African health sciences最新文献

Background: Globally, cancer is on the rise despite several interventions. The link between nutrition and cancer has long been established with the consequences of poor nutrition on cancer pathway being dire. Early nutrition intervention is recommended for all cancer patients.

Objective: To assess malnutrition among patients undergoing chemotherapy at the National Radiotherapy Oncology and Nuclear Medicine Centre of the Korle-Bu Teaching hospital (KBTH) in Accra, Ghana.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 123 patients with different types and stages of cancer who were undergoing chemotherapy. Data was collected from December 2018 to January 2019. The PG-SGA tool was used to assess weight loss at one and six months, food intake and nutrition impact symptoms. A correlation test was used to test the association between PGSGA score and Nutritional triaging. A T-test was used to determine the association between chemotherapy cycles and nutrition. A p-value <0.05 was considered to be significant.

Results: The results revealed that 5.7% (n= 7) of the patients were well nourished, 31.7% (n= 39) were suspected of being malnourished and 62.6% (n=77) were severely malnourished. About half of the participants (48%) had experienced weight loss ranging between 1-20kg with weight loss ≤5kg being most prevalent at both one month and six months prior to the study. More than half (56.9%, n=70) of the participants were consuming less than their usual intake. Majority of the participants had 4-6 nutritional symptoms (39.0%) with symptoms being mostly mild (39.1%). Poor nutritional status was positively correlated with nutritional symptoms (r=0.747, p<0.001).

Conclusion: The PGSGA tool identified that more than half of the patients were severely malnourished hence the need for early nutrition intervention in cancer patients.

Background: Cervical cancer prevention can be achieved through comprehensive programs involving education, awareness creation, vaccination, screening, and early treatment. Health workers have a vital role to play in achieving this. Hence, they must be adequately equipped with the requisite knowledge of the condition since they provide information to their clients.

Objective: This study determined the knowledge, perception, and screening practices on cervical cancer among female nurses and midwives in the Central Region of Ghana.

Method: A quantitative descriptive cross-sectional survey amongst nurses and midwives was used for the study. A convenience sampling technique was applied to yield a representative sample of 130 female nurses and midwives working in Our Lady of Grace Hospital in the Central Region, Ghana. Data was collected from the participants using a self-administered questionnaire. The data was analysed using SPSS version 20, and standard descriptive statistics such as proportions were used to summarize the survey data.

Results: Almost all the nurses (99%) had heard of cervical cancer. Majority (97.1%) of the respondents believed cervical cancer is preventable however, 67.6% also believed that it is incurable. Almost half (42.2%) of the respondents did not perceive themselves as at risk of cervical cancer. Thus, only 11.8% of the nurses had ever screened for cervical cancer. However, majority (92.2%) were willing to recommend the screening to others.

Conclusion: The respondents of this study had some knowledge of cervical cancer however had low patronage for recommended screening practices. Therefore, strategies must be implemented to increase screening practices among female nurses.

Background: Antiretroviral hair drug levels are currently being used to monitor adherence to HIV treatment. There is currently a dearth of literature on the preferred technique(s) of hair harvest for medical testing in the context of African multicultural settings.

Objective: To explore the preferred techniques(s) of hair harvest for medical testing among TB patients.

Methods: We used a descriptive phenomenological approach to conduct interviews for 15 TB patients from the 06^th through the 24^th of June 2022. Data was organized by N-VIVO version 10 and analysed step by step using a thematic analytical approach.

Results: Participants aged <30 years were more knowledgeable, positively perceived, and experienced about the salon-based hair cutting technique compared to those aged≥30 years old. Participants aged ≥30 had experience, flexibility to use, and were knowledgeable in all three techniques, Overall, for all age categories (<30,30-40 and >40 years), majority of the respondents were knowledgeable, flexible and experienced in using all the three techniques.

Conclusion: The majority of TB patients were knowledgeable, experienced and flexible about the hair cutting techniques however, efforts are needed to educate the youth that hair for medical testing can be cut by any of the three techniques without changing their cosmetic look.

Background: Socio-demographic characteristics may have an impact on HIV-positive people's prognosis and survival. In addition, food insecurity could make it harder for HIV patients to stick to their treatment plans as effectively as possible.

Objective: This research aimed to determine the association between socio-demographic and food insecurity with adherence to antiretroviral therapy among people living with HIV on ART in Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria.

Method: Using a cross-sectional design, a systematic random sampling method was used to select respondents aged 18-64 years on antiretroviral therapy for at least six months at Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria, outpatients of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief clinic. Socio-demographic, food insecurity status and adherence to ART was obtained using self-administered questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, chi-square test, and multiple logistic regression were used for data analysis.

Results: Among the 385 people who took part in the study, about 67.5% of females and 32.5% of males took part in the survey, respectively. About 54% of adults adhered to ART. The majority of the respondents (87.0%) had a low level of food security. Food insecurity (OR = 1.2, p = <0.05), government employment (OR = 2.842, p = <0.01), self-employment (OR = 2.6, p = <0.001), and being divorced or widowed (OR = 2.0, p = <0.01) were all significantly associated with ART adherence.

Conclusion: Food insecurity, employment, and marital status influenced adherence to ART. As a result, health care providers and HIV control programme implementers must continually emphasis and encourage strict adherence.

Background: There is limited data on red blood cell (RBC) alloimmunization in patients with cancer in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We examined the frequency of RBC alloimmunization in transfused patients with cancers in Uganda.

Methods: A randomized control trial was conducted on participants at the Uganda Cancer Institute. Eligible participants were age ≥15 years and required blood transfusion. Participants were randomized to receive either leucoreduced or non-leucoreduced blood transfusion. Participants' plasma samples were screened for RBC alloantibodies at enrolment and 3-4 weeks after blood transfusion using a 2-cell panel of reagent group O RBCs using the tube method. Antibody identification was performed using a 10-cell panels of reagent RBCs. Participants were considered alloimmunized if antibodies to RBC antigens were identified.

Results: A total of 277 participants were randomized (leucoreduced blood, n=137; non-leucoreduced blood, n=140). Overall, the most represented diagnoses were gynaecological cancers (n=88, 31.8%), acute leukaemia (n=35, 12.6%), and gastrointestinal cancers (n=25, 9.0%). Concomitant HIV infection was present in 26 (9.4%) participants. Most participants received <5 units of blood during the study. No study participant developed allo-antibodies.

Conclusion: There was no RBC alloimmunization in participants with cancers. Routine RBC allo-antibody screening in all patients with cancer in SSA requires further research.

Background: Maternal health refers to the well-being of women through pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. Antenatal care refers to the care that is given to a pregnant woman from the time that conception is confirmed until the beginning of labour. Ethiopia was known in concert of the world's nation with primary maternal mortality proportions. The major goal of this study was to survey risk factors related with antenatal care service use among pregnant ladies at regenerative age.

Methods: Data were obtained from primary sources. To dissect the information, descriptive and Bayesian multilevel binary logistic regression of random coefficient model was utilized. The convergence of parameters was assessed by Monte carol Markova Chain utilizing Stata 16 and MLwiN 2.31 programming.

Results: The descriptive result showed that out of the whole 636 pregnant women considered around 60.5%were obtained antenatal care benefits. The odds ratio of pregnant women living in the rural areas being receiving antenatal care services was 0.206(OR = 0.206, P ≤ 0.05). This indicates that the use of prenatal care by rural mothers has decreased by 79.4% compared to urban mothers. Similarly, the Odds ratio for Pregnant women with medium and rich wealth index are 1.571(OR = 1.571, P ≤ 0.05) and 1.90(OR = 1.90, P ≤ 0.05) respectively. This means that pregnant women who are with medium and rich wealth index level had 57.1% and 90% increased odds compared to those pregnant women with poor wealth index consecutively. Varieties between the kebeles in terms of antenatal care benefit utilize were lessening by 0.9 % in random coefficient model.

Conclusion: Generally, the study showed that there was high variation among pregnant women not to utilize antenatal care benefits and the likelihoods of prenatal use were found to increase with the husband occupation, wealth index, age category 25-34, and husband education level.

Background: The current six months regimen for drug-susceptible tuberculosis (TB) is long, complex, and requires adherence monitoring. TB hair drug level assay is one innovative approach to monitor TB treatment adherence however, its acceptability in the context of African multi-cultural settings is not known.

Objective: To determine the acceptability of hair harvest and testing as a TB therapeutic drug monitoring method.

Methods: The study explored perceptions, and lived experiences among TB patients with regard to using hair harvest and testing as a method of tuberculosis therapeutic drug monitoring in the context of their cultural beliefs, and faith. We used a descriptive phenomenological approach.

Results: Four main themes emerged namely: participants' perceptions about the cultural meaning of their body parts; perceptions about hair having any medical value or meaning; perceptions about hospitals starting to use hair harvest and testing for routine hospital TB treatment adherence monitoring; and perceived advantages and disadvantages of using hair for treatment adherence monitoring. Overall, we found that using hair to monitor adherence was acceptable to TB patients provided the hair was harvested and tested by a medical worker.

Conclusion: Hair harvest for medical testing is acceptable to TB patients on the condition that it is conducted by a medical worker.

Background: Half of older Africans drop out of treatment after a single contact with biomedical mental health services.

Objective: This study examined the effect of introducing a mobile phone reminder intervention delivered by volunteering health staff to reduce dropout from an outpatient mental health service for older people in Nigeria.

Methods: 405 patients were studied using a quasi-experimental design: 169 who attended clinic pre-intervention (2016-2017) and 236 who attended during intervention (2018-2019). We estimated annual dropout rates, reasons for dropout and predictors of drop-out.

Results: We found a trend for decreasing dropout rates during intervention (p<0.001). The most common reasons for dropout were distance to the clinic (19.5%) and unavailability of a caregiver (47.6%). Current single status (O.R =2.02, 95% C. I=1.02-3.99) and treatment without adjunctive pharmacotherapy (O. R=2.14, 95% CI; 1.07-4.26) predicted dropout.

Conclusion: Mobile phone call reminders improved treatment engagement in this population. Findings are important for policy to improve access to mental healthcare in Africa.

Background: East African regions were highly affected by tuberculosis and the human immunodeficiency virus. The main objective was to identifying the associated factors with tuberculosis and CD4 cell count of patients in Gonder teaching referral hospital, Gonder, Ethiopia.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on AIDS patients from 1^st January 2018 - to 30^th January 2020. This study used joint mixed model, and individual profile plot to identify factors and the changeability inside and between patients respectively.

Results: The mean with a standard deviation of weight and a serum hemoglobin concentration of patients were 55.48 (10.21) kilograms and 18.25 (33.028) grams per decilitre respectively.This study shows an opportunistic infection, weight, and serum hemoglobin concentration were significantly associated with the log CD4 cell count and tuberculosis status of patients.

Conclusion: The patient who has other diseases is 5.04 more likely to be co-infected with HIV and TB diseases. And also, the estimated odds of being co-infected in both diseases were increased by 1.14 and 1.05 times when a unit change in weight and hemoglobin respectively. Moreover, the estimated odd of patients who have no other related disease were 51.13% less likely to be co-infected with both diseases.

Background: Launaea cornuta is a vegetable with therapeutic advantage for human diseases.

Objective: Evaluate nutritive and non-nutritive components, antioxidant activity, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy profile of L. cornuta leaves.

Methods: Proximate, nutri, non-nutrient, percentage phenolic, flavonoid, alkaloid, and saponin contents were investigated using standard procedures. Total phenolic and flavonoids of the extracts were determined spectroscopically. Antioxidant activity and functional groups in the extracts were characterised by 2.2- diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl radical and FTIR spectroscopy, respectively.

Results: Carbohydrates were the most abundant (57.61±0.61 %), and crude lipids were the least abundant (4.26±0.20 %) in L. cornuta. Essential amino acids were present in varying concentrations, and histidine was the most abundant (251.20±2.00 mg/100 g dw). Calcium was the most abundant mineral element (820.49±1.05 µg/g dw). High concentrations of phenols (13.07±0.60 %) and low amounts of saponins (2.19±0.10 %) were recorded. Methanolic and aqueous leaf extracts revealed total phenols of 83.10±4.32 and 57.77 ±1.65 mgGAE/g dw, respectively, while total flavonoids were 8.00±0.01 and 7.99±0.03 mgCE/g of dry weight, respectively. Aqueous extract had significant DPPH radical scavenging efficacy (IC50 =72.96± 0.32 µg/ml) compared to 681.57± 2.21 jg/ml for methanol extract.

Conclusions: L. cornuta contain phytochemicals with health benefits for averting oxidative stress related diseases.