Factual data exploring the relationship between obesity and diabetes mellitus prevalence from rural areas of sub-Saharan Africa remain scattered and are unreliable. To address this scarceness, this work reports population study data describing the relationship between the obesity and the diabetes mellitus in the general population of the rural area of Katana (South Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo). A cohort of three thousand, nine hundred, and sixty-two (3962) adults (>15 years old) were followed between 2012 and 2015 (or 4105 person-years during the observation period), and data were collected using the locally adjusted World Health Organization’s (WHO) STEPwise approach to Surveillance (STEPS) methodology. The hazard ratio for progression of obesity was calculated. The association between diabetes mellitus and obesity was analyzed with logistic regression. The diabetes mellitus prevalence was 2.8 % versus 3.5 % for obese participants and 7.2 % for those with metabolic syndrome, respectively. Within the diabetes group, 26.9 % had above-normal waist circumference and only 9.8 % were obese. During the median follow-up period of 2 years, the incidence of obesity was 535/100,000 person-years. During the follow-up, the prevalence of abdominal obesity significantly increased by 23 % (p <0.0001), whereas the increased prevalence of general obesity (7.8 %) was not significant (p = 0.53). Finally, diabetes mellitus was independently associated with age, waist circumference, and blood pressure but not body mass index. This study confirms an association between diabetes mellitus and abdominal obesity but not with general obesity. On the other hand, the rapid increase in abdominal obesity prevalence in this rural area population within the follow-up period calls for the urgent promoting of preventive lifestyle measures.

Background: Long-term impact of different forms of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) in childhood on the emergence of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) is poorly known. Aim: To explore the association between subtypes of SAM during childhood, NCDs, and cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) in young adults 11 to 30 years after post-SAM nutritional rehabilitation. Methods: In this follow-up study, we investigated 524 adults (mean age 22 years) treated for SAM during childhood in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) between 1988 and 2007. Among them, 142 had a history of marasmus, 175 of kwashiorkor, and 207 had mixed-form SAM. These participants were compared to 407 aged- and sex-matched control adults living in the same community without a history of SAM. Our outcomes of interest were cardiometabolic risk markers for NCDs. Logistic and linear regressions models were sued to estimate the association between subtype of SAM in childhood and risk of NCDs. Results: Compared to unexposed, former mixed-type SAM participants had a higher adjusted ORs of metabolic syndrome [2.68 (1.18; 8.07)], central obesity [1.89 (1.11; 3.21)] and low HDL-C (High-density lipoprotein cholesterol) [1.52 (1.08; 2.62)]. However, there was no difference between groups in terms of diabetes, high blood pressure, elevated LDL-C (low-density lipoprotein cholesterol) and hyper TG (hypertriglyceridemia) and overweightness. Former mixed-type SAM participants had higher mean fasting glucose [3.38 mg/dL (0.92; 7.7)], reduced muscle strength [−3.47 kg (−5.82; −1.11)] and smaller hip circumference [−2.27 cm (−4.24; −0.31)] compared to non-exposed. Regardless of subtypes, SAM-exposed participants had higher HbA1c than unexposed (p < 0.001). Those with a history of kwashiorkor had cardiometabolic and nutritional parameters almost superimposable to those of unexposed. Conclusion: The association between childhood SAM, prevalence of NCDs and their CVRFs in adulthood varies according to SAM subtypes, those with mixed form being most at risk. Multicenter studies on larger cohorts of older participants are needed to elucidate the impact of SAM subtypes on NCDs risk.

We report the case of an 18‐year‐old girl who presented with several episodes of simple partial motor seizures compatible with the diagnosis of epilepsia partialis continua. In addition to ketotic hyperglycemia, tuberculous meningoencephalitis was diagnosed based on clinical, biological, and brain imaging findings. The seizures ceased after normalization of glycemia.

Mpox remains endemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where co-endemic infections and non-communicable comorbidities may influence disease severity and clinical outcomes. However, data on associated factors of adverse outcomes among hospitalised adults with mpox in African settings remain limited. This study aimed to describe the clinical profile of adults hospitalised with mpox in South Kivu Province, eastern DRC, and to explore associations between selected comorbid conditions, including HIV infection, malaria, and hyperglycaemia, and mpox disease severity, mortality, and hospitalisation duration. We conducted a multicentre retrospective observational study among adults admitted to five mpox treatment centres in South Kivu Province, DRC, between January 2024 and December 2025. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data were extracted from routine hospital registers. Mpox disease severity (available only for a subset of participants) was classified according to WHO criteria. Participants included adults with suspected, probable or laboratory-confirmed mpox according to WHO case definitions in use during the study period. In addition to mpox disease severity, outcomes of interest included in-hospital mortality and duration of hospitalisation. Multivariable regression models were used to explore associations between selected comorbidities and clinical outcomes after adjustment for age and sex. Among 652 hospitalised adults included in the analysis, the median age was 26 years (IQR 21.0–35.0), and 383/652 (58.7%) were female. Among patients with recorded severity data (n = 104), moderate or severe mpox was documented in 88/104 (84.6%) patients. Overall mortality was 14/645 (2.2%). HIV infection was identified in 5 of the 71 participants tested (7.0%). Among participants with available test results, HIV infection appeared to be associated with higher mpox severity and mortality. Increasing age, but not HIV infection, malaria, or glycaemic status, was associated with longer hospitalisation. Because laboratory investigations were performed in only a subset of participants and missing data were substantial, these findings should be interpreted cautiously and considered exploratory. Prospective studies incorporating systematic laboratory testing and standardised clinical data collection are needed to better define factors associated with severe mpox in endemic African settings.

Background: Predictions have been made that Africa would be the most vulnerable continent to the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Interestingly, the spread of the disease in Africa seems to be slower than in many parts of the World. Among possible hypotheses, some parts of Africa may have undergone a “silent” COVID-19 epidemic and acquired a herd immunity before the official declaration of the disease in December 2019.Case presentation: We report two cases (one 55-year-old man and one 25-year-old woman) of acute respiratory distress secondary to atypical pneumonia in Bukavu, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) which occurred between September and December 2019, before the official beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. One patient had returned from China and the other had close contacts with travellers from China in the 2 weeks prior to the onset of symptoms. In either case, the aetiology could not be accurately determined. However, the two cases presented a clinical picture (progressive dyspnoea, preceded by dry cough and fever) and laboratory changes (procalcitonin within the normal range, slight inflammation, and lymphopenia) compatible with a viral infection. The chest X-Rays series of the first patient showed lesions (reticulations, ground glass, and nodules ≤ 6 mm) similar to those found in COVID-19. In addition, unlike the 25-year-old female patient who had no comorbidity, the 55-year-old male patient who had hypertension as comorbidity, developed a more severe acute respiratory distress which progressed to death.Conclusion: These cases bring to the attention a number of facts which make us suspect that the COVID-19 epidemic may have already been present in the region months before the official beginning of the pandemic.