Other Diseases

Abstract This chapter deals with three diseases: traumatic brain injuries (TBIs), tumors, and multiple sclerosis (MS). TBIs are neurosurgical emergencies; they are a severity factor in polytraumas, frequently observed in road traffic accidents. They concern mainly young adults and are often severe with a very poor prognosis; the latter is related to the extent of brain damage, the quality of the management between the location of the accident and the hospital and the time to reach the equipped health structure. The epidemiological study of primary brain tumors in the tropics is limited by a lack of studies in the general population. In West Africa, incidence is estimated to be between 3.7/100,000 and 4.6/100,000 per year. The average age at diagnosis is between 36 and 42 years with a slight female predominance in the African series; in Asia, predominance is rather masculine. The prevalence of MS is very low in all tropical regions. If someone migrates after adolescence to a high-prevalence area, he/she retains the risk of the original region; more than the result of genetic factors, it appears to be the result of environmental factors. Ultraviolet B radiation through sun exposure could be one of the factors in tropical regions.