Mental health and psychosocial interventions integrating sexual and reproductive rights and health, and HIV care and prevention for adolescents and young people (10–24 years) in sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic scoping review
Background: Interventions targeting combined sexual and reproductive health, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) management and mental health care in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are few. There is a need to address common determinants of poor mental, psychosocial and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) through multimodal and multipronged interventions for adolescents. The main objective of this […]
Global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019
Background: In an era of shifting global agendas and expanded emphasis on non-communicable diseases and injuries along with communicable diseases, sound evidence on trends by cause at the national level is essential. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) provides a systematic scientific assessment of published, publicly available, and contributed data […]
Scaling down to scale up: A health economic analysis of integrating point-of-care syphilis testing into antenatal care in Zambia during pilot and national rollout implementation
Maternal syphilis results in an estimated 500,000 stillbirths and neonatal deaths annually in Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite the existence of national guidelines for antenatal syphilis screening, syphilis testing is often limited by inadequate laboratory and staff services. Recent availability of inexpensive rapid point-of-care syphilis tests (RST) can improve access to antenatal syphilis screening. A 2010 pilot […]
Systems analysis and improvement to optimize pMTCT (SAIA): A cluster randomized trial
Background: Despite significant increases in global health investment and the availability of low-cost, efficacious interventions to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission (pMTCT) in low- and middle-income countries with high HIV burden, the translation of scientific advances into effective delivery strategies has been slow, uneven and incomplete. As a result, pediatric HIV infection remains largely uncontrolled. A […]
Estimation of the National Disease Burden of Influenza-Associated Severe Acute Respiratory Illness in Kenya and Guatemala: A Novel Methodology
Background: Knowing the national disease burden of severe influenza in low-income countries can inform policy decisions around influenza treatment and prevention. We present a novel methodology using locally generated data for estimating this burden. Methods and Findings: This method begins with calculating the hospitalized severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) incidence for children
When the law makes doors slightly open: ethical dilemmas among abortion service providers in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
BACKGROUND: In 2005, Ethiopia changed its abortion law to curb its high maternal mortality. This has led to a considerable reduction in deaths from unsafe abortions. Abortion is now legal if the woman’s pregnancy is a result of rape or incest, if her health is endangered, if the fetus has a serious deformity, if she […]
Academic research productivity of post-graduate students at Makerere University College of Health Sciences, Uganda, from 1996 to 2010: A retrospective review
Background: Research is a core business of universities globally, and is crucial in the scientific process as a precursor for knowledge uptake and use. We aimed to assess the academic productivity of post-graduate students in a university located in a low-income country. Methods: This is an observational retrospective documentary analysis using hand searching archives, Google […]
Undernutrition and its determinants among adolescent girls in low land area of Southern Ethiopia
Background Undernutrition is one of the most common causes of morbidity and mortality among adolescent girls worldwide, especially in South-East Asia and Africa. Even though adolescence is a window of opportunity to break the intergenerational cycle of undernutrition, adolescent girls are a neglected group. The objective of this study was to assess the nutritional status […]
Global, regional, and national estimates of levels of preterm birth in 2014: a systematic review and modelling analysis
Background: Preterm birth is the leading cause of death in children younger than 5 years worldwide. Although preterm survival rates have increased in high-income countries, preterm newborns still die because of a lack of adequate newborn care in many low-income and middle-income countries. We estimated global, regional, and national rates of preterm birth in 2014, […]
Prevalence and determinants of gestational diabetes mellitus in Africa based on the updated international diagnostic criteria: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a major public health problem and threat to maternal and child health in Africa. No prior review has been conducted in Africa using the updated GDM diagnostic criteria. Therefore, this review aimed to estimate the pooled prevalence and determinants of GDM in Africa by using current international diagnostic criteria. […]
