Lancet Commission Co-Chair Ana Mocumbi publishes article that examines pattern of emergency presentations for NCDs and injuries in Mozambique

Lancet NCDI Poverty Commission Co-Chair Ana Mocumbi was lead author of a research article focused on addressing the “paucity of primary data to understand the overall pattern of disease and injuries as well as related health-service utilization in resource-poor countries in Africa.”

“Differential patterns of disease and injury in Mozambique: New perspectives from a pragmatic, multicenter, surveillance study of 7809 emergency presentations” was published on 10 July 2019 in PLOS ONE.

Dr. Mocumbi and her co-authors undertook a prospective, multicentre surveillance study of individuals (all ages) presenting to the emergency departments of three hospitals to generate reliable and robust data describing the pattern of emergency presentations attributable to communicable diseases (CDs), non-communicable disease (NCDs) and injuries in three different regions of Mozambique. The study also highlighted specific health priorities across different regions and seasons in Southern Africa.

The study found that emergency admissions across the three hospitals were divided equally between CDs (50.1%) and NCDs and injuries (49.9%). CDs accounted for two-thirds of presentations among patients under the age of 10, while NCDIs were progressively more prevalent in older individuals, ranging from 50% of admissions between the ages of 10 and 20 to 70% and higher after the age of 60.

In addition, the study found that NCDs were more prevalent among females and in the regional city of Beira, while injuries were more prevalent in males (particularly adolescent/young men) and in the northern city of Nampula. To learn more about their specific findings, the article in its entirety can be accessed here.

A detailed report on the study findings has been submitted to the Mozambique government and Department of Health to support future health planning.

The study was co-funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia and a Pfizer Investigator Initiated Grant from the Pfizer Foundation.

Citation: Mocumbi AO, Cebola B, Muloliwa A, Sebastião F, Sitefane SJ, Manafe N, et al. (2019) Differential patterns of disease and injury in Mozambique: New perspectives from a pragmatic, multicenter, surveillance study of 7809 emergency presentations. PLoS ONE 14(7): e0219273. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0219273