Burden of neglected tropical diseases and access to medicine and diagnostics in Ethiopia: a scoping review

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Date

2023

Authors

Semahegn, A.
Manyazewal, T.
Getachew, E.
et al.

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Systematic Reviews

Abstract

Background More than 1.7 billion people are afected by neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) worldwide. Forty percent of the NTD-afected people live in Africa with the poorest, most vulnerable, and hard to reach geographi cal areas. The NTDs cause signifcant social and economic burden and deepen marginalization and stigmatization. The World Health Organization’s current roadmap for NTD aims to prevent, control, eliminate, or eradicate 20 tropi cal diseases. Ethiopia experiences a high burden of these diseases, but current access to diagnostics, medicine, and/ or care has been little explored to inform the country’s NTD strategic plan. The overall purpose of the scoping review was to map and characterize the burden of NTDs and challenges in access to diagnostics, medicine, and/or care in Ethiopia. Methods A systematic search of evidence was conducted in PubMed, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar from January 2000 until May 2022, without restrictions of language or study design. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Review was followed for screening of studies. Key fndings were extracted and narrated qualitatively. Results The search resulted in 4532 articles, of which 105 met the inclusion criteria and were included in the scoping review under three themes: burden of NTDs, access to diagnostics, medicine and/or care, and key barriers. Although gains have been made in the prevention and control of NTDs in Ethiopia, the burden remains high, and progress in access to diagnostics, medicine/drugs, and/or care is very slow. Poverty, poor quality of life, and underfunding of NTD programs decelerate the process of NTD elimination program in the country. Conclusions The scoping review identifed a considerable number of studies on the burden of NTDs in Ethio pia and strategies for diagnosis, treatment, and/or care; however, there is a paucity of evidence on the suitability and potential benefts of novel diagnostic technologies and medicines in the country. A regular review and analy sis of such country-level evidence is important to inform the country NTDs roadmap and local implementation strategies.

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Research Article

Keywords

Neglected tropical diseases, Diagnosis, Treatment

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