Beyond the jab: Unravelling the complexities of vaccine adoption for East Coast Fever in rural Kenya.

East Coast Fever (ECF) is one of the leading causes of livestock mortality and reduced productivity across Eastern Africa, and while a live vaccine against it known as the Infection and Treatment Method has existed for three decades now, its adoption by affected communities remains low. This study sought to provide a detailed examination of the dynamics that shape Infection Treatment Method (ITM) vaccine adoption behaviours. The study examined individual, socio-cultural and ecological- level factors influencing ITM adoption using the socio-ecological model.

Factors Influencing Iron Levels Among Women of Reproductive Age and Children 6-48 Months in Livestock-Keeping Communities in Narok County, Kenya.

Proper nutrition is vital for maintaining good health for all people across their lifespan, especially children and mothers, who are especially vulnerable due to their specific nutrient needs. Despite the necessity of improved nutrition for these groups, some members do not fully meet their recommended daily micronutrient needs, a challenge exacerbated by different socioeconomic, cultural, and communal constraints resulting in malnutrition. Iron deficiency anaemia is a major concern among children and mothers, especially in pastoralist communities, due to poor nutrition and other related factors.

Molecular characterisation of human rabies in Tanzania and Kenya: a case series report and phylogenetic investigation.

Background: Rabies remains a major public health problem in low- and middle-income countries. However, human rabies deaths are rarely laboratory-confirmed or sequenced, especially in Africa. Five human rabies deaths from Tanzania and Kenya were investigated and the causative rabies viruses sequenced, with the aim of identifying implications for rabies control at individual, healthcare and societal levels.

Explanatory models and animal health-seeking behavior for East Coast fever in rural Kenya: an ethnographic study.

Introduction: Explanatory models of disease focus on individuals' and groups' understandings of diseases, revealing a disconnect between livestock keepers and animal health providers. Animal health providers rely on models grounded in their veterinary training and experience. At the same time, livestock keepers may construct models based on traditional knowledge and their lived experience with East Coast fever in their cattle herds.

Geographic Distribution of Rabies Virus and Genomic Sequence Alignment of Wild and Vaccine Strains, Kenya.

Rabies, a viral disease that causes lethal encephalitis, kills ≈59,000 persons worldwide annually, despite availability of effective countermeasures. Rabies is endemic in Kenya and is mainly transmitted to humans through bites from rabid domestic dogs. We analyzed 164 brain stems collected from rabid animals in western and eastern Kenya and evaluated the phylogenetic relationships of rabies virus (RABV) from the 2 regions.

Biphasic MERS-CoV Incidence in Nomadic Dromedaries with Putative Transmission to Humans, Kenya, 2022-2023.

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is endemic in dromedaries in Africa, but camel-to-human transmission is limited. Sustained 12-month sampling of dromedaries in a Kenya abattoir hub showed biphasic MERS-CoV incidence; peak detections occurred in October 2022 and February 2023. Dromedary-exposed abattoir workers (7/48) had serologic signs of previous MERS-CoV exposure.

The Livestock for Health Study: A Field Trial on Livestock Interventions to Prevent Acute Malnutrition Among Women and Children in Pastoralist Communities in Northern Kenya.

Background: Livestock-dependent communities in Africa's drylands disproportionately experience acute malnutrition, especially during drought seasons. We detail the design and implementation of the Livestock for Health (L4H) study aimed at determining the effect of providing livestock feed and nutritional counselling to prevent seasonal spikes of acute malnutrition.

Methods: The L4H study employed a 3-arm cluster randomized controlled trial to compare households in pastoralist settings in northern Kenya receiving livestock feeds during critical dry periods, with or without nutritional counseling, with control households.

The impact of livestock interventions on nutritional outcomes of children younger than 5 years old and women in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Nutrition-sensitive livestock interventions have the potential to improve the nutrition of communities that are dependent on livestock for their livelihoods by increasing the availability and access to animal-source foods. These interventions can also boost household income, improving purchasing power for other foods, as well as enhance determinants of health. However, there is a lack of synthesized empirical evidence of the impact and effect of livestock interventions on diets and human nutritional status in Africa.

United Against Rabies Forum: The first 2 years.

Rabies continues to kill an estimated 59,000 people annually, with up to 99% of human cases transmitted by domestic dogs. The elimination of human deaths from dog-mediated rabies is achievable by applying a One Health approach, and the framework to do this is outlined in Zero by 30: the Global Strategic Plan to end human deaths from dog-mediated rabies by 2030. To build on this global goal, and implement the approaches set out in Zero by 30, the United Against Rabies Forum was launched in 2020.

The global burden of Chikungunya fever among children: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis.

Chikungunya fever (CHIKF) is an arboviral illness that was first described in Tanzania (1952). In adults, the disease is characterised by debilitating arthralgia and arthritis that can persist for months, with severe illness including neurological complications observed in the elderly. However, the burden, distribution and clinical features of CHIKF in children are poorly described.

Effects of changes in short-term human cognition on reported healthcare utilisation.

Growing empirical evidence indicates that financial anxiety causes reductions in short-term cognitive capacity. Results from urban communities in Delhi, India show sizable differences in the number of health events recalled between the poor and non-poor respondents over experimentally controlled recall periods. One explanation for this recall difference is 'poor memory'.

A global analysis of One Health Networks and the proliferation of One Health collaborations.

There has been a renewed focus on threats to the human-animal-environment interface as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and investments in One Health collaborations are expected to increase. Efforts to monitor the development of One Health Networks (OHNs) are essential to avoid duplication or misalignment of investments. This Series paper shows the global distribution of existing OHNs and assesses their collective characteristics to identify potential deficits in the ways OHNs have formed and to help increase the effectiveness of investments.

Delays in initiating rabies post-exposure prophylaxis among dog bite victims in Wakiso and Kampala districts, Uganda.

Background   Although rabies in dog bite patients is preventable through timely initiation of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP), a number of barriers to achieving PEP exist. This study investigated the delays to initiation of PEP among dog bite patients in the emergency departments of two PEP centers in Uganda. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among dog-bite patients that presented to two selected rabies PEP centers.

Sero - epidemiology of brucellosis in people and their livestock: A linked human - animal cross-sectional study in a pastoralist community in Kenya.

Background: Brucellosis is associated with massive livestock production losses and human morbidity worldwide. Efforts to control brucellosis among pastoralist communities are limited by scarce data on the prevalence and risk factors for exposure despite the high human-animal interactions in these communities. This study simultaneously assessed the seroprevalence of brucellosis and associated factors of exposure among pastoralists and their livestock in same households.

The potential for the double risk of rabies and antimicrobial resistance in a high rabies endemic setting: detection of antibiotic resistance in bacterial isolates from infected dog bite wounds in Uganda.

Background: Post-exposure treatment for dog bites in humans aims at alleviating the risk of rabies and promoting wound healing. Wound healing may be complicated by bacteria. This study identified the different bacteria and their antibiotic susceptibilities in infected dog bite wounds (DBWs) in Uganda.