The new mobile tool should improve the identification of children suffering from a serious illness requiring immediate treatment, so reducing mortality. (Photo: Swiss TPH)
Fondation Botnar has awarded CHF 7 million to researchers from Lausanne for further deployment of electronic diagnostic and treatment tools based on algorithms, which will help clinicians to manage febrile children. The research project is led by Unisanté and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), in collaboration with Swiss TPH and two research institutes in Tanzania: Ifakara Health Institute (IHI) and National Institute for Medical Research (NIMR). The project could avoid millions of clinical failures and tens of millions of unnecessary prescriptions of antibiotics every year, in Africa and perhaps one day in Europe. Each year, around 3.3 million children die from acute febrile episodes worldwide, especially in countries with low-resources. The lack of diagnostic tools and clinical guidance to front-line health workers strongly contribute to this situation, and leads at the same time to unnecessary antimicrobials prescribed to "be on the safe side". Around nine in every ten children attending primary health care establishments in Tanzania receive an antibiotic, although only one in ten really need it. This over-prescription is a major factor in antibiotic resistance, which is one of the world's most serious health problems and a major healthcare challenge.
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