title: Patterns of malaria: cause-specific and all-cause mortality in a malaria-endemic area of west Africa.
abstract: Information on cause-specific mortality is sparse in sub-Saharan Africa. We present seasonal patterns of malaria and all-cause mortality from a longitudinal study with 60,000 individuals in rural northwestern Burkina Faso. The study is based on a demographic surveillance system and covers the period 1999-2003. Overall, 3,492 deaths were observed. Cause of death was ascertained by verbal autopsy. Age-specific death rates by cause and month of death were calculated. Seasonal and temporal trends were modeled with parametric Poisson regression. Infant and children less than 5 years of age mortality was 60.6 (95% CI, 56.2-65.3) and 31.9 (95% CI, 30.4-33.5) per 1,000 for all causes and 23.4 (95% CI, 20.7-26.4) and 13.3 (95% CI, 12.3-14.3) for malaria, respectively. Mortality was significantly higher in the rainy season. It is well described parametrically with a sinusoidal function. In adults, the highest all-cause mortality rates were observed in the dry season. Here, HIV/AIDS has become a leading cause of mortality.
authors.affiliation: Department of Tropical Hygiene and Public Health, University of Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 324, Heidelberg, Germany. heiko.becher@urz.uni-heidelberg.de
authors.forename: Heiko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Becher
authors.forename: Gisela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kynast-Wolf
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sié
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ndugwa
authors.forename: Heribert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ramroth
authors.forename: Bocar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kouyaté
authors.forename: Olaf
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Müller
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002050:Burkina Faso / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016208:Databases, Factual; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008288:Malaria / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009026:Mortality / Q000639:trends; D012423:Rural Health; D012621:Seasons; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires