Overview and factors associated with pregnancies and abortions occurring in sex workers in Benin
Background: Behavioural and structural factors related to sex work, place female sex workers (FSWs) at high risk of maternal mortality and morbidity (MMM), with a large portion due to unintended pregnancies and abortions. In the African context where MMM is the highest in the world, understanding the frequency and determinants of pregnancy and abortion among […]
Trends and predictors of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in an era of protocol changes: Findings from two large health facilities in North East Nigeria
Background Research studies have demonstrated a reduction in the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (MTCT) to less than 2%, or 5% in non-breastfeeding and breastfeeding populations, respectively, with antiretroviral interventions. However, the risk of MTCT in routine health-facility settings, where service delivery is usually sub-optimal needs monitoring. Method We conducted a retrospective review of […]
Plasmodium falciparum mutant haplotype infection during pregnancy associated with reduced birthweight, Tanzania
Intermittent preventive treatment during pregnancy with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (IPTp-SP) is a key strategy in the control of pregnancy-associated malaria. However, this strategy is compromised by widespread drug resistance from single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the Plasmodium falciparum dihydrofolate reductase and dihydropteroate synthetase genes. During September 2008-October 2010, we monitored a cohort of 924 pregnant women in an area […]
Establishment of reference intervals during normal pregnancy through six months postpartum in western Kenya
Background Pregnancy is associated with changes in hematological and biochemistry values, yet there are no African reference intervals for clinical management of pregnant women. We sought to 1) develop laboratory reference intervals during pregnancy and up to 24 weeks postpartum and 2) determine the proportion of women in a previous clinical trial who would be […]
Achieving community-based postpartum follow up in eastern Uganda: The field experience from the MamaMiso Study on antenatal distribution of misoprostol ISRCTN70408620 ISRCTN
Background: Advance provision of misoprostol to women during antenatal care aims to achieve broader access to uterotonics for the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage. Studies of this community-based approach usually involve antenatal education as well as timely postpartum follow-up visits to confirm maternal and neonatal outcomes. The MamaMiso study in Mbale, Uganda sought to assess the […]
Lay HIV counselors’ knowledge and attitudes toward depression: A mixed-methods cross-sectional study at primary healthcare centers in Mozambique
Introduction: Depression is the most common mental disorder among people living with HIV/AIDS and has a negative impact on HIV treatment outcomes. Training lay HIV counselors to identify and manage depression may contribute to improved patient access and adherence to treatment, and reduce stigma and discrimination among lay health workers toward both HIV and depression. […]
Barriers to Oral HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Adherence Among Pregnant and Post-partum Women from Cape Town, South Africa
Cisgender women, particularly pregnant and postpartum women in Eastern and Southern Africa, face an unacceptably high risk of HIV acquisition. Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective HIV prevention intervention that can reduce HIV acquisition and vertical transmission. In this qualitative study, we interviewed 21 postpartum women from Cape Town, South Africa who initiated PrEP […]
Adolescent sexual and reproductive health care service availability and delivery in public health facilities of plateau state nigeria
To assess the availability, accessibility, appropriateness and quality of adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) services in primary health care (PHC) facilities in Plateau State, Nigeria, a cross-sectional study was conducted in 230 PHC facilities across the three senatorial zones of Plateau state. Primary data were obtained through face-to-face interviews with heads of facilities from […]
Efficacy of Mobile phone use on adherence to Nevirapine prophylaxis and retention in care among the HIV-exposed infants in prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV: a randomized controlled trial
Background: HIV is a major contributor to infant mortality. A significant gap remains between the uptake of infant and maternal antiretroviral regimens and only a minority of HIV-exposed infants receives prophylaxis and safe infant feeding. Losses to follow-up of HIV-exposed infants are associated with shortcomings of facility-based PMTCT models with weak community support of linkages. […]
Women’s perceptions of and experiences with the use of misoprostol for treatment of incomplete abortion in central Malawi: a mixed methods study
Background: Abortion-related complications are among the common causes of maternal mortality in Malawi. Misoprostol is recommended for the treatment of first-trimester incomplete abortions but is seldom used for post-abortion care in Malawi. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study that used mixed methods was conducted in three hospitals in central Malawi. A survey was done on 400 […]
