De Koloci à la drépanocytose

Sickle-cell disease affects 1-3% of newborns in sub-Saharan Africa. The epidemiological and anthropological situations as well as the unequal health policies from one country to another prove the interest for located historicized studies. In the context of the establishment of a national health center dedicated to sickle cell disease, the interrelationships between the knowledge and the social treatment of the disease were studied both in rural and urban contexts in 2007-2008. This study was conducted by means of interviews with affected individuals, parents of affected children, traditional practitioners, biomedical doctors and members of patient associations. This research emphasizes the impact of changes in knowledge on the social lives of patients, the impact of economic globalization and of the globalization of health practices on family trajectories. It calls for the consideration of social contexts in public health policy and communication activities