Women's exposure to intimate partner violence and its association with child stunting: findings from a population-based study in rural Rwanda.

Background: Child stunting is a significant challenge for most districts in Rwanda and much of sub-Saharan Africa and persists despite multisectoral efforts. There is a notable lack of population-based studies examining the correlation between violence against women and child stunting in Rwanda.

Objective: We aimed to investigate the association between Rwandan women's exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) and child stunting in children under 3 years of age.

How do household living conditions and gender-related decision-making influence child stunting in Rwanda? A population-based study.

Child stunting (chronic undernutrition) is a major public health concern in low- and middle-income countries. In Rwanda, an estimated 33% of children are affected. This study investigated the household living conditions and the impact of gender-related decision-making on child stunting.

Health care utilization, mental disorders and behavioural disorders among perpetrators of intimate partner homicide in 2000-2016: A registry-based case-control study from Sweden.

Little is known about intimate partner homicide (IPH) perpetrator´s healthcare contacts and mental health problems before the killing. The aim was to compare male and female IPH perpetrators with matched controls from the general population by analysing differences in healthcare utilization and mental and behavioural disorders. This study includes 48 males and 10 females who perpetrated IPH between 2000 and 2016 in the Västra Götaland Region of Sweden.

Socio-demographic and psychosocial characteristics of male and female perpetrators in intimate partner homicide: A case-control study from Region Västra Götaland, Sweden.

Risk factor studies on male-perpetrated intimate partner homicide (IPH) are often compared with studies on intimate partner violence (IPV) or non-partner homicide perpetrators. This not only excludes female perpetrators, but also fails to take socio-demographic and psychosocial differences between perpetrators and the general population into consideration. The aim of this study was to examine male- and female-perpetrated IPH cases, and to compare socio-demographic factors in IPH perpetrators and in matched controls from the general population.

Intimate partner violence, associations with perceived need for help and health care utilization: a population-based sample of women in Sweden.

To assess the association between physical intimate partner violence (physical IPV) in the past 5 years, perceived need for help and primary health care utilization due to mental health problems in a general population-based sample of women in Sweden. We performed structured follow-up interviews with 616 women between 1995 and 2015. Associations between physical IPV in the past 5 years and (i) perceived need for help and (ii) primary health care utilization due to mental health problems, were estimated by logistic regression analyses with crude and adjusted odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

A qualitative study of healthcare professionals' perceptions of men and women's mental healthcare seeking in Rwanda.

This study aimed to explore health care professionals (HCP') perceptions about mental-health-seeking behaviours in men and women and its social and gender implications in Rwanda. Six focus group discussions including 43 HCPs working at mental health facilities and district hospitals in Rwanda were conducted. Data were analysed using qualitative content analysis.

Incremental cost and health gains of the 2016 WHO antenatal care recommendations for Rwanda: results from expert elicitation.

Objectives: High-quality evidence of effectiveness and cost-effectiveness is rarely available and relevant for health policy decisions in low-resource settings. In such situations, innovative approaches are needed to generate locally relevant evidence. This study aims to inform decision-making on antenatal care (ANC) recommendations in Rwanda by estimating the incremental cost-effectiveness of the recent (2016) WHO antenatal care recommendations compared to current practice in Rwanda.

"Not taken seriously"-A qualitative interview study of postpartum Rwandan women who have experienced pregnancy-related complications.

Background: There is limited knowledge on the women's experiences of pregnancy-related complications in Rwanda. This study aimed to investigate women's experiences and perceptions of specific complications during pregnancy and delivery and the consequences of these complications on postpartum health and family situation.

Methods: Data were collected through individual in-depth interviews (N = 15).

Quality of antenatal care services in Rwanda: assessing practices of health care providers.

Background: Although most pregnant women in Rwanda visit antenatal care (ANC) clinics, little has been studied about the quality of services being provided. We investigated the ANC providers' (HCPs) current practices in relation to prevention, management and referral of maternal conditions as well as the information provided to pregnant women attending ANC services in Rwanda.

Methods: This facility-based, cross-sectional study included 312 ANC providers as participants and a review of 605 ANC medical records from 121 health centers.

Patients' Perceptions and Factors Affecting Dialysis Modality Decisions.

Background: Home-based dialysis, including peritoneal dialysis (PD) and home hemodialysis (HHD), has been shown to be associated with lower costs and higher health-related quality of life than in-center HD. However, factors influencing the choice of dialysis modality, including gender, are still not well understood.

Methods: A questionnaire was sent out to all dialysis patients in the western region of Sweden in order to investigate factors affecting choice of dialysis modality.

Intimate partner violence during pregnancy in relation to non-psychotic mental health disorders in Rwanda: a cross-sectional population-based study.

Objectives: To investigate the prevalence of non-psychotic mental health disorders (MHDs) and the association between exposure to all forms of intimate partner violence (IPV) during pregnancy and MHDs.

Design: Cross-sectional population-based study conducted in the Northern Province of Rwanda and Kigali city.

Participants And Settings: Totally, 921 women who gave birth ≤13 months before being interviewed were included.

Health-related quality of life determinants among Rwandan women after delivery: does antenatal care utilization matter? A cross-sectional study.

Background: Despite the widespread use of antenatal care (ANC), its effectiveness in low-resource settings remains unclear. In this study, self-reported health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was used as an alternative to other maternal health measures previously used to measure the effectiveness of antenatal care. The main objective of this study was to determine whether adequate antenatal care utilization is positively associated with women's HRQoL.

Cost of antenatal care for the health sector and for households in Rwanda.

Background: Rwanda has made tremendous progress in reduction of maternal mortality in the last twenty years. Antenatal care is believed to have played a role in that progress. In late 2016, the World Health Organization published new antenatal care guidelines recommending an increase from four visits during pregnancy to eight contacts with skilled personnel, among other changes.

Prevalence of pregnancy-related complications and course of labour of surviving women who gave birth in selected health facilities in Rwanda: a health facility-based, cross-sectional study.

Objectives: This study estimated health facility-based prevalence for pre-eclampsia/eclampsia, postpartum haemorrhage and caesarean section (CS) due to prolonged labour/dystocia. The background characteristics of Rwandan pregnant women, the course of labour and the level of healthcare were investigated in relation to pregnancy and delivery outcomes.

Methods: This is health facility-based study and data were collected in 2014-2015 through structured interviews and medical records (n=817) in Kigali and Northern Province, Rwanda.

Determinants of poor utilization of antenatal care services among recently delivered women in Rwanda; a population based study.

Background: In Rwanda, a majority of pregnant women visit antenatal care (ANC) services, however not to the extent that is recommended. Association between socio-demographic or psychosocial factors and poor utilization of antenatal care services (≤2 visits during the course of pregnancy irrespective of the timing) among recently pregnant women in Rwanda were investigated.

Methods: This population-based, cross sectional study included 921 women who gave birth within the past 13 months.

Prevalence of intimate partner violence and its association with symptoms of depression; a cross-sectional study based on a female population sample in Sweden.

Background: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is the most common type of violence targeting women. IPV includes acts of physical aggression, sexual coercion, psychological abuse and controlling behaviors and these forms of violence often coexist in the same relationship. Living with IPV is associated with serious mental health outcomes such as depression and depressive symptoms.

Self-reported pregnancy-related health problems and self-rated health status in Rwandan women postpartum: a population-based cross-sectional study.

Background: Self-rated health status (SRH) can be used as a predictor of morbidity and mortality. Postpartum self-rated health has been used to estimate maternal morbidity and postpartum problems. Reproductive history factors are associated with poor self-rated health postpartum.

Collaboration or renunciation? The role of traditional medicine in mental health care in Rwanda and Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.

Traditional medicine (TM) and biomedicine represent parallel health systems in many developing countries; the latter dominating in public policies, while the former still retain considerable influence among the general public. This study investigates how mental health care professionals responsible for mental health care implementation comprehend and relate to the intersection between TM and biomedicine in the cases of Rwanda and the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. The material is based on semi-structured interviews with mental health care stakeholders in Eastern Cape, South Africa and Rwanda.

Gender Inequality Prevents Abused Women from Seeking Care Despite Protection Given in Gender-Based Violence Legislation: A Qualitative Study from Rwanda.

Objective: Despite its burden on a person's life, Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is known to be poorly recognised and managed in most countries and communities. This study aimed to explore health care professionals' experiences of the health care seeking processes of women exposed to intimate partner violence in Rwanda.

Methods: Six focus group discussions were conducted in three district hospitals and three mental health units in Rwanda.

"A constant struggle to receive mental health care": health care professionals' acquired experience of barriers to mental health care services in Rwanda.

Background: In Rwanda, many people are still mentally affected by the consequences of the genocide and yet mental health care facilities are scarce. While available literature explains the prevalence and consequences of mental disorders, there is lack of knowledge from low-income countries on health care seeking behavior due to common mental disorders. Therefore, this study sought to explore health care professionals' acquired experiences of barriers and facilitators that people with common mental disorders face when seeking mental health care services in Rwanda.

Sex differences in health care consumption in Sweden: A register-based cross-sectional study.

Background: Generally, health care consumption, especially primary care, is greater among women than men. The extent to which this sex difference is explained by reproduction and sex-specific morbidity is unclear.

Methods: We examined age- and sex-specific health care service utilization and costs in the western region of Sweden.

Traumatic episodes and mental health effects in young men and women in Rwanda, 17 years after the genocide.

Objectives: To investigate mental health effects associated with exposure to trauma in Rwanda during the 1994 genocide period, and over the lifetime, in Rwandan men and women aged 20-35 years.

Setting: This was a cross-sectional population-based study conducted in the southern province of Rwanda. Data was collected during December 2011 to January 2012.