Short-term chemotherapy-related complications and undernutrition in children diagnosed with cancer at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, Ghana: A prospective cohort study.

Undernutrition in children with cancer is associated with complications during cancer therapy. The study objective was to determine the association between specific anthropometric parameters and short-term chemotherapy-related complications and mortality. This was a hospital-based, prospective cohort study of children, age ≤12 years, with a new cancer diagnosis at the Paediatric Oncology Unit, Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Ghana.

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of children with sickle cell disease on hydroxyurea treated with artemether-lumefantrine for acute uncomplicated malaria.

Introduction: Limited information exists on any interactions between hydroxyurea (HU) and antimalarials in sickle cell disease (SCD). We evaluated changes in clinical and laboratory parameters among children with SCD on HU therapy treated with artemether-lumefantrine (AL) for acute uncomplicated malaria (UM).

Methods: A prospective, non-randomized, pilot study of 127 children with SCD (23, UM; 104, steady state) were recruited from three hospitals in Accra.

Implementing newborn screening for sickle cell disease in Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra: Results and lessons learned.

Background: Early diagnosis of sickle cell disease (SCD) through newborn screening (NBS) is a cost-effective intervention, which reduces morbidity and mortality. In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) where disease burden is greatest, there are no universal NBS programs and few institutions have the capacity to conduct NBS. We determined the feasibility and challenges of implementing NBS for SCD in Ghana's largest public hospital.

The role of twinning in sustainable care for children with cancer: A TIPPing point? SIOP PODC Working Group on Twinning, Collaboration, and Support.

With the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Initiative for Childhood Cancer, there is renewed interest in sustainable interventions to improve childhood cancer care in low-/middle-income countries (LMICs). Practitioners in LMICs have traditionally practiced "twinning," i.e.

Evaluating a novel neonatal-care assessment tool among trained delivery attendants in a resource-limited setting.

Objective: To validate a novel objective structured clinical examination (OSCE) tool for assessing neonatal care skills among delivery attendants trained as part of the Essential Care for Every Baby (ECEB) program and to assess ECEB training effectiveness.

Methods: Between August 1 and September 30, 2015, a cross-sectional study enrolled ECEB-trained healthcare providers who attended deliveries from the Brong Ahafo and Eastern regions of Ghana. Participants completed a previously developed 21-item OSCE tool that assessed neonatal-care competency.