Detecting two circulating antigens - CCA and CAA - in urine and serum to improve diagnosis of human schistosomiasis.

Background: Schistosomiasis is caused by infection with parasitic worms and affects more than 250 million people globally. The detection of schistosome derived circulating cathodic and anodic antigens (CCA and CAA) has proven highly valuable for detecting active infections, causing both intestinal and urinary schistosomiasis.

Aim: The combined detection of CCA and CAA was explored to improve accuracy in detecting infections.

Optimizing vaccine uptake in sub-Saharan Africa: a collaborative COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Madagascar using an adaptive approach.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the need for more effective immunization programs, including in limited resource settings. This paper presents outcomes and lessons learnt from a COVID-19 vaccination campaign (VC), which used a tailored adaptive strategy to optimise vaccine uptake in the Boeny region of Madagascar.

Methods: Guided by the Dynamic Sustainability Framework (DSF), the VC implementation was regularly reviewed through multi-sectoral stakeholder feedback, key informant interviews, problem-solving meetings, and weekly monitoring of outcome indicators to identify and apply key adaptations.

Awareness and knowledge regarding female genital schistosomiasis among European healthcare workers: a cross-sectional online survey.

Background: Adequate knowledge and awareness regarding diseases are essential for appropriate, high-quality healthcare. Female Genital Schistosomiasis (FGS) is a non-sexually transmitted gynaecological disease that is caused by the presence of Schistosoma haematobium eggs in the female genital tract and the resulting immune response that causes tissue damage. It is estimated to affect 56 million women, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), where healthcare workers (HCWs) have limited awareness and knowledge of FGS.

A dataset of Solicited Cough Sound for Tuberculosis Triage Testing.

Cough is a common and commonly ignored symptom of lung disease. Cough is often perceived as difficult to quantify, frequently self-limiting, and non-specific. However, cough has a central role in the clinical detection of many lung diseases including tuberculosis (TB), which remains the leading infectious disease killer worldwide.

Drivers of COVID-19 vaccine uptake among rural populations in Madagascar: a cross-sectional study.

Background: The WHO set the global immunisation threshold for COVID-19 at 70% to achieve worldwide protection against the disease. To date, global COVID-19 vaccine coverage is still below this threshold, in particular in several sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries, such as Madagascar. While factors influencing COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy have been widely explored in the past few years, research on drivers of COVID-19 vaccine uptake remains scarce.