Effect of maternal nutritional education and counselling on children's stunting prevalence in urban informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya.

Objective: To determine whether the prevalence of stunting differed between an intervention group and a control group and to identify factors associated with the children's linear growth.

Design: This was a follow-up study of mother-child pairs who participated in a 2012-2015 cluster randomised controlled trial. Linear mixed effects models were performed to model the children's linear growth and identify the determinants of child linear growth.

Does financial inclusion predict a lower risk of loneliness in later life? Evidence from the AgeHeaPsyWel-HeaSeeB study 2016-2017.

Objective: For many older people, loneliness represents a common source of impaired quality of life particularly in the context of poor access to financial services. This article examines the association between financial inclusion and loneliness in older adults and explores the moderating effects of gender and physical activity in this association.

Methods: One thousand two-hundred participants completed the Short Form Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale assessing loneliness during 2016-2017 Aging, Health, Psychological Well-being and Health-seeking Behavior (AgeHeaPsyWel-HeaSeeB) Study.

Complete and on-time routine childhood immunisation: determinants and association with severe morbidity in urban informal settlements, Nairobi, Kenya.

Completion of the full series of childhood vaccines on-time is crucial to ensuring greater protection against vaccine-preventable diseases. To examine determinants of complete and on-time vaccination and evaluate the relationship between vaccination patterns and severe morbidity outcomes. Vaccination information from infants in Nairobi Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System was used to evaluate full and on-time vaccination coverage of routine immunisation.

Determinants of normal haemoglobin concentration among children in Ghana: a positive deviance analysis of nationally representative cross-sectional survey data.

Anaemia among children under 5, is a public health problem of serious concern. In Ghana, an estimated 8 out of every 10 children are anaemic. This study employed a novel approach to investigate the determinants of normal haemoglobin (Hb) concentration among children aged 6 to 59 months, using data from the Ghana Demographic and Health Surveys.

Impact of food insecurity with hunger on mental distress among community-dwelling older adults.

Background: Hunger frequently and persistently occur in older populations in low-income countries especially in sub-Sahara Africa. The aim of this study was to examine the associations between food insecurity with hunger and psychological distress among older people in Ghana.

Methods: A total of 1200 individuals aged ≥50 years were recruited during 2016/2017 Ageing, Health, Psychological Well-being and Health-seeking Behavior Study.

Uncontrolled hypertension among patients with comorbidities in sub-Saharan Africa: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Uncontrolled hypertension is the most important risk factor and leading cause of cardiovascular diseases. It is predicted that the number of people with hypertension will increase, and a large proportion of this increase will occur in developing countries. The highest prevalence of uncontrolled hypertension is reported in sub-Saharan Africa, and treatment for hypertension is unacceptably low.

Dietary diversity cutoff values predicting anemia varied between mid and term of pregnancy: a prospective cohort study.

Background: Correcting anemia during pregnancy often requires integrating food and non-food-based approaches. Nonetheless, little is known about specific dietary diversity (DD) cutoff values predicting risk of anemia during the different trimesters of pregnancy.

Objective: We aimed to determine the lowest possible DD cutoff values associated with risk of maternal anemia at mid and term of pregnancy in a rural resource limited setting of Ethiopia.

Magnitude and predictors of normal-weight central obesity- the AWI-Gen study findings.

: Normal-weight central obesity is associated with higher mortality than general obesity as defined by body mass index, particularly in the absence of central fat distribution.: The aim of this study was to examine the magnitude and predictors of normal-weight central obesity in an urban informal settlement setting in Kenya.: We used data from the AWI-Gen study, a cross-sectional survey targeting randomly selected consenting adults between the ages of 40-60 in two urban informal settlements of Nairobi between 2014 and 2016.

Aging in the Context of HIV/AIDS: Spaces for Renegotiation and Recomposition of Mutual Solidarity in Burkina Faso.

Purpose: The HIV-infected older people in sub-Saharan Africa are inevitably vulnerable to chronic health-related conditions, yet the needed social support for these people is mostly inadequate. Drawing on the anthropology of disease and health paradigms, this study explores the recomposition of multidimensional and multidirectional nature of mutual familial support for older people living with or affected by HIV/AIDS in Burkina Faso.

Methods: We conducted multiple in-depth interviews among 147 individuals recruited from nonprofit organizations in Ouagadougou, Bobo-Dioulasso, Ouahigouya, and Yako through 2 projects funded by the National Agency for AIDS Research.

Integrated and simplified approaches to community management of acute malnutrition in rural Kenya: a cluster randomized trial protocol.

Background: In many low income countries, the majority of acutely malnourished children are either brought to the health facility late or never at all due to reasons related to distance and associated costs. Integrated community case management (iCCM) is an integrated approach addressing disease and malnutrition through use of community health volunteers (CHVs) in children under-5 years. Evidence on the potential impact and practical experiences on integrating community-based management of acute malnutrition as part of an iCCM package is not well documented.

"If there are no female nurses to attend to me, I will just go and deliver at home": a qualitative study in Garissa, Kenya.

Background: The North Eastern region in Kenya experiences challenges in the utilization of maternal and newborn health services. In this region, culture and religion play a major role in influencing healthcare seeking behaviour of the community. This study was conducted to (i) understand key inherent barriers to health facility delivery in the Somali community of North Eastern Kenya and (ii) inform interventions on specific needs of this community.

Neighborhood, social isolation and mental health outcome among older people in Ghana.

Objective: Loneliness and living alone have been strongly related to mental health but limited empirical evidence of these relationships exists among older people in Ghana. We examine the pathways of independent and interactive impacts of loneliness and living alone on psychological distress (PD) risk among older people in Ghana and to investigate whether the associations are moderated by neighborhood characteristics.

Methods: Data were analyzed for 1200 community-dwelling adults aged ≥50 years from a 2016/2017 Aging, Health, Psychological Wellbeing and Health-seeking Behavior Study.

Effect of health education on birth preparedness and complication readiness on the use of maternal health services: A propensity score-matched analysis.

Objective: At 789 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births, South Sudan has one of the worst maternal mortality indicators in the world. Utilization of maternal health services namely antenatal care (ANC), skilled birth attendance (SBA), and early postnatal care (EPNC) is critical in reducing these deaths. We evaluated whether health education on birth preparedness and complication readiness (BPCR) has an impact on the utilization of skilled birth attendance and early postnatal care in Mundri East County, South Sudan.

Combined chemotherapy manifest less severe immunopathology effects in helminth-protozoa comorbidity.

Background: Co-infection with Leishmania major and Schistosoma mansoni may have significant consequences for disease progression, severity and subsequent transmission dynamics. Pentavalent antimonials and Praziquantel (PZQ) are used as first line of treatment for Leishmania and Schistosoma infections respectively. However, there is limited insight on how combined therapy with the standard drugs impacts the host in comorbidity.

Spatial and socio-economic correlates of effective contraception among women seeking post-abortion care in healthcare facilities in Kenya.

Introduction: Information, counseling, availability of contraceptives, and their adoption by post-abortion care (PAC) patients are central to the quality of PAC in healthcare facilities. Effective contraceptive adoption by these patients reduces the risks of unintended pregnancy and repeat abortion.

Methods: This study uses data from the Incidence and Magnitude of Unsafe Abortion Study of 2012 to assess the level and determinants of highly effective contraception among patients treated with complications from an unsafe abortion in healthcare facilities in Kenya.

Explaining the gender gap in health services use among Ghanaian community-dwelling older cohorts.

Although gender differences in use of health services have been documented, little is known about whether such disparities vary by marital and socioeconomic status in later life, especially in low- and middle-income countries. We examined the relation of gender to use of health care among community-dwelling older Ghanaians ( =  1200) and whether marital status and income moderated this relationship using data from the Aging, Health, Psychological Wellbeing and Health-seeking Behavior Study conducted in 2016/2017. Multivariate logistic regression modeling showed no significant gender disparities in use of health care, adjusting for covariates.

Social support, physical activity and psychological distress among community-dwelling older Ghanaians.

Objective: Physical activity (PA) has often been linked with improved mental health outcomes among older people but the subject has received limited attention in sub-Saharan African context. This paper examines the moderating effect of social support (SS) on the association between PA and psychological distress (PD) among community-dwelling older persons in Ghana.

Methods: Individuals 50 years or older (N = 1200) who participated in a 2016/2017 Aging, Health, Psychological Wellbeing and Health-seeking Behavior Study (AHPWHB) were included.

Multidimensional Social Support and Health Services Utilization Among Noninstitutionalized Older Persons in Ghana.

This study examines multidimensional social supports as predictors of health services utilization among community-dwelling older Ghanaians. Using data from a 2016/2017 Aging, Health, Psychological Wellbeing and Health-Seeking Behavior Study ( = 1,200), Poisson regression models estimated the associations of aspects of informal social support and health facility utilization among older people. Findings suggest that regular contacts with family/close friends (odds ratio [OR] = 1.

Patterns of non-communicable disease and injury risk factors in Kenyan adult population: a cluster analysis.

Background: Non-communicable diseases and unintentional injuries are emerging public health problems in sub-Saharan Africa. These threats have multiple risk factors with complex interactions. Though some studies have explored the magnitude and distribution of those risk factors in many populations in Kenya, an exploration of segmentation of population at a national level by risk profile, which is crucial for a differentiated approach, is currently lacking.

Prevalence and factors associated with pre-diabetes and diabetes mellitus in Kenya: results from a national survey.

Background: Diabetes Mellitus is one of the four major non-communicable diseases causing about 4 million deaths in 2017. By 2040, low income countries are projected to experience 92% increase in mortality due to diabetes. Undiagnosed diabetes poses a public health concern with costly public health implications especially in Africa.

Prevalence, awareness, treatment and control of hypertension and their determinants: results from a national survey in Kenya.

Background: Hypertension is the most important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and the leading cause of death worldwide. Despite growing evidence that the prevalence of hypertension is rising in sub-Saharan Africa, national data on hypertension that can guide programming are missing for many countries. In this study, we estimated the prevalence of hypertension, awareness, treatment, and control.

Policy, law and post-abortion care services in Kenya.

Background: Unsafe abortion is still a leading cause of maternal death in most Sub-Saharan African countries. Post-abortion care (PAC) aims to minimize morbidity and mortality following unsafe abortion, addressing incomplete abortion by treating complications, and reducing possible future unwanted pregnancies by providing contraceptive advice. In this article, we draw on data from PAC service providers and patients in Kenya to illustrate how the quality of PAC in healthcare facilities is impacted by law and government policy.