BACKGROUND Although breastfeeding in general is common and culturally accepted in many sub-Saharan countries, recommended exclusive breastfeeding infants to 6 months is rare. In rural Tanzania, data on infant feeding practices is rare. OBJECTIVE To examine and describe exclusive breastfeeding practices in rural settings (Coast Region) of Tanzania. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conduct...

Biomass fuels, charcoal and kerosene are the most used cooking fuels in Tanzania. Biomass fuel use has been linked to Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) in children. It is not clear whether the use of charcoal and kerosene has health advantage over biomass fuels. In this study, the effects of biomass fuels, charcoal/kerosene on ARI in children under five years old in Tanzania are quantified and...

INTRODUCTION Traditional medicines are an important part of healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa, and building successful disease treatment programs that are sensitive to traditional medicine practices will require an understanding of their current use and roles, including from a biomedical perspective. Therefore, we conducted a mixed-method study in Northern Tanzania in order to characterize the e...

It is argued that trophy hunting of large, charismatic mammal species can have considerable conservation benefits but only if undertaken sustainably. Social-ecological theory suggests such sustainability only results from developing governance systems that balance financial and biological requirements. Here we use lion (Panthera leo) trophy hunting data from Tanzania to investigate how resource...

BACKGROUND Globally, diarrhoea is the second leading cause of morbidity and mortality, responsible for the annual loss of about 10% of the total global childhood disease burden. In Tanzania, Rotavirus infection is the major cause of severe diarrhoea and diarrhoeal mortality in children under five years. Immunisation can reduce the burden, and Tanzania added rotavirus vaccine to its national imm...

BACKGROUND Human African trypanosomiasis is a severely neglected vector-borne disease that is always fatal if untreated. In Tanzania it is highly focalised and of major socio-economic and public health importance in affected communities. OBJECTIVES This study aimed to estimate the public health burden of rhodesiense HAT in terms of DALYs and financial costs in a highly disease endemic area of...

Tanzania is already facing challenges caused by existing burden of communicable diseases, and the growing trend of nonconununicable diseases (NCDs), which raises a lot of concerns and challenges. The objective of this review is to provide broad insight of the "silent epidemic" of NCDs, existing policies, strategies and interventions, and recommendations on prioritized actions. A review of exist...

Rift Valley Fever (RVF) is an acute, mosquito-borne viral disease that has a significant global threat to humans and livestock. This review was conducted to provide comprehensive update on Rift Valley Fever (RVF) in Tanzania, with particular attention devoted to trend of occurrence, epidemiological factors, socio-economic impact and measures which were applied to its control. Information presen...

BACKGROUND Rift Valley fever (RVF)-like disease was first reported in Tanzania more than eight decades ago and the last large outbreak of the disease occurred in 2006-07. This study investigates the spatial and temporal pattern of RVF outbreaks in Tanzania over the past 80 years in order to guide prevention and control strategies. MATERIALS AND METHODS A retrospective study was carried out ba...

BACKGROUND Growing evidence suggests significant geographic clustering of male circumcision (MC) in Tanzania. The impact of spatial heterogeneity of MC prevalence on HIV transmission dynamics in this country is not well documented. The aim of this study was to assess the spatial association between MC and HIV infection in Tanzania. METHODS Data from three Demographic and Health Survey rounds ...