Differentiated Service Delivery Model in Improving HIV Treatment Outcomes Among Female Sex Workers in Gauteng Province of South Africa: A Protocol Paper.

South Africa developed the differentiated service delivery (DSD) model to improve access to healthcare for people living with HIV (PLHIV), especially key populations (KPs) including female sex workers (FSWs) who often face barriers in accessing HIV services. The DSD model, aims to reduce the burden on healthcare users, healthcare workers, and the healthcare system, can significantly benefit this group. However, the success of the DSD model in achieving the desired HIV treatment outcomes for FSWs has been barely evaluated.

Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis Innovative Interventions among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in South Africa: A Protocol Paper.

Although South Africa was the first country to register and roll out oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) biomedical human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention intervention in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), its uptake remains low, particularly among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW). The uptake of PrEP may have worsened during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Some innovative interventions to improve PrEP uptake among AGYW have been implemented.

Innovative pre-exposure prophylaxis interventions among adolescent girls and young women during COVID-19 lockdown period in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review.

Adolescent girls and young women are key, and priority populations impacted by a higher risk of acquiring human immunodeficiency virus. In 2015, pre-exposure prophylaxis was introduced as a biomedical human immunodeficiency virus prevention tool. However, its uptake continues to be lower in sub-Saharan countries, particularly among adolescent girls and young women.

Piloting the Inclusion of the Key Populations Unique Identifier Code in the South African Routine Health Information Management System: Protocol for a Multiphased Study.

Background: The global community has set an ambitious goal to end HIV/AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. Significant progress has been achieved in pursuing these objectives; however, concerns remain regarding the lack of disaggregated routine data for key populations (KPs) for a targeted HIV response. KPs include female sex workers, transgender populations, gay men and other men who have sex with men, people who are incarcerated, and people who use drugs.

Evaluation of the Sexually Transmitted Infections Programme among Key and Priority Populations in Primary Healthcare Facilities to Inform a Targeted Response: A Protocol Paper.

Primary healthcare facilities lack routine diagnostic screening due to resource limitations and dependence on syndromic management, resulting in an unprecedented prevalence and incidence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), particularly among key and priority populations. Specific focuses are essential to strengthen current STI control measures. Therefore, this article describes the protocol for evaluating STI programme among key and priority populations in selected primary healthcare facilities in South Africa.

Country ownership and sustainable programming of the HIV response in South Africa: A scoping review.

Background: Concerns have arisen regarding the extent to which South Africa's HIV response can be country-owned and sustainable given substantial foreign investment and technical support.

Objectives: To assess the extent to which South Africa's national HIV response is country-owned.

Method: We conducted a scoping review of South African literature using the Global Health Initiative Framework for country ownership.

Big Data and Infectious Disease Epidemiology: Bibliometric Analysis and Research Agenda.

Background: Infectious diseases represent a major challenge for health systems worldwide. With the recent global pandemic of COVID-19, the need to research strategies to treat these health problems has become even more pressing. Although the literature on big data and data science in health has grown rapidly, few studies have synthesized these individual studies, and none has identified the utility of big data in infectious disease surveillance and modeling.

May Measurement Month 2018: an analysis of blood pressure screening results in South Africa.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a growing burden worldwide, leading to over 10 million deaths each year. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global initiative of the International Society of Hypertension (ISH) aimed at raising awareness of high BP and acting as a temporary solution to the lack of screening programmes worldwide. As part of MMM, screening in South Africa in 2017 revealed that 24.

A comparative analysis of blood pressure in HIV-infected patients versus uninfected controls residing in Sub-Saharan Africa: a narrative review.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease and mortality in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We reviewed the literature comparing BP in treated HIV-infected populations against untreated and/or uninfected controls from SSA. We conducted a narrative review through PubMed and EBSCO Discovery Service to determine estimates of raised BP and hypertension in HIV-infected patients versus untreated/uninfected controls (1 January 2005 to 31 July 2019 and 9 May 2020).

A 10-year follow-up study of demographic and cardiometabolic factors in HIV-infected South Africans.

Objectives: Understanding of the interplay between human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and cardiovascular disease, especially in Africa, is limited to evidence from longitudinal studies. Therefore the demographic profile and cardiometabolic, renal and liver function of an HIV-infected South African population were profiled from 2005 to 2015.

Methods: The study included 117 HIV-infected and 131 uninfected controls that were examined at baseline, five and 10 years.

May Measurement Month 2017: an analysis of blood pressure screening results in South Africa-Sub-Saharan Africa.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a growing burden worldwide, leading to over 10 million deaths each year. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global initiative of the International Society of Hypertension (ISH) aimed at raising awareness of high BP and to act as a temporary solution to the lack of screening programs worldwide. A surveillance study in 2016 in South Africa revealed that 45% of adults have hypertension and only 6-9% of men and women respectively had controlled BP on medication, highlighting the need for regular screening and awareness campaigns.

The metabolic syndrome and renal function in an African cohort infected with human immunodeficiency virus.

Introduction: The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is often accompanied by renal dysfunction. It is expected that metabolic syndrome (MetS) may exacerbate renal impairment.

Objective: We therefore determined the prevalence of MetS and the association thereof with renal function in a South African cohort infected with HIV.