BMJ Open
December 2024
Objectives: Hypertension is one of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases in West Africa, which responds to effective primary care. This scoping review explored factors influencing primary care access, utilisation and quality for patients with hypertension in West Africa.
Design: Scoping review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis extension for scoping reviews.
BMC Health Serv Res
December 2024
Background: Health systems that are responsive to maternal mental health recognise the importance of integrating mental health services into maternal care. Studies from Vietnam have reported particularly high rates of common perinatal mental health disorders (CPMDs) in both rural and urban areas of the country. Despite the increasing burden of maternal mental health conditions, there is currently no guidance on the screening for CPMDs within maternal care, both antenatal and postnatal.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn low-and-middle income countries, maternal mental health needs remain neglected, and common mental disorders during pregnancy and after birth are routinely associated with hormonal changes. The psycho-social, and spiritual components of childbirth are often downplayed. A qualitative study was conducted as part of a wider realist evaluation on health systems responsiveness to examine the interrelationships between pregnant and postnatal women, their families, and their environment, and how these influence women's interactions with healthcare providers in Ghana.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Mental illness remains a significant global health concern that affects diverse populations, including individuals living with hypertension and/or type 2 diabetes, predominantly in lower-income to middle-income countries. The association between non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and mental illness is firmly established globally, however, this connection has yet to be comprehensively explored in West Africa. Our systematic review and meta-analysis aim to synthesise existing evidence on the prevalence, incidence, and risk factors for comorbid mental illness with hypertension and/or type 2 diabetes in West Africa.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn most mammals, postural soleus muscles are involved in the maintenance of the stability of the body in the gravitational field of Earth. It is well established that immediately after a laboratory rat is exposed to conditions of weightlessness (parabolic flight) or simulated microgravity (hindlimb suspension/unloading), a sharp decrease in soleus muscle electrical activity occurs. However, starting from the 3rd day of mechanical unloading, soleus muscle electrical activity begins to increase and reaches baseline levels approximately by the 14th day of hindlimb suspension.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFType 2 diabetes is a major global public health challenge, particularly in the African region. Though evidence exists on pharmacological agents and non-pharmacological interventions in maintaining blood glucose concentration, the healthcare systems' ability to meet patients' needs may be inadequate. The management of non-communicable diseases, particularly diabetes, has been postulated to depend on functioning health systems.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Mental health conditions are expressed in various ways in different people, and access to health care for these conditions is affected by individual factors, health care provider factors, and contextual factors. These factors may be enablers or barriers to accessing primary care for mental health conditions. Studies have reported a gap in treatment for mental health conditions in many countries in West Africa due to barriers along the access pathway.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The importance of evidence-informed health policymaking is widely recognized. However, many low- and middle-income countries lack evidence-informed mental health policies due to insufficient data, stigma or lack of resources. Various policies address adolescent mental health in India, but published knowledge on their evidence-informed nature is limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Lifestyle interventions are key to the control of diabetes and the prevention of complications, especially when used with pharmacological interventions. This protocol aims to review the effectiveness of lifestyle interventions in relation to nutrition and physical activity within the West African region. This systematic review and meta-analysis seeks to understand which interventions for lifestyle modification are implemented for the control of diabetes in West Africa at the individual and community level, what evidence is available on their effectiveness in improving glycaemic control and why these interventions were effective.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: A quarter of West Africa's population are adolescents 10-19 years. Their mental, sexual, and reproductive health is inter-related. We therefore aimed to examine published evidence on effectiveness of interventions for adolescent mental, sexual and reproductive health in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to inform development, implementation and de-implementation of policies and programs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The prevalence of diabetes in West Africa is increasing, posing a major public health threat. An estimated 24 million Africans have diabetes, with rates in West Africa around 2-6% and projected to rise 129% by 2045 according to the WHO. Over 90% of cases are Type 2 diabetes (IDF, World Bank).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Hypertension, one of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases in West Africa, can be well managed with good primary care. This scoping review will explore what is documented in the literature about factors that influence primary care access, utilisation and quality of management for patients living with hypertension in West Africa.
Methods And Analysis: The scoping review will employ the approach described by Arksey and O'Malley (2005) .
Introduction: Although policies for adolescent health exist in Ghana, their implementation is challenging. Availability of services for adolescent sexual and reproductive health and adolescent mental health remains less than desired, with adolescent mental health being particularly neglected despite being an important contributor to poor health outcomes. This study presents an analysis of gaps in the implementation of the Ghana Adolescent Health Service Policy and Strategy (2016-2020), including how and why the context influenced the observed implementation gaps.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The low demand for maternal and child health services is a significant factor in Nigeria's high maternal death rate. This paper explores demand and supply-side determinants at the primary healthcare level, highlighting factors affecting provision and utilization.
Methods: This qualitative study was undertaken in Anambra state, southeast Nigeria.
Piezo1 channels are mechanically activated (MA) cation channels that are involved in sensing of various mechanical perturbations, such as membrane stretch and shear stress, and play a crucial role in cell mechanotransduction. In response to mechanical stimuli, these channels open up and allow cations to travel into the cell and induce biochemical reactions that can change the cell's metabolism and function. Skeletal muscle cells/fibers inherently depend upon mechanical cues in the form of fluid shear stress and contractions (physical exercise).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSkeletal muscle disuse leads to pathological muscle activity as well as to slow-to-fast fiber-type transformation. Fast-type fibers are more fatigable than slow-type, so this transformation leads to a decline in muscle function. Prochlorperazine injections previously were shown to attenuate autonomous rat soleus muscle electrical activity under unloading conditions.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe purpose of this article is to close the gap in frameworks for the use of evidence in the mental health policy agenda-setting in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Agenda-setting is important because mental health remains a culturally sensitive and neglected issue in LMICs. Moreover, effective evidence-informed agenda-setting can help achieve, and sustain, the status of mental health as a policy priority in these low-resource contexts.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Pregnancy and postpartum-related mental health problems pose serious public health threat to the society, but worryingly, neglected in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This review will assess the burden and distribution of maternal mental health (MMH) problems in SSA, with the aim to inform the implementation of context sensitive interventions and policies.
Methods And Analysis: All relevant databases, grey literature and non-database sources will be searched.
Currently, no ideal treatment exists to combat skeletal muscle disuse-induced atrophy and loss of strength. Because the activity of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in rat soleus muscle is suppressed at the early stages of disuse, we hypothesized that pre-treatment of rats with metformin (an AMPK activator) would exert beneficial effects on skeletal muscle during disuse. Muscle disuse was performed via hindlimb suspension (HS).
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