BACKGROUND: Cassava and corn milling is a growing small-scale enterprise in Africa. We aimed to determine the incidence of hand-arm musculoskeletal complaints among vibration-exposed Congolese cassava and corn millers in the previous 12 months. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted, prior to a follow-up study, from March to May 2013 among cassava/corn millers in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo, in which 365 millers age-matched to 365 civil workers anonymously answered a questionnaire. RESULTS: Overall incidence of hand-arm musculoskeletal complaints was 25.8% in millers (vs. 5.2% in civil workers; p < 0.001). The risk of experiencing musculoskeletal symptoms was seven times higher in millers [vs. civil workers; odds ratio (OR) = 7.10; 95% confidence interval (CI): 4.03-12.50; p < 0.0001]; 2.4 times higher in smoking millers (vs. smoking civil office workers; OR = 2.36; 95% CI: 1.42-3.88; p < 0.001); 3.6 times higher in millers with longer daily exposure (> 8 hours; vs. those working < or = 8 hours; OR = 3.56; 95% CI: 1.93-3.61; p = 0.026); and 7.4 times higher in young millers (vs. older millers, OR = 7.39; 95% CI: 1.29-75.52; p < 0.001). Smoking, number of cigarettes, and daily exposure duration were positively correlated with musculoskeletal complaints. CONCLUSION: This study revealed a relatively high incidence of musculoskeletal complaints among African cassava and corn millers. The use of anti-vibration protective equipment and the regulation of this hazardous occupation may reduce the burden of musculoskeletal disorders in millers.
Africa ; Anonyms and Pseudonyms ; Congo ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Follow-Up Studies ; Incidence* ; Manihot* ; Occupations ; Odds Ratio ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Tobacco Products ; Zea mays*

Objective:To analyze the feasibility of detecting Ph1 in leukemia patients in the Kinshasa University Clinics in the Democratic Republic of Congo,at KU Leuven,Belgium.Methods:Bone marrow and peripheral blood samples with chronic myeloid leukemia,acute myeloid leukemia or acute leukocytes leukemia were obtained from 32 patients in Kinshasa University clinics in the Democratic Republic of Congo and transferred to KU Leuven in Belgium for iFISH feasibility.Ph1 was detected by using a remote analysis of interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (iFISH).Results:Out of the 32 patients involved in this study,65.6％ (n =21) of the cases were successfully tested,of which 52.4％ (n =11) were iFISH positives for the variant t(9;22)(presence of Ph1) in chronic myeloid leukemia samples and 47.6％ (n =10) negatives in all subtypes of hematological malignancies.However,there was a female predominance in chronic myeloid leukemia samples Phi-positives by iFISH,whereas no sexual influence was observed on acute subtypes of leukemia.Conclusions:iFISH analysis is feasible on samples obtained from remote sites in the Democratic Republic of Congo.However,the optimization of the sample storage is necessary to further improve iFISH's performance.

Objective To analyze the feasibility of detecting Ph