Main Objective: A cohort of adult Malawian people living with HIV (PLHIV) testing positive for cryptococcal antigenemia was observed and followed to determine the outcomes and risk factors for attrition.
Methods Concept: Eligible PLHIV were enrolled at 5 health facilities in Malawi, representing different levels of health care. ART naïve patients, ART defaulters returning to care, and patients with suspected or confirmed ART treatment failure with CD4 <200 cells/μL or clinical stage 3 or 4 were enrolled and received CrAg tests on whole blood specimens from August 2018 to August 2019.
Background: Fungal infections are common causes of death and morbidity in those with advanced HIV infection. Data on access to diagnostic tests in Africa are scarce. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic capacity for invasive fungal infections in advanced HIV disease in Africa.
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May 2022
Background: In 2016 the Malawi government embarked on several interrelated health sector reforms aimed at improving the quality of health services at all levels of care and attain Universal Health Coverage by 2030. Patient satisfaction with services is an important proxy measure of quality. We assessed patient satisfaction at a tertiary hospital in Northern Malawi to understand the current state.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBreast cancer is one of the major public health problem in developing countries. In Malawi, cancer of the breast among females is among the top four accounting for 4.9%.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Bacterial infections are a significant cause of sickness and death in sub-Saharan Africa. This study aimed at establishing the prevalence, distribution and antimicrobial susceptibility pattern of major bacterial isolates from patients accessing medical care at a tertiary hospital in Malawi.
Methods: We retrospectively reviewed bacteria culture and antimicrobial susceptibility records for 4617 patients from 2002 to 2014 at Mzuzu Central Hospital (MCH).
Given the uncertainty about the ability of a single CD4 count to accurately classify a patient as antiretroviral therapy (ART) eligible, we sought to understand the extent to which CD4 variability results in misclassification at a CD4 threshold of 500 cells/mm. We performed a prospective study of CD4 variability in Malawian human immunodeficiency virus-infected, ART-naive, World Health Organization (WHO) stage 1 or 2, nonpregnant adults. CD4 counts were performed daily for 8 days.
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