Impact factor: 17.956