Publications by authors named "Ben Bepouka Izizag"
Human Immunodeficiency Virus Viral Load Monitoring and Rate of Virologic Suppression Among Patients Receiving Antiretroviral Therapy in Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2013-2020.
Open Forum Infect Dis
June 2023
Article Synopsis
- - Antiretroviral therapy (ART) expansion has led to a greater demand for viral load testing in managing HIV, with ongoing challenges affecting testing coverage and quality in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
- - Data from 84 health facilities in Kinshasa showed that over 14,000 people with HIV were monitored between 2013 and 2020, revealing improved availability of viral load tests and a decrease in wait times for results.
- - Although access to viral load testing has improved, efforts need to intensify, particularly for high-risk groups such as pregnant individuals and those with advanced HIV disease, to boost viral suppression rates.
Cryptococcosis is a common opportunistic infection associated with HIV/AIDS. The present review systematically describes the clinical and biological aspects of cryptococcosis in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and estimates its 2020 burden in people living with HIV (PLHIV). Following PRISMA guidelines, we searched online databases for records of cryptococcosis/Cryptococcus spp.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLongitudinal analysis of sociodemographic, clinical and therapeutic factors of HIV-infected individuals in Kinshasa at antiretroviral therapy initiation during 2006-2017.
PLoS One
December 2021
Background: The benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ART) underpin the recommendations for the early detection of HIV infection and ART initiation. Late initiation (LI) of antiretroviral therapy compromises the benefits of ART both individually and in the community. Indeed, it promotes the transmission of infection and higher HIV-related morbidity and mortality with complicated and costly clinical management.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Late presentation for HIV care is a well-described issue for the success of ART outcomes and the cause of higher morbidity, mortality and further transmission. Monitoring the level of late presentation and understanding the factors associated with it would help to tailor screening and information strategies for better efficiency. We performed a retrospective cohort study in Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: this paper examines the acceptability of HIV self-testing (HIVST) by students in a university in the DRC and identifies factors associated with uptake of HIVST.
Methods: a cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 290 students from Kikwit University. Data were summarized using proportions and predictions of acceptability of HIVST by logistic regression.