Treatment Outcomes of Tuberculosis Among Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners in Zimbabwe: A Follow-Up Observational Study Using Secondary Data.

In Zimbabwe, artisanal and small-scale miners (ASMs) are a key vulnerable group with high risk for tuberculosis (TB), HIV, and silicosis. The main purpose of this study was to investigate treatment outcomes of TB among ASMs. We conducted a follow-up observational study using secondary data.

Disability, comorbidities and risk determinants at end of TB treatment in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Background: We examined the feasibility of assessing and referring adults successfully completing TB treatment for comorbidities, risk determinants and disability in health facilities in Kenya, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study within national TB programmes.

Results: Health workers assessed 1,063 patients (78% of eligible) in a median of 22 min [IQR 16-35] and found it useful and feasible to accomplish in addition to other responsibilities.

Higher loss of livelihood and impoverishment in households affected by tuberculosis compared to non-tuberculosis affected households in Zimbabwe: A cross-sectional study.

Tuberculosis (TB) disproportionally affects poor people, leading to income and non-income losses. Measures of socioeconomic impact of TB, e.g.

Correction: Sexual violence against migrants and asylum seekers. The experience of the MSF clinic on Lesvos Island, Greece.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Beyond tuberculosis: a person-centred and rights-based approach to screening for household contacts.

Households affected by tuberculosis have syndemic vulnerability, reflecting a concentration of and interactions between multiple biomedical, psychosocial, and structural determinants of health. Traditional approaches to tuberculosis screening do not address pre-existing risks, such as undernutrition and other chronic conditions, or the indirect effects of tuberculosis, such as loss of livelihood. These pre-existing risks and consequences not only perpetuate the global tuberculosis epidemic but, for those affected, lead to poor health and deepen poverty.

Higher loss of livelihood and impoverishment in households affected by tuberculosis compared to non-tuberculosis affected households in Zimbabwe: a cross-sectional study.

Introduction: Tuberculosis (TB) disproportionally affects poor people, leading to income and non-income losses. Measures of socioeconomic impact of TB, e.g.

Quality of Data Recording and Antimicrobial Use in a Municipal Veterinary Clinic in Ghana.

The recording of antimicrobial use data is critical for the development of interventions for the containment of antimicrobial resistance. This cross-sectional study assessed whether dissemination activities and recommendations made after an operational research (OR) study in 2021 resulted in better data recording and improved the use of antimicrobials in a rural veterinary clinic. Routinely collected data from treatment record books were compared between 2013 and 2019 (pre-OR) and from July 2021 to April 2023 (post-OR).

Assessing Changes in Bacterial Load and Antibiotic Resistance in the Legon Sewage Treatment Plant between 2018 and 2023 in Accra, Ghana.

Wastewater treatment plants are efficient in reducing bacterial loads but are also considered potential drivers of environmental antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In this study, we determined the effect of increased influent wastewater volume (from 40% to 66%) in the Legon sewage treatment plant (STP) on the removal of from sewage, along with changes in AMR profiles. This before and after study compared loads and AMR patterns in influent and effluent samples from a published baseline study (January-June 2018) with a follow-up study (March-May 2023).

Time to Treatment and Risk Factors for Unsuccessful Treatment Outcomes among People Who Started Second-Line Treatment for Rifampicin-Resistant or Multi-Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis in the Kyrgyz Republic, 2021.

The Kyrgyz Republic is a high-burden country for rifampicin resistant/multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (RR/MDR-TB). TB control efforts rely on early diagnosis and initiation of people on effective regimens. We studied the interval from diagnosis of RR-TB to starting treatment and risk factors for unsuccessful outcomes among people who started RR/MDR-TB treatment in 2021.

Coping with drug resistant tuberculosis alongside COVID-19 and other stressors in Zimbabwe: A qualitative study.

Households in low-resource settings are more vulnerable to events which adversely affect their livelihoods, including shocks e.g. death of family members, droughts and more recently COVID-19.

Use of a Sustainable Livelihood Framework-Based Measure to Estimate Socioeconomic Impact of Tuberculosis on Households.

Tuberculosis (TB) disproportionally affects impoverished members of society. The adverse socioeconomic impact of TB on households is mostly measured using money-centric approaches, which have been criticized as one-dimensional and risk either overestimating or underestimating the true socioeconomic impacts of TB. We propose the use of the sustainable livelihood framework, which includes 5 household capital assets (human, financial, physical, natural, and social) and conceptualizes that households employ accumulative strategies in times of plenty and coping (survival) strategies in response to shocks such as TB.

Bloodstream infections and antibiotic resistance at a regional hospital, Colombia, 2019-2021.

Objectives: To assess antibiotic susceptibility of World Health Organization (WHO) priority bacteria ( spp., , and ) in blood cultures at the Orinoquía regional hospital in Colombia.

Methods: This was cross-sectional study using routine laboratory data for the period 2019-2021.

Coverage and effectiveness of conditional cash transfer for people with drug resistant tuberculosis in Zimbabwe: A mixed methods study.

The End TB strategy recommends social protection to mitigate socio-economic impacts of tuberculosis. Zimbabwe started implementing a conditional cash transfer (CCT) programme for people on drug resistant tuberculosis (DR-TB) treatment in 2013. We aimed to determine the proportion of people receiving CCT and effectiveness of CCT in improving treatment outcomes, explore their experiences with registering for CCT and understand the impact of CCT from the perspective of beneficiaries.

Coping with drug resistant tuberculosis alongside COVID-19 and other stressors in Zimbabwe: a qualitative study.

Background: Households in low-resource settings are more vulnerable to events which adversely affect their livelihoods, including shocks such as the death of a family member, inflation, droughts and more recently COVID-19. Drug Resistant Tuberculosis (DR-TB) is also another shock that inflicts physical, psychological and socioeconomic burden on individuals and households. We describe experiences and coping strategies among people affected by DR-TB and their households in Zimbabwe during the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 to 2021.

The Triple Burden of Tuberculosis, Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Silicosis among Artisanal and Small-Scale Miners in Zimbabwe.

Artisanal and small-scale mining is characterized by an excessive exposure to silica-containing dust, overcrowding, poor living conditions and limited access to primary health services. This poses a risk to tuberculosis, HIV infection and silicosis. The main purpose of the study is to evaluate the burden of tuberculosis, HIV and silicosis among artisanal and small-scale miners.

Pattern of Antimicrobial Susceptibility and Antimicrobial Treatment of Neonates Admitted with Suspected Sepsis in a Teaching Hospital in Ghana, 2021.

Neonatal sepsis is a life-threatening emergency, and empirical antimicrobial prescription is common. In this cross-sectional study of neonates admitted with suspected sepsis in a teaching hospital in Ghana from January-December 2021, we described antimicrobial prescription patterns, compliance with national standard treatment guidelines (STG), blood culture testing, antimicrobial resistance patterns and treatment outcomes. Of the 549 neonates admitted with suspected sepsis, 283 (52%) were males.

Sepsis among Neonates in a Ghanaian Tertiary Military Hospital: Culture Results and Turnaround Times.

In this study, we described the bacterial profile, antibiotic resistance pattern, and laboratory result turnaround time (TAT) in neonates with suspected sepsis from a tertiary-level, military hospital in Accra, Ghana (2017-2020). This was a cross-sectional study using secondary data from electronic medical records. Of 471 neonates clinically diagnosed with suspected sepsis in whom blood samples were collected, the median TAT from culture request to report was three days for neonates who were culture-positive and five days for neonates who were culture-negative.

Performance of an Emergency Road Ambulance Service in Bhutan: Response Time, Utilization, and Outcomes.

An efficient ambulance service is a vital component of emergency medical services. We determined the emergency ambulance response and transport times and ambulance exit outcomes in Bhutan. A cross-sectional study involving real-time monitoring of emergency ambulance deployments managed by a central toll-free (112) hotline (20 October 2021 to 20 January 2022) was carried out.

Case identification, retention and blood pressure control in Kenya.

Background: Prevalence of hypertension in Africa is rising but it remains underdiagnosed and poorly controlled. In Kenya, only 22% of individuals known to have hypertension were on treatment, and only 51.7% were controlled.

An Update on the Surveillance of Livestock Diseases and Antimicrobial Use in Sierra Leone in 2021-An Operational Research Study.

In Sierra Leone, in 2020, a study by the Livestock and Veterinary Services Division (Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry) on the surveillance system of animal diseases and antimicrobial use found poor reporting. Of the expected weekly districts reports, <1% were received and only three of the 15 districts had submitted reports occasionally between 2016 and 2019. Following this, staff-capacity-building on reporting was undertaken.

Retention and performance of peer educators and sustainability of HIV prevention services for adolescents in the Zimbabwe Smart-LyncAges project: an ecological study.

Introduction: in 2016, the partner-funded Smart-LyncAges participatory learning project explored the feasibility of a youth-friendly package including incentivized peer educators (PEs) to enhance adolescent sexual and reproductive health (ASRH) and voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) linkages. After 12 months of implementation, funding reduction resulted in reduced direct project monitoring and discontinuation of monetary incentives for PEs. We assessed if reduced funding after one year of implementation affected the performance and retention of PEs and uptake of VMMC and HIV testing in ASRH services by adolescents in Bulawayo City (urban) and Mount (Mt) Darwin District (rural) in Zimbabwe.

Pesticide Importation in Sierra Leone, 2010-2021: Implications for Food Production and Antimicrobial Resistance.

There are no previous studies reporting the type and quantity of pesticides for farming from Sierra Leone and the impact of Ebola or COVID-19 on importation. This study reviewed imported farming pesticides by the Sierra Leone, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF), between 2010-2021. It was a descriptive study using routinely collected importation data.