Development of a simple and effective online training for health workers: results from a pilot in Nigeria.

Background: Health workers (HWs) in Africa face challenges accessing and learning from existing online training opportunities. To address these challenges, we developed a modular, self-paced, mobile-ready and work-relevant online course covering foundational infection prevention and control (IPC) concepts. Here, we evaluate the first pilot of this course, conducted with HWs in Nigeria.

La vida normal: living with HIV in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

In this study, we explore how individuals living with HIV in the Dominican Republic strive to live a 'normal' life and the consequences of this pursuit of normalcy. We conducted qualitative in-depth interviews with men (n = 20) and women (n = 20) living with HIV and receiving care at two urban clinics in Santo Domingo. We analysed the data using a combination of narrative analysis and thematic coding.

Incidence of Diabetes Mellitus and Obesity and the Overlap of Comorbidities in HIV+ Hispanics Initiating Antiretroviral Therapy.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading health threat for HIV+ patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART); cardiometabolic comorbidities are key predictors of risk. Data are limited on incidence of metabolic comorbidities in HIV+ individuals initiating ART in low and middle income countries (LMICs), particularly for Hispanics. We examined incidence of diabetes and obesity in a prospective cohort of those initiating ART in the Dominican Republic.

Patterns of geographic mobility predict barriers to engagement in HIV care and antiretroviral treatment adherence.

Migration and geographic mobility increase risk for HIV infection and may influence engagement in HIV care and adherence to antiretroviral therapy. Our goal is to use the migration-linked communities of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and New York City, New York, to determine the impact of geographic mobility on HIV care engagement and adherence to treatment. In-depth interviews were conducted with HIV+Dominicans receiving antiretroviral therapy, reporting travel or migration in the past 6 months and key informants (n=45).

Medical communication companies and industry grants.

Importance: Medical communication companies (MCCs) are among the most significant health care stakeholders, supported mainly by drug and device companies. How MCCs share or protect physicians' personal data requires greater transparency.

Objective: To explore the financial relationships between MCCs and drug and device companies, to describe the characteristics of the large MCCs, and to explore whether they accurately represent themselves to physicians.

The acceptability of a self-lavaging device compared to pelvic examination for cervical cancer screening among low-income women.

Background: A simpler approach to cervical cancer screening could increase coverage, thus reducing cervical cancer mortality in the United States. Self-collection of specimens for screening tests may be one such approach. The aim of this study was to assess the acceptability of a self-lavaging device (Delphi Screener(™), Scherpenzeel, The Netherlands) for cervical cancer screening.

Transmitted drug resistance among antiretroviral-naive patients with established HIV type 1 infection in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and review of the Latin American and Caribbean literature.

Emergence of HIV resistance is a concerning consequence of global scale-up of antiretroviral therapy (ART). To date, there is no published information about HIV resistance from the Dominican Republic. The study's aim was to determine the prevalence of transmitted drug resistance (TDR) to reverse transcriptase and protease inhibitors in a sample of chronically HIV-1-infected patients in one clinic in Santo Domingo.

HIV care for geographically mobile populations.

The interaction between geographic mobility and risk for human immunodeficiency virus infection is well recognized, but what happens to those same individuals, once infected, as they transition to living with the infection? Does mobility affect their transition into medical care? If so, do mobile and nonmobile populations achieve similar success with antiretroviral treatment? The definition of mobility has changed over the centuries to encompass a complex phenotype including permanent migration, frequent travel, circular migration, and travel to and from treatment centers. The heterogeneity of these definitions leads to discordant findings. Investigations show that mobility has an impact on infection risk, but fewer data exist on the impact of geographic mobility on medical care and treatment outcomes.

Staphylococcus aureus ST398, New York City and Dominican Republic.

Closely related Staphylococcus aureus strains of ST398, an animal-associated strain, were identified in samples collected from humans in northern Manhattan, New York, NY, USA, and in the Dominican Republic. A large population in northern Manhattan has close ties to the Dominican Republic, suggesting international transmission.

Outbreak of Mycobacterium abscessus wound infections among "lipotourists" from the United States who underwent abdominoplasty in the Dominican Republic.

Background: Some US residents travel abroad to undergo cosmetic surgery for fat removal, a practice referred to as "lipotourism." Mycobacterium abscessus can cause postsurgical wound infection.

Methods: US residents who developed M.

Bone mass and mineral metabolism in HIV+ postmenopausal women.

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to estimate the prevalence of and risk factors for osteoporosis in HIV+ postmenopausal women. Bone mineral density (BMD) by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and biochemical indices of mineral metabolism were measured in 31 Hispanic and African American HIV+ postmenopausal women. BMD was compared with 186 historical controls, matched for age, ethnicity and postmenopausal status.