East African journal of public health
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East Afr J Public Health · Apr 2009
Randomized controlled trials: the most powerful tool in modern clinical research.
Randomized controlled trial (RCT) can be said to be one of the simplest but most powerful tool of research. It is the most rigorous way of determining whether a cause-effect relation exists between treatment and outcome and for assessing the cost effectiveness of a treatment. ⋯ For instance, menopausal status may influence outcome of treatment for breast cancer. This article is aimed at reviewing the general principles, importance of RCT and the reason for its importance in clinical research.
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East Afr J Public Health · Apr 2009
The health and living conditions of children in child-headed households in Siteki, Swaziland.
The focus of the study reported on here was to determine the health and living conditions of children living in child-headed households (CHHs) in Swaziland, where it is estimated that approximately 10-15 percent of the entire population will be orphans and other vulnerable children (OVC) by 2010 and that one in ten households in the country today are child-headed because of the impact of HIV and AIDS. ⋯ There is a dearth of information on adolescents in Swaziland, the primary caregivers in most child-headed households. Children are not actively consulted and encouraged to participate in helping to solve the problems they are affected by. There is a lack of coordination between caregiver organisations, leading to ineffective and inefficient service provision for this particular vulnerable group.
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Many medical specialties have reviewed the drawbacks of statistical methods in medical diagnosis in specialized areas in their journals. To my knowledge this has not been done in general practice. ⋯ This paper is aimed to highlight to inexperienced statisticians, medical practitioners and personnel as well as other non-statisticians some of the common statistical problems encountered when using statistics to interpret data in medical research. I also comment on good practices to avoid some of these problems.
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East Afr J Public Health · Apr 2009
Prevalence and risk factors of low back pain among nurses in Africa: Nigerian and Ethiopian specialized hospitals survey study.
The mechanical hazards in the hospitals include low back pain (LBP) from manual lifting (lifting patients in particular) which makes nursing one of the occupations most affected by LBP. Nurses are required to lift and transport patients or equipments, often in difficult environment particularly in developing nations like Africa, where lifting aids are not always available or practicable. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of LBP among nurses in African. ⋯ It was recommended that regular refresher courses on back care ergonomics are essential.