African health sciences
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African health sciences · Jun 2020
Evaluating HIV/Aids prevalence and sustainable development in sub-Saharan Africa: the role of health expenditure.
The sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) present the highest prevalence of HIV/AIDS worldwide; resulting to a significant development challenges at country, region and global level. The previous studies explain at least in part, the impact of the epidemic, however the impact of HIV/AIDS in long-term economic behavior were not yet clear. There is clearly few or absence of studies on the impact of the impact of the epidemic on sustainable development. ⋯ The main implication of our study is that, achieving a sustainable development in the presence of high prevalence of HIV/AIDS in SSA is very challenging and as such, the responsiveness of HIV/AIDS to sustainable development should be maintained at minimum which would require more efforts on HIV/AIDS control programs and increase health expenditure.
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African health sciences · Jun 2020
Adherence to the MDR-TB intensive phase treatment protocol amongst individuals followed up at central and peripheral health care facilities in Uganda - a descriptive study.
Following initiation of MDR-TB treatment, patients have a choice to receive follow up DOT supervision at either the central initiating facility or at a peripheral facility. ⋯ More patients preferred MDR-TB DOT supervision at peripheral facilities, which had better adherence to the treatment protocol compared to the central initiating facility. Younger people and those with household contacts screened had better adherence to the treatment protocol, highlighting areas for targeted interventional programs for MDR-TB in resource limited settingsMore patients preferred MDR-TB DOT supervision at peripheral facilities, which had better adherence to the treatment protocol compared to the central initiating facility. Younger people and those with household contacts screened had better adherence to the treatment protocol, highlighting areas for targeted interventional programs for MDR-TB in resource limited settings.
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African health sciences · Jun 2020
Development of a cost-effective CVD prediction model using lifestyle factors. A cohort study in Pakistan.
Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) such as hypertension and ischemic heart diseases cause 35 to 40% of deaths every year in Pakistan. Several lifestyle factors such as dietary habits, lack of exercise, mental stress, body habitus (i.e., body mass index, waist), personal habits (smoking, sleep, fitness) and clinical conditions (i.e., diabetes, dyslipidemia and hypertension) have been shown to be strongly associated with the etiology of CVD. Epidemiological studies in Pakistan have shown poor adherence of people to healthy lifestyle and lack of knowledge in adopting healthy alternatives. There are well validated cardiovascular risk estimation tools (QRISK model) that cn predict the probability of future cardiac events. The existing tools are based on laboratory investigations of biochemical test but there is no widely accepted tool available that predicts the CVD risk probability based on lifestyle factors. ⋯ The model involves only those features which can be measured without any clinical test. The proposed model is rapid and less costly hence appropriate for use in developing countries like Pakistan.
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African health sciences · Jun 2020
An audit tool for relicensing inspection for private hospitals in eThekwini district, South Africa.
South Africa is moving towards National Health Insurance (NHI), which aims to provide access to universal health coverage for all South Africans. The NHI will only accredit and contract eligible health facilities that meet nationally approved quality standards in the public and private sector. Detailed tools for measuring compliance with the National Core Standards (NCS) and Batho Pele principles have been developed and implemented in the public sector. To date and since its implementation in the public sector, very little is known about the national audit tool and the method used to evaluate quality and patient safety standards in private hospitals in eThekwini district. ⋯ These findings were significant and denoted the need for a standardised clinical audit tool for private hospitals in eThekwini district.
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African health sciences · Jun 2020
Ultrasonographic and biochemical assessments as early prediction of polycystic ovarian syndrome in obese women.
Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is considered as a common cause of hormonal disturbance and obesity. The diagnosis of PCOS was done by different methods including clinical signs as anovulation, hyperandrogenism, biochemical markers and ultrasounographic investigation. This study investigated comparative outcomes of ultrasonographic and biochemical markers for early prediction of PCOS in obese women. ⋯ According to our study findings, ovarian morphology combined with biochemical markers is more reliable for early prediction and diagnosis of PCOS for interpretation and management.