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Podoconiosis, the Non-Filarial Elephantiasis, a Means of Discrimination and Poverty in Ethiopia

Received: 15 April 2015     Accepted: 29 April 2015     Published: 13 May 2015
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Abstract

Podoconiosis is a non-infectious geo-chemical disease caused by exposure of bare feet to red clay soil derived from volcanic rocks. In Ethiopia, 1 million people suffer with the disease. It affects the physical condition (disability and deformity) of patients and also the social and economic status of affected individuals. Studies conducted in endemic countries clearly stated that there is stigmatization in the family and in general in the community. This consequences mental distress in affected individual. Besides, individuals affected economically: they cost for treatment and mainly they loss their productivity potential. These results financial crisis individually and aggravate poverty in the society. This review intends to address the social exclusion and economic impact of podoconiosis in Ethiopia.

Published in American Journal of Biomedical and Life Sciences (Volume 3, Issue 3)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17
Page(s) 67-70
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2015. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Podoconiosis, Discrimination, Poverty, Ethiopia

References
[1] Davey, G.(2008). Podoconiosis: let Ethiopia lead the way. Ethiop.J.HealthDev,22(1).
[2] Davey, G., E. Gebrehanna, et al. (2007). "Podoconiosis: a tropical model for gene-environment interactions?" Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg, 101(1): 91-96.
[3] Deribe, K., Brooker, SJ.,Pullan, RL., Hailu, A., Enquselassie, F., Reithinger, R. Newport, M. and Davey, G. (2013a). Spatial distribution of podoconiosis in relation to environmental factors in Ethiopia: a historical review. PLoS One, 8 (7). e68330. ISSN 1932-6203.
[4] Deribe, K., Tomczyk, S. and Tekola-Ayele, F. (2013b). Ten Years of Podoconiosis Research in Ethiopia. PLoSNegl Trop Dis,7(10): e2301. doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0002301.
[5] FMOH (2013). National Master Plan for Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). Addis Ababa, Federal Ministry of Health of Ethiopia.
[6] Molla, Y., Tomczyk, S., Amberbir, T., Tamiru, A. and Davey, G.(2012). Patients’ perceptions of podoconiosis causes, prevention and consequences in East and West Gojam, Northern Ethiopia.BMC Public Health, 12:828.
[7] Molla, Y., Wardrop, N., Blond, J., Baxter, P., Newport, M., Atkinson, P. and Davey, G.(2014). Modeling environmental factors correlated with podoconiosis: a geo-spatial study of non-filarial elephantiasis. Int J Health Geogr, 13:24.
[8] Mousleya, E., Deribe, K., Tamiru, A., and Davey, G.(2013). The impact of podoconiosis on quality of life in Northern Ethiopia. Health Qual Life Outcomes, 11:122.
[9] Mousleya, E., Deribe, K., Tamiru, A., Tomczyk, S., Hanlone, C. and Daveya, G. (2015). Mental distress and podoconiosis in Northern Ethiopia: a comparative cross-sectional study. Int Health7: 16–25.
[10] Tekola, F., H. Mariam, D. and Davey, G.(2006). Economic costs of endemic non-filarial elephantiasis in Wolaita Zone, Ethiopia. Trop Med Int Health,11 (7 ):1136–1144.
[11] TekolaAyele, F., A. Adeyemo, et al. (2012). "Using a "genomics tool" to develop disease prevention strategy in a low-income setting: lessons from the podoconiosis research project." J Community Genet.
[12] Tora, A.,Davey, G., and Tadele, G. (2011). Qualitative study on stigma and coping strategies of patients with podoconiosis in Wolaita zone, Southern Ethiopia. Int Health,.3:176– 181.
[13] Tora, A., Franklin, H.,Deribe, K., Reda, A. and Davey, G.(2014). Extent of podoconiosis-related stigma in Wolaita Zone, Southern Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study.Springer Plus, 3:647.
[14] WHO, 2011. http://www.who.int/neglected_diseases/diseases/podoconiosis/en/ neglected tropical diseas. WHO, Geneva.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Fikresilasie Samuel Tasew. (2015). Podoconiosis, the Non-Filarial Elephantiasis, a Means of Discrimination and Poverty in Ethiopia. American Journal of Biomedical and Life Sciences, 3(3), 67-70. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17

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    ACS Style

    Fikresilasie Samuel Tasew. Podoconiosis, the Non-Filarial Elephantiasis, a Means of Discrimination and Poverty in Ethiopia. Am. J. Biomed. Life Sci. 2015, 3(3), 67-70. doi: 10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17

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    AMA Style

    Fikresilasie Samuel Tasew. Podoconiosis, the Non-Filarial Elephantiasis, a Means of Discrimination and Poverty in Ethiopia. Am J Biomed Life Sci. 2015;3(3):67-70. doi: 10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17,
      author = {Fikresilasie Samuel Tasew},
      title = {Podoconiosis, the Non-Filarial Elephantiasis, a Means of Discrimination and Poverty in Ethiopia},
      journal = {American Journal of Biomedical and Life Sciences},
      volume = {3},
      number = {3},
      pages = {67-70},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajbls.20150303.17},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajbls.20150303.17},
      abstract = {Podoconiosis is a non-infectious geo-chemical disease caused by exposure of bare feet to red clay soil derived from volcanic rocks. In Ethiopia, 1 million people suffer with the disease. It affects the physical condition (disability and deformity) of patients and also the social and economic status of affected individuals. Studies conducted in endemic countries clearly stated that there is stigmatization in the family and in general in the community. This consequences mental distress in affected individual. Besides, individuals affected economically: they cost for treatment and mainly they loss their productivity potential. These results financial crisis individually and aggravate poverty in the society. This review intends to address the social exclusion and economic impact of podoconiosis in Ethiopia.},
     year = {2015}
    }
    

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    AB  - Podoconiosis is a non-infectious geo-chemical disease caused by exposure of bare feet to red clay soil derived from volcanic rocks. In Ethiopia, 1 million people suffer with the disease. It affects the physical condition (disability and deformity) of patients and also the social and economic status of affected individuals. Studies conducted in endemic countries clearly stated that there is stigmatization in the family and in general in the community. This consequences mental distress in affected individual. Besides, individuals affected economically: they cost for treatment and mainly they loss their productivity potential. These results financial crisis individually and aggravate poverty in the society. This review intends to address the social exclusion and economic impact of podoconiosis in Ethiopia.
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Author Information
  • Department of Medicine, Ambo University, Ambo, Ethiopia

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