Etiology of Diarrhea in Guinea-Bissau and in Finland

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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Diarrhoea is the leading cause of death in the world with 2.2 million deaths every year. The majority of deaths are among children in developing countries, but the travellers encounter the disease as well. The studies on the aetiology have suffered from serious methodological deficiencies and the results are even controversial. At the same time, the current diagnostic methods are inadequate. The investigators have recently developed novel multiplex RT-PCR methods to cover the majority of diarrhoeal pathogens. The present study is a collaboration between Finland and Sweden/Guinea-Bissau. The aim is to characterize the causative agents of diarrhoea (a) in Finnish volunteers before and after a travel to tropical areas and, (b) in inhabitants of endemic areas in Guinea-Bissau. For these purposes stool samples will be collected from volunteers of different age groups and from healthy volunteers as well as those with diarrhea both in Guinea-Bissau and in Finland. In addition to pathogens, other intestinal microbes and antimicrobial resistance will be investigated

Official Title
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Etiology of Diarrhea in Guinea-Bissau and in Finland

Conditions
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Diarrhea

Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Accepting to participate and willing to deliver 2 stool samples. With diarrhea: the first 10 children and 10 adults presenting each month at the health facility Without diarrhea: In Bissau matched controls drawn from the registration system at Bandim Health Project. In Finland controls selected at the health facilities participating. Exclusion Criteria: Not willing or able to deliver the stool samples
Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Children with diarrhea in Bissau<br> | |
| Children without diarrhea in Bissau<br> | |
| Children without diarrhea in Finland<br> | |
| Children with diarrhea in Finland<br> | |
| Adults without diarrhea in Finland<br> | |
| Adults with diarrhea in Finland<br> | |
| Adults without diarrhea in Bissau<br> | |
| Adults with diarrhea in Bissau<br> | |

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Type of pathogens in stool samples in percentage of included patients | The percentage of included patients with different pathogens will be described. | 2 years | 

Secondary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Type of microbes other than than pathogens in stool samples in percentage of included patients |  | 2 years | 
| The patern of resistance to antimicrobials in isolated pathogens |  | 2 years | 

 Terms related to the study
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Keywords Provided by Centre Hospitalier Valida
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diarrhea, Guinea-Bissau, Finland, Children, Adults, Intestinal pathogens, Bacteria, Virus, Parasites