Effects of Menstrual Health and Hygiene on School Absenteeism and Drop-Out among Adolescent Girls in Rural Gambia
Poor knowledge and management of menstruation impacts girls’ school attendance and academic performance. This paper aims to explore how menstrual hygiene management practices and related factors influence school absenteeism and drop-out among primary and secondary school girls in rural Gambia. Mixed-method studies were conducted among students and key informants from 19 schools from July 2015–December […]
Trabecular bone parameters, TIMP-2, MMP-8, MMP-13, VEGF expression and immunolocalization in bone and cartilage in newborn offspring prenatally exposed to fumonisins
Fumonisins are protein serine/threonine phosphatase inhibitors and potent inhibitors of sphingosine N-acyltransferase (ceramide synthase) disrupting de novo sphingolipid biosynthesis. The experiment was conducted to evaluate the effects of fumonisins (FB) exposure from the 7th day of pregnancy to parturition on offspring bone development. The rats were randomly allocated to either a control group (n = […]
The influence of prenatal fumonisin exposure on bone properties, as well as opg and rankl expression and immunolocalization, in newborn offspring is sex and dose dependent
The current study examined the effects of exposure of pregnant dams to fumonisins (FBs; FB1 and FB2), from the seventh day of pregnancy to parturition, on offspring bone metabolism and properties. The rats were randomly divided into three groups intoxicated with FBs at either 0, 60, or 90 mg/kg b.w. Body weight and bone length […]
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 […]
Impact of continuous Kangaroo Mother Care initiated immediately after birth (iKMC) on survival of newborns with birth weight between 1.0 to < 1.8 kg: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial
Background: Globally, about 15% of newborns are born with a low birth weight (LBW) as a result of preterm birth or intrauterine growth restriction or both. Up to 70% of neonatal deaths occur in this group within the first 3 days after birth. Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) applied after stabilization of the infant has been […]
Plasma Choline Concentration Was Not Increased after a 6-Month Egg Intervention in 6-9-Month-Old Malawian Children: Results from a Randomized Controlled Trial
Background: Eggs are a rich source of choline, an essential nutrient important for child growth and development. In a randomized trial of 1 egg/d in young children in Ecuador, an egg intervention led to significant improvements in growth, which were partially mediated by increased plasma choline concentration. A similar trial in Malawi (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03385252) found […]
Using verbal autopsy to measure causes of death: The comparative performance of existing methods
Background: Monitoring progress with disease and injury reduction in many populations will require widespread use of verbal autopsy (VA). Multiple methods have been developed for assigning cause of death from a VA but their application is restricted by uncertainty about their reliability.Methods: We investigated the validity of five automated VA methods for assigning cause of […]
Prevalence and socio-demographic correlates of accelerometer measured physical activity levels of school-going children in Kampala city, Uganda
Background The current international physical activity guidelines for health recommend children to engage in at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) daily. Yet, accurate prevalence estimates of physical activity levels of children are unavailable in many African countries due to the dearth of accelerometer-measured physical activity data. The aim of this study was […]
A risk scoring tool for predicting Kenyan women at high risk of contraceptive discontinuation
Objective: We developed and validated a pragmatic risk assessment tool for identifying contraceptive discontinuation among Kenyan women who do not desire pregnancy. Study design: Within a prospective cohort of contraceptive users, participants were randomly allocated to derivation (n = 558) and validation (n = 186) cohorts. Risk scores were developed by selecting the Cox proportional […]
