Many Cameroonian cities lack access to potable drinking water where populations rely on alternative water sources of doubtful quality. This study aimed at describing the trends and patterns of waterborne diseases (WBDs) reported in some health facilities in Bamboutos Division between 2013 and 2017 as baseline data towards understanding the profile of WBDs in this area. A retrospective review of clinical data kept on patients who visited the main health facilities in Bamboutos Division from January 2013 to December 2017 was conducted. Overall, 39.1% (n = 8,124) of total patients were positive for at least one WBD. Categories of WBDs were dysenteries (18.6%), gastroenteritis (4.2%), viral hepatitis (0.2%) and typhoid was the most preponderant (24.4%). The most affected age groups were those above 24 years but significant differences were observed only in 2013 and 2017. Distribution of potential WBDs was locality dependent. The highest prevalence of typhoid fever was recorded in Bameboro (35.4%), dysenteries in Bamedjinda (20.4%) and gastroenteritis (17.3%) in Bamekoumbou. The study shows very high overall prevalence of WBDs in some localities which could be considered as ‘hotspots’ of WBDs in Bamboutos. This suggests the urgent need for setting up measures to tackle the challenges of potable drinking water supply.

许多喀麦隆城市缺乏饮用水，人们依赖质量可疑的替代水源。本研究旨在描述 2013 年至 2017 年间 Bamboutos 部门一些卫生设施报告的水传播疾病 (WBD) 趋势和模式，作为了解该地区 WBD 概况的基线数据。对 2013 年 1 月至 2017 年 12 月访问 Bamboutos 部门主要卫生设施的患者的临床数据进行了回顾性审查。总体而言，39.1% ( n= 8,124) 的总患者对至少一种 WBD 呈阳性。WBDs 的类别是痢疾 (18.6%)、肠胃炎 (4.2%)、病毒性肝炎 (0.2%) 和伤寒是最主要的 (24.4%)。受影响最大的年龄组是 24 岁以上，但仅在 2013 年和 2017 年观察到显着差异。潜在 WBD 的分布取决于地点。伤寒流行率最高的地区是巴梅博罗 (35.4%)、巴梅金达 (20.4%) 痢疾和巴梅昆布 (Bamekoumbou) 肠胃炎 (17.3%)。该研究表明，在一些地方，WBDs 的总体流行率非常高，这些地方可以被视为 Bamboutos 的 WBDs 的“热点”。这表明迫切需要制定措施来应对饮用水供应的挑战。