Effectiveness of monovalent rotavirus vaccine against hospital-attended rotavirus gastroenteritis among children in Uganda.

Background: The underlying causes for lower rotavirus vaccine effectiveness (VE) in high-child-mortality settings are not well understood. Uganda introduced the human monovalent G1P[8] rotavirus vaccine (Rotarix) in June 2018. We determined the effectiveness of Rotarix against rotavirus diarrhea requiring hospital care among Ugandan children.

Patient characteristics and predictors of mortality among children hospitalised with tuberculosis: A six-year case series study in Uganda.

Background: The high case-fatality rates among children with tuberculosis (TB) are reportedly driven by in-hospital mortality and severe forms of TB. Therefore, there is need to better understand the predictors of mortality among children hospitalised with TB. We examined the patient clinical profiles, length of hospital stay from date of admission to date of final admission outcome, and predictors of mortality among children hospitalised with TB at two tertiary hospitals in Uganda.

The Role of Molecular Testing in Pediatric Meningitis Surveillance in Southern and East African Countries, 2008-2017.

Background: As part of the global Invasive Bacterial Vaccine-Preventable Diseases Surveillance Network, 12 African countries referred cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples to South Africa's regional reference laboratory. We evaluated the utility of real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in detecting and serotyping/grouping Haemophilus influenzae, Neisseria meningitidis, and Streptococcus pneumoniae (HNS).

Methods: From 2008 to 2017, CSF samples collected from children <5 years old with suspected meningitis underwent routine microbiology testing in-country, and 11 680 samples were submitted for HNS PCR at the regional reference laboratory.

Rotavirus prevalence and genotypes among children younger than 5 years with acute diarrhea at Mulago National Referral Hospital, Kampala, Uganda.

Background: Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe diarrhea among children <5 years of age worldwide. To determine the prevalence of severe rotavirus infection in children admitted with acute diarrhea attending Mulago National Referral Hospital in Uganda, active sentinel surveillance was conducted from July 2006 to December 2012.

Methods: A total of 6387 children with acute diarrhea were enrolled into the public health surveillance system and of these, 5627 had stool samples collected and tested for rotavirus antigens by enzyme immunoassay ProSpecT Rotavirus kit.

Surveillance for Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis in children aged <5 years: implications for immunization in Uganda.

Affordable pneumococcal conjugate vaccines will soon become available to developing countries through the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization. Data on Streptococcus pneumoniae meningitis epidemiology in Uganda will assist decision makers in determining the best national vaccine policy. We reviewed acute bacterial meningitis surveillance data for children aged <5 years from 3 sentinel surveillance sites in 3 Ugandan districts collected from 2001 through 2006.