Research Africa
Cape Town med students at high risk of contracting TB
Undergraduate medical students in Cape Town are at high risk of occupationally acquired tuberculosis (TB), with an unmet need for comprehensive occupational health services and support. These were the findings of a study conducted by experts from...
HEV re-emerging as a zoonotic virus also afflicting the affluent
August 16th, 2017 Hepatitis E (HEV) is shifting from being a disease of the poor to one that can affect affluent people in developed world settings, with HEV re-emerging as a zoonotic virus, Dr Tongai Maponga of Stellenbosch University. Hepatitis E gets...Self-testing improves uptake among sex workers
A year ago there was virtually no evidence on the acceptability and feasibility of HIV self-testing in female sex workers, but a series of presentations from Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda and Kenya by researchers at RTI International, Women's Global...
School malaria prevention programmes dramatically cut infection
July 19th, 2017 Schools that provide prevention education, insecticide-treated nets and antimalarial treatment, in regions where malaria is highly seasonal, could reduce the risk of schoolchildren developing anaemia and improve their cognitive performance,...
Gunshot wounds place hefty burden on SA's orthopaedic healthcare resources
July 12th, 2017 In 2012‚ Groote Schuur Hospital spent a total of R2.7m, excluding salaries, on the 111 patients it treated for orthopaedic gunshot wounds, found a Univeristy of Cape Town and University of Texas study. Almost 55,000 gun-related injuries were...
SA med students failing to recognise childhood cancer's early warning signs
July 12th, 2017 Final-year SA medical students remember only six of at least 20 early warning signs of childhood cancer, found a University of the Witwatersrand study. Medical schools needed to reassess their methods of training, said Dr Jennifer Ann Geel, who led...New service initiatives needed for HIV-positive adolescents in SSA
Healthcare providers in sub-Saharan Africa are struggling to provide services for HIV-positive adolescents, found a multi-country situational analysis. Facilities in 23 countries, which collectively provide care to over 80,000 adolescents...Simple measures are all most women need after a medical abortion
SMS advice‚ a checklist and a simple home urine test are all most women need after a medical abortion, found a University of Cape Town study. The Times reports a Cape Town study has found. A team led by Deborah Constant‚ of the Women’s...
Immediate point-of-care CD4 count doubles rate of linkage to HIV care
June 21st, 2017 Carrying out a point-of-care CD4 count immediately after a person was diagnosed with HIV by home-based testing doubled the rate of linkage to HIV care in a resource-limited setting, a randomised study in Kenya has shown. In an accompanying...
Obesity and diabetes rates especially high in Egypt and SA
June 14th, 2017 Obesity and diabetes are on the rise in Africa, reveals the first detailed analysis of these epidemics on the continent. And the rates of are especially high in southern and northern Africa, led by South Africa and Egypt respectively. Conducted...Africa has a 'long way to go' to reduce child mortality rates
Giving birth at home is the most significant risk factor for neonatal deaths in major sections of Africa – a continent that continues to be plagued by the highest neonatal mortality rates in the world, indicates a Michigan State University...Tracking the 'right' patients raises numbers returning to ART
When community health workers went looking for patients who had started antiretroviral treatment but had stopped showing up for care at 14 clinics across Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania, 13% of those sought returned to treatment. That represented a...
Readily available antibiotic could help to curb lung damage from TB - Cape Town study
May 31st, 2017 Scientists have found how a common antibiotic could help reduce lung destruction in people with tuberculosis (TB), found a study on 210 patients in Cape Town. TB is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, causing 1.8m deaths in 2015 and infecting...Positive outcomes from drug addiction Tx and perinatal HIV prevention
An integrated programme offering medication-assisted drug addiction treatment and services aimed at preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission led to improved outcomes for opioid-dependent HIV-positive mothers and their babies, according to a...
Worms and low marks are bedfellows among kids - Eastern Cape study
May 17th, 2017 Worms and low marks are bedfellows among primary school children‚ a study in the Eastern Cape by academics from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University and Basel University found. The researchers probed the infestation of roundworm and whip...