Socio-economic disparities and predictors of fertility among adolescents aged 15 to 19 in Zambia: Evidence from the Zambia Demographic and Health Survey (2018).

Globally, 12 million girls aged 15-19 give birth each year, and Africa hosts 19% of youth aged 15-24. In Zambia, 29% of adolescents experience childbirth, with variations by age. Projections suggest a continued rise in these trends by 2030.

Effect of photobiomodulation at 830 nm on gene expression correlated with JAK/STAT signalling in wounded and diabetic wounded fibroblasts in vitro.

Treatment of chronic diabetic wounds is an ongoing socio-economic challenge. Dysregulated signalling pathways characterise cells from chronic diabetic wounds. Photobiomodulation (PBM) stimulates healing by eliciting photochemical effects that affect gene regulation.

Interaction of the AKT and β-catenin signalling pathways and the influence of photobiomodulation on cellular signalling proteins in diabetic wound healing.

The induction of a cells destiny is a tightly controlled process that is regulated through communication between the matrix and cell signalling proteins. Cell signalling activates distinctive subsections of target genes, and different signalling pathways may be used repeatedly in different settings. A range of different signalling pathways are activated during the wound healing process, and dysregulated cellular signalling may lead to reduced cell function and the development of chronic wounds.

Routine investigations for patients with mental and behavioural disturbances.

Background: The process of medical clearance aims to exclude a general medical condition as an underlying cause for mental and behavioural disorders and involves routine screening with special investigations. Current evidence, however, suggests that clinician gestalt should guide the need for special investigations and that there is no benefit to routine screening.

Aim: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of and adherence to the Western Cape (WC) provincial guidelines for routine investigations of adult patients with behavioural disturbances.

Current Therapeutic Modalities for the Management of Chronic Diabetic Wounds of the Foot.

Impaired wound healing is common in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Different therapeutic modalities including wound debridement and dressing, transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), nanomedicine, shockwave therapy, hyperbaric (HBOT) and topical (TOT) oxygen therapy, and photobiomodulation (PBM) have been used in the management of chronic diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). The selection of a suitable treatment method for DFUs depends on the hosts' physiological status including the intricacy and wound type.

Photobiomodulation activates the PI3K/AKT pathway in diabetic fibroblast cells in vitro.

Photobiomodulation (PBM) has been known to facilitate the healing of numerous ailments including diabetic wounds. PBM is not broadly acknowledged largely due to scepticism regarding its mechanism of action, including the specific molecular targets and the effects rendered at a tissue, cellular and molecular level. Diabetes mellitus (DM) reduces cellular signalling, including the phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT) signalling pathway that is critical during wound healing.

Oxidative Stress in Ageing and Chronic Degenerative Pathologies: Molecular Mechanisms Involved in Counteracting Oxidative Stress and Chronic Inflammation.

Ageing and chronic degenerative pathologies demonstrate the shared characteristics of high bioavailability of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress, chronic/persistent inflammation, glycation, and mitochondrial abnormalities. Excessive ROS production results in nucleic acid and protein destruction, thereby altering the cellular structure and functional outcome. To stabilise increased ROS production and modulate oxidative stress, the human body produces antioxidants, "free radical scavengers", that inhibit or delay cell damage.

The use a virtual interactive system to enhance gynecologic oncology multi-disciplinary care in Zambia.

Background: Gynecologic malignancies represent a significant proportion of the increasing cancer burden in Zambia. The care and outcomes of cancer patients improves in a multidisciplinary team but insufficient coordination in weak health systems is a barrier to this model of care. The World Health Organization (WHO) identifies digital health interventions as tools to bridge the gap between challenges and health systems' goals in low resource environments.

Regulatory Processes of the Canonical Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway and Photobiomodulation in Diabetic Wound Repair.

Skin is a biological system composed of different types of cells within a firmly structured extracellular matrix and is exposed to various external and internal insults that can break its configuration. The restoration of skin's anatomic continuity and function following injury is a multifaceted, dynamic, well-coordinated process that is highly dependent on signalling pathways, including the canonical Wnt/β catenin pathway, all aimed at restoring the skin's protective barrier. Compromised and inappropriate tissue restoration processes are often the source of wound chronicity.

Cellular Signalling and Photobiomodulation in Chronic Wound Repair.

Photobiomodulation (PBM) imparts therapeutically significant benefits in the healing of chronic wounds. Chronic wounds develop when the stages of wound healing fail to progress in a timely and orderly frame, and without an established functional and structural outcome. Therapeutic benefits associated with PBM include augmenting tissue regeneration and repair, mitigating inflammation, relieving pain, and reducing oxidative stress.

Dataset for modeling Beck's cognitive triad to understand depression.

This article presents data to model Beck's cognitive triad to understand the subjective symptoms of depression, such as negative view of self, future, and world. The Cognitive Triad Dataset (CTD) comprises 5886 messages, 600 from the Time-to-Change blog, 580 from Beyond Blue personal stories, and 4706 from Twitter. The data were manually labeled by skilled annotators.

Effect of photobiomodulation on cellular migration and survival in diabetic and hypoxic diabetic wounded fibroblast cells.

A disrupted wound repair process often leads to the development of chronic wounds, and pose a major physical, social and economic inconvenience on patients and the public health sector. Chronic wounds are a common complication seen in diabetes mellitus (DM), and often the severity necessitates amputation of the lower limbs. Recently, there has been increasing evidence that photobiomodulation (PBM) initiates wound healing, including increased protein transcription for cell proliferation, viability, migration and tissue reepithelialisation.

Photobiomodulation and the expression of genes related to the JAK/STAT signalling pathway in wounded and diabetic wounded cells.

Photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT) is a curative technique that uses low intensity light to relegate pain and inflammation, and accelerate tissue repair. At a molecular level, the effects of photobiomodulation (PBM) are not fully established. The present study aimed to assess the impact of PBM on the alteration of genes linked to Janus kinase-Signal transducer and activator of transcription (JAK-STAT) signalling in wounded and diabetic wounded cells in vitro.

Role of the PI3K/AKT (mTOR and GSK3β) signalling pathway and photobiomodulation in diabetic wound healing.

Activated phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase/Protein kinase B (PI3K/AKT) signalling with increased or reduced mTOR and GSK3β activity influences the wound repair process. Diabetic wounds, usually ulcerated, are characterised by reduced growth factors and cellular performance. The occurrence of diabetic ulcers is linked to peripheral arterial disease, neuropathy, and wound contamination.

Photobiomodulation at 660nm stimulates proliferation and migration of diabetic wounded cells via the expression of epidermal growth factor and the JAK/STAT pathway.

Photobiomodulation (PBM) modulates cellular processes to enhance diabetic wound healing. The photon energy activates wounded cells to proliferate and migrate. However, the signalling pathways responsible for these observations remain unknown.

The JAK/STAT signaling pathway and photobiomodulation in chronic wound healing.

Wound healing is a physiological process that occurs in overlapping phases namely hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling. Chronic wounds fail to proceed through these reparative processes to achieve the functional integrity within the expected time. Wound healing relies upon growth factors and cytokines for the precise and accurate regulation of cellular responses.

Soya, maize, and sorghum-based ready-to-use therapeutic food with amino acid is as efficacious as the standard milk and peanut paste-based formulation for the treatment of severe acute malnutrition in children: a noninferiority individually randomized controlled efficacy clinical trial in Malawi.

Development of more cost-effective ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) is a global public health priority. To date, previous lower-cost recipes have been less effective than the standard peanut and milk (PM)-based RUTF, particularly in children aged <24 mo. We aimed to compare the efficacy of the PM-RUTF to a milk-free soya, maize, and sorghum (FSMS)-RUTF enriched with crystalline amino acids without cow milk powder and a milk, soya, maize, and sorghum (MSMS)-RUTF containing 9.

The correlation between malaria RDT (Paracheck pf.®) faint test bands and microscopy in the diagnosis of malaria in Malawi.

Background: Faint test bands of Paracheck Pf.® are interpreted as malaria positive according to world health organization (WHO) guideline. However if there are conspicuous number of faint test bands, a performance of Paracheck Pf.

Reference values for pulmonary function in Asian Indians living in the United States.

Objective: To establish reference values for pulmonary function in the Asian-Indian population living in the United States.

Design: Five-year cross-sectional study of pulmonary function in healthy adult Asian Indians living in the United States, using American Thoracic Society guidelines for measuring pulmonary function.

Setting: Measurement of pulmonary function in healthy nonsmoking Asian Indians in a pulmonary function laboratory or at festivals, picnics, and ceremonies where subjects could be conveniently recruited.

Implementing a malaria curtains project in rural Malawi.

This paper describes planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation activities carried out in support of a malaria control project that used permethrin-impregnated curtains in eight villages in rural Malawi. Findings from formative evaluation and project monitoring aspects of the evaluation are presented. Permethrin-impregnated curtains were introduced to villagers who participated in household self-help projects.