[War and health in Angola. Review of a patient material]

The present study compares morbidity and lethality in two cohorts of in-patients in a provincial hospital in Angola. The first cohort was recruited during a period of peace (1978/1980), while the second was recruited during a period of increased guerilla activity in the province (1988). In wartime, the total number of patients from distant areas decreased, but, the proportion of children increased. There was a marked increase in the number of diagnoses related to poverty (tuberculosis, measles, anaemia, malnutrition), as well as on increase in mortality within these diagnostic groups. Although the area around the hospital was not directly involved in heavy war, the study clearly reflects some of the impacts of war on the health of a population.