Undetectable = Untransmittable (U = U): insights from people living with HIV attending health facilities in Rwanda.

Background: Rwanda has made remarkable progress in scaling up HIV testing, treatment, and healthcare services. Recent data show that 95% of people living with HIV (PLWH) were aware of their status, 97.5% of them are on antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 98% of those who are on treatment have achieved viral suppression.

Schistosomiasis transmission: A machine learning analysis reveals the importance of agrochemicals on snail abundance in Rwanda.

Background: Schistosomiasis is an important snail-borne parasitic disease whose transmission is exacerbated by water resource management activities. In Rwanda, meeting the growing population's demand for food has led to wetlands reclamation for cultivation and increased agrochemical enrichment for crop production. However, the ecological consequences of agrochemical enrichment on schistosomiasis transmission remain unexplored.

High prevalence of porcine cysticercosis in slaughtered pigs in Rwanda: An abattoir survey.

Porcine cysticercosis (PC) is an important public health problem, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, but limited information is available on the prevalence of infection in pigs entering the food chain. Existing diagnostic methods vary in accuracy and efficiency; whole carcass dissection is the most reliable method but is labour-intensive and destroys the carcass so can only be used in a research setting. Serological tests offer lower specificity, while meat inspection and lingual examination lack sensitivity, hampering accurate estimates and the removal of infected pigs from the food chain.

Cytokine Kinetics during Progression of COVID-19 in Rwanda Patients: Could IL-9/IFNγ Ratio Predict Disease Severity?

For effective treatments and preventive measures against severe COVID-19, it is essential to determine early markers of disease severity in different populations. We analysed the cytokine kinetics of 129 COVID-19 patients with mild symptoms, 68 severe cases, and 20 healthy controls for the first time in Rwanda. Pro-inflammatory (IFNγ, IL-6, TNFα), Treg (IL-10, TGFβ1, TGFβ3), Th9 (IL-9), Th17 (IL-17), and Th2 (IL-4, IL-13) cytokines, total IgM and IgG, as well as gene expressions of , and were measured at day 1, day 7, day 14, day 21, and day 28 post-infection.

Malacological Survey and Spatial Distribution of Intermediate Host Snails in Schistosomiasis Endemic Districts of Rwanda.

Background: Schistosomiasis, due to , is prevalent in Rwanda. However, there is a paucity of information related to the abundance, species, distribution, and infectivity of intermediate host snails.

Methods: Snails were collected from 71 sites, including lakeshores and wetlands.

Interprofessional Arclight eye health workshop: impact on students' clinical identification and ophthalmic skills.

Visual impairment and blindness affect an estimated 2.2 billion people worldwide. Accessible low-cost diagnostic tools and interprofessional education and collaborative practice are part of ongoing strategies to improve eye care services.

Integrated Analysis of Cytokine Profiles in Malaria Patients Discloses Selective Upregulation of TGF-β1, β3, and IL-9 in Mild Clinical Presentation.

The proper control of Plasmodium infection requires a finely balanced immune response. Here, we evaluated the implication of TGF-β1 and TGF-β3 in this process using novel monoclonal antibodies to measure their plasma concentrations in comparison with other cytokines and the expression of FOXP3 mRNA. Plasma cytokine levels were measured in 80 patients with severe anaemic malaria and 186 with a mild presentation using ELISA, and rtPCR was used to measure FOXP3 mRNA expression.

Using Routinely Collected Health Records to Identify the Fine-Resolution Spatial Patterns of Soil-Transmitted Helminth Infections in Rwanda.

Background. Soil-transmitted helminths (STH) are parasitic diseases with significant public health impact. Analysis is generally based on cross-sectional prevalence surveys; outcomes are mostly aggregated to larger spatial units.

Prevalence Mapping of Among Pre-school Age Children in Rwanda.

is endemic in Rwanda, and control programs have been implemented with a special focus on school-age children (SAC), ignoring pre-school age children (pre-SAC) for which the actual prevalence of the disease is not well established. This study consisted of a cross-sectional quantitative mapping of the distribution of and identification of associated risk factors among pre-SAC throughout the country. The study covered all the 17 districts of Rwanda endemic for , with a total sample of 4,675 children enrolled from 80 purposively selected villages.

Possible Interactions between Malaria, Helminthiases and the Gut Microbiota: A Short Review.

Malaria, caused by the species, is an infectious disease responsible for more than 600 thousand deaths and more than 200 million morbidity cases annually. With above 90% of those deaths and cases, sub-Saharan Africa is affected disproportionately. Malaria clinical manifestations range from asymptomatic to simple, mild, and severe disease.

Using a Value Chain Approach to Map the Pig Production System in Rwanda, Its Governance, and Sanitary Risks.

Rwanda has a fast growing pig production sector projected to continue expansion, due to rising local and regional demand. We undertook a value chain analysis to establish the flows of pigs and pork in Rwanda and the roles of various actors involved, and to understand governance and sanitary risks in the value chain. Cross-sectional qualitative data were collected through focus group discussions and key informant interviews with farmers, brokers, butchers, abattoir managers, and veterinarians.

A pooled testing strategy for identifying SARS-CoV-2 at low prevalence.

Suppressing infections of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) will probably require the rapid identification and isolation of individuals infected with the virus on an ongoing basis. Reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests are accurate but costly, which makes the regular testing of every individual expensive. These costs are a challenge for all countries around the world, but particularly for low-to-middle-income countries.

Evaluation of a pilot interprofessional Arclight™ workshop for healthcare students in Rwanda: promoting collaborative practice in eye health.

Preventable and treatable visual impairment affects more than 1 billion people worldwide. Rwanda has an estimated visual impairment prevalence of 3.7% amongst the 12 million inhabitants.

Prevalence and risk factors of intestinal parasites among children under two years of age in a rural area of Rutsiro district, Rwanda - a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: This study aimed to assess the prevalence and associated risk factors of intestinal parasite infections among children less than two years of age in Rutsiro, Rwanda.

Methods: A cross-sectional parasitological survey was conducted in Rutsiro in June 2016. Fresh stool samples were collected from 353 children and examined using microscopy to detect parasite.

Pre-school aged children are exposed to through Lake Kivu in Rwanda.

Schistosomiasis is prevalent in many sub-Saharan African countries and transmission is through waters contaminated by infected snails. In Rwanda, although schistosomiasis is endemic, very few epidemiological studies exist; of these, schoolchildren have been the focus, neglecting pre-school-aged children (PSAC). Furthermore, malacological surveys to indicate the potential for transmission are scarce in the country.

Schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis in Rwanda: an update on their epidemiology and control.

Even though Rwanda lies within a region that has a high prevalence of schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections, epidemiological information regarding these infections in the country remains scarce. The present review attempts to compile the available data on schistosomiasis and STHs, from 1940 to 2014, to provide an insight on the epidemiological profile of these infections. This information will, in turn, support the design and implementation of sustainable control measures.

Decline in Child Hospitalization and Mortality After the Introduction of the 7-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugative Vaccine in Rwanda.

Pneumonia is a public health problem in the tropics, and the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugative vaccine (PCV-7) has been introduced in an effort to prevent the disease and therefore reduce childhood mortality. In Rwanda, PCV-7 was introduced in 2009, and we aimed to determine its impact on the rate of child hospitalization/mortality due to pneumonia. A retrospective survey was conducted on hospitalization rates and pediatric deaths between two periods, that is, before the introduction of PCV-7 (2007-2009) and after the introduction of PCV-7 (2010-2013) in Kabutare District Hospital.

CD16 expression on monocytes in healthy individuals but not schistosome-infected patients is positively associated with levels of parasite-specific IgG and IgG1.

Human IgG1 antibody responses are associated with protection against Schistosoma haematobium infection and are now a target for schistosome vaccine development. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between total IgG and the IgG subclasses and the monocyte IgG receptor, known as FcγRIIIa or CD16, in schistosome exposed people. Systemic levels of schistosome-specific anti-adult worm total IgG and IgG subclass titres were measured by ELISA in 100 individuals from an S.

Prevalence of Brucellosis among Women Presenting with Abortion/Stillbirth in Huye, Rwanda.

The incidence of human brucellosis is not documented in Rwanda despite several reports on the disease in cattle. Because brucellosis has been associated with abortion, the aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of positive serology in women presenting with abortion and/or stillbirth. The study was done in Huye District, in the Southern Province of Rwanda, and the patients were recruited from both the University Teaching Hospital of Butare (CHUB) and Kabutare District Hospital.

Cytokine responses to the anti-schistosome vaccine candidate antigen glutathione-S-transferase vary with host age and are boosted by praziquantel treatment.

Background: Improved helminth control is required to alleviate the global burden of schistosomiasis and schistosome-associated pathologies. Current control efforts rely on the anti-helminthic drug praziquantel (PZQ), which enhances immune responses to crude schistosome antigens but does not prevent re-infection. An anti-schistosome vaccine based on Schistosoma haematobium glutathione-S-transferase (GST) is currently in Phase III clinical trials, but little is known about the immune responses directed against this antigen in humans naturally exposed to schistosomes or how these responses change following PZQ treatment.