“Is the health system ready?” A qualitative exploration of stakeholders’ opinions about the feasibility of preconception care services in the Nigerian health system
Background: Preconception care (PCC) services aim to improve reproductive health outcomes through the provision of biomedical, behavioural and social health interventions to women and couples before conception occurs. Countries that have deployed PCC services have policies that guide the services provided. In Nigeria, PCC is poorly developed and is often provided in an opportunistic manner […]
Cultural factors contributing to maternal mortality rate in rural villages of limpopo province, south africa
Introduction: The understanding of the link between cultural affairs and maternal health is critical to save the lives of women. The South African maternal mortality rate (MMR) target for 2015 was 38/100,000 live births. In 2017, South Africa had 1,222 maternal deaths. The purpose was to determine the perceived cultural factors contributing to MMR in […]
A review of -multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae in a neonatal unit in Johannesburg, South Africa
Background: Multi-drug resistant organisms are an increasingly important cause of neonatal sepsis. Aim: This study aimed to review neonatal sepsis caused by multi-drug resistant Enterobacteriaceae (MDRE) in neonates in Johannesburg, South Africa. Methods: This was a cross sectional retrospective review of MDRE in neonates admitted to a tertiary neonatal unit between 1 January 2013 and […]
Cost-effectiveness of first-line antiretroviral therapy for HIV-infected African children less than 3 years of age
Background: The International Maternal, Pediatric, and Adolescent Clinical Trials P1060 trial demonstrated superior outcomes for HIV-infected children less than 3 years old initiating antiretroviral therapy (ART) with lopinavir/ritonavir compared to nevirapine, but lopinavir/ritonavir is four-fold costlier. Design/methods: We used the Cost-Effectiveness of Preventing AIDS Complications (CEPAC)-Pediatric model, with published and P1060 data, to project outcomes […]
Effect on growth of exposure to maternal antiretroviral therapy in breastmilk versus extended infant nevirapine prophylaxis among HIV-exposed perinatally uninfected infants in the PROMISE randomized trial
Background Malnutrition is highly prevalent in HIV-exposed perinatally uninfected infants (HEUs) increasing the risk of morbidity and mortality throughout the life course. We set out to compare the effect of postnatal exposure to maternal antiretroviral therapy (mART) in breastmilk versus infant Nevirapine prophylaxis (iNVP) on somatic growth of HEUs in the randomized PROMISE trial. Methods […]
In urban South Africa, 16 year old adolescents experience greater health equality than children
Despite the strongly established link between socio-economic status (SES) and health across most stages of the life-course, the evidence for a socio-economic gradient in adolescent health outcomes is less consistent. This paper examines associations between household, school, and neighbourhood SES measures with body composition outcomes in 16 year old South African Black urban adolescents from […]
Environmental heat stress on maternal physiology and fetal blood flow in pregnant subsistence farmers in The Gambia, west Africa: an observational cohort study
Background: Anthropogenic climate change has caused extreme temperatures worldwide, with data showing that sub-Saharan Africa is especially vulnerable to these changes. In sub-Saharan Africa, women comprise 50% of the agricultural workforce, often working throughout pregnancy despite heat exposure increasing the risk of adverse birth outcomes. In this study, we aimed to improve understanding of the […]
Relationships among common illness symptoms and the protective effect of breastfeeding in early childhood in MAL-ED: An eight-country cohort study
Children in low-income countries experience multiple illness symptoms in early childhood. Breastfeeding is protective against diarrhea and respiratory infections, and these illnesses are thought to be risk factors of one another, but these relationships have not been explored simultaneously. In the eight-site MAL-ED study, 1,731 infants were enrolled near birth and followed for 2 years. […]
Indoor air pollution and tobacco smoke exposure: Impact on nasopharyngeal bacterial carriage in mothers and infants in an african birth cohort study
Indoor air pollution (IAP) or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure may influence nasopharyngeal carriage of bacterial species and development of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). The aim of this study was to longitudinally investigate the impact of antenatal or postnatal IAP/ETS exposure on nasopharyngeal bacteria in mothers and infants. A South African cohort study followed […]
Association between fetal abdominal growth trajectories, maternal metabolite signatures early in pregnancy, and childhood growth and adiposity: prospective observational multinational INTERBIO-21st fetal study
Background: Obesity predominantly affects populations in high-income countries and those countries facing epidemiological transition. The risk of childhood obesity is increased among infants who had overweight or obesity at birth, but in low-resource settings one in five infants are born small for gestational age. We aimed to study the relationships between: (1) maternal metabolite signatures; […]