Prediction of gestational age using urinary metabolites in term and preterm pregnancies
Assessment of gestational age (GA) is key to provide optimal care during pregnancy. However, its accurate determination remains challenging in low- and middle-income countries, where access to obstetric ultrasound is limited. Hence, there is an urgent need to develop clinical approaches that allow accurate and inexpensive estimations of GA. We investigated the ability of urinary […]
Assessing the effect of marine reserves on household food security in Kenyan coral reef fishing communities
Measuring the success or failure of natural resource management is a key challenge to evaluate the impact of conservation for ecological, economic and social outcomes. Marine reserves are a popular tool for managing coastal ecosystems and resources yet surprisingly few studies have quantified the social-economic impacts of marine reserves on food security despite the critical […]
Home gardening improves dietary diversity, a cluster-randomized controlled trial among Tanzanian women
Homestead food production (HFP) programmes improve the availability of vegetables by providing training in growing nutrient-dense crops. In rural Tanzania, most foods consumed are carbohydrate-rich staples with low micronutrient concentrations. This cluster-randomized controlled trial investigated whether women growing home gardens have higher dietary diversity, household food security or probability of consuming nutrient-rich food groups than […]
Safety, Quality, and Acceptability of Contraceptive Implant Provision by Community Health Extension Workers versus Nurses and Midwives in Two States in Nigeria
Task sharing is a strategy with potential to increase access to effective modern contraceptive methods. This study examines whether community health extension workers (CHEWs) can insert contraceptive implants to the same safety and quality standards as nurse/midwives. We analyze data from 7,691 clients of CHEWs and nurse/midwives who participated in a noninferiority study conducted in […]
Protocol for a randomised trial of early kangaroo mother care compared to standard care on survival of pre-stabilised preterm neonates in the Gambia (eKMC)
Background: Complications of preterm birth cause more than 1 million deaths each year, mostly within the first day after birth (47%) and before full post-natal stabilisation. Kangaroo mother care (KMC), provided as continuous skin-to-skin contact for 18 h per day to fully stabilised neonates ≤ 2000 g, reduces mortality by 36-51% at discharge or term-corrected […]
Impacts of Ebola disease outbreak in West Africa: Implications for government and public health preparedness and lessons from COVID-19
There has been an increase in the outbreak of communicable diseases in recent times; the most recent ones are Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) and COVID-19. These diseases have had different impacts on society and the ecosystem. However, underlying these impacts are the levels of preparedness of governments and public health institutions to mitigate and control […]
Undernutrition and associated factors among urban children aged 24-59 months in Northwest Ethiopia: A community based cross sectional study
Background: Globally, in every three preschool children one is affected by malnutrition. In Ethiopia, child undernutrition continues to be a serious public health problem. Data are scarce, especially in 24-59 months age children. We aimed at estimating under nutrition and its associated factors among children 24-59 months age in Aykel Town, Northwest Ethiopia. Methods: A […]
Gestational diabetes mellitus per different diagnostic criteria, risk factors, obstetric outcomes and postpartum glycemia: A prospective study in Ghana
The surge in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) globally requires a health system tailored approach towards prevention, detection and management. We estimated the prevalence of GDM using diverse recommended tests and diagnostic thresholds, and also assessed the risk factors and obstetric outcomes, including postpartum glycemia. Using a prospective cohort design, 446 singleton pregnant women without pre-existing […]
Scaling up integrated community case management of childhood illness: Update from Malawi
The Government of Malawi (GoM) initiated activities to deliver treatment of common childhood illnesses (suspected pneumonia, fever/suspected malaria, and diarrhea) in the community in 2008. The service providers are Health Surveillance Assistants (HSAs), and they are posted nationwide to serve communities at a ratio of 1 to 1, 000 population. The GoM targeted the establishment […]
Comparison of methods to assess adherence to small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNS) and dispersible tablets among young Burkinabé children participating in a community-based intervention trial
Adherence to supplementation provided during an intervention trial can affect interpretation of study outcomes. We compared different approaches for estimating adherence to small-quantity lipid-based nutrient supplements (SQ-LNS) and dispersible tablets in a randomised clinical trial in Burkina Faso. A total of 2435 children (9-18 months) were randomly assigned to receive daily 20g SQ-LNS with varying […]
