Impact of antimicrobials on penile HIV susceptibility and immunology in uncircumcised men: A randomized phase 1/2 clinical trial.

Within the penile microbiome, bacteria associated with seroconversion, immunology, and cells (BASIC species) enhance HIV susceptibility in heterosexual uncircumcised men by inducing foreskin inflammation and HIV target cell recruitment. This phase 1/2 clinical trial randomizes HIV-uninfected Ugandan men (n = 125) to either oral tinidazole, topical metronidazole, topical clindamycin, or topical hydrogen peroxide to define impact on ex vivo foreskin HIV susceptibility, penile immunology, and BASIC species density. Antimicrobials are well tolerated, and 116 (93%) participants complete the protocol.

Congenital heart disease cardiac catheterization at Uganda Heart Institute, a 12-year retrospective study of immediate outcomes.

Background: Cardiac catheterization is an invasive diagnostic and treatment tool for congenital heart disease (CHD) with potential complications.

Objective: To describe the immediate outcomes of patients who underwent cardiac catheterization for CHD at the Uganda Heart Institute (UHI).

Methods: The study was a retrospective chart review of 857 patients who underwent cardiac catheterization for CHD at UHI from 1st February 2012 to 30th June 2023.

Long-acting injectable antiretroviral treatment: experiences of people with HIV and their healthcare providers in Uganda.

Introduction: Long-acting injectable antiretroviral treatment (LAI-ART) has emerged as a novel alternative to the burden of daily oral pills. The bi-monthly intramuscular injectable containing cabotegravir and rilpivirine holds the promise of improving adherence to ART. The perspectives of potential users of LAI-ART, the majority of whom reside in Eastern and Southern Africa, are still largely unexplored.

Healthcare workers' informal uses of mobile phones and other mobile devices to support their work: a qualitative evidence synthesis.

Background: Healthcare workers sometimes develop their own informal solutions to deliver services. One such solution is to use their personal mobile phones or other mobile devices in ways that are unregulated by their workplace. This can help them carry out their work when their workplace lacks functional formal communication and information systems, but it can also lead to new challenges.

Differences in Mental Illness Stigma by Disorder and Gender: Population-Based Vignette Randomized Experiment in Rural Uganda.

Understanding and eliminating mental illness stigma is crucial for improving population mental health. In many settings, this stigma is gendered, from the perspectives of both the stigmatized and the stigmatizers. We aimed to find the differences in the level of stigma across different mental disorders while considering the gender of the study participants as well as the gender of the people depicted in the vignettes.

Lung function and health-related quality of life among adult patients following pulmonary TB treatment.

Pulmonary TB (PTB) increases the risk of chronic lung complications, which are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. We determined the prevalence and predictors of post-TB lung disease and persistent symptoms in a resource-limited setting.Adults who completed PTB treatment underwent spirometry and completed the St.

An adapted scale to measure perceived TB and HIV stigma during household contact investigation.

Measuring stigma for TB and HIV in households undergoing contact investigation for TB is critical for understanding its impacts on health behaviours and identifying opportunities for intervention. However, standardised measurements for TB-HIV stigma in household contact investigations are limited.We adapted and validated a household stigma scale in Uganda.

Diagnostic performance of an albuminuria point-of-care test in screening for chronic kidney disease among young people living with HIV in Uganda: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives: The main aim was to determine the diagnostic performance of an albuminuria point-of-care test (POC) for diagnosis of chronic kidney disease among young people living with HIV (YPLHIV) in Uganda.

Design: We conducted a cross-sectional study comparing the diagnostic performance of MicroalbuPHAN (Erba Lachema, Czech Republic), an albuminuria POC test against the laboratory-measured albumin and creatinine as the reference standard.

Setting: The study was set in seven HIV clinics in Kampala, Uganda that provide antiretroviral therapy to adults and children living with HIV.

Adverse events reported during weekly isoniazid-rifapentine (3HP) tuberculosis preventive treatment among people living with HIV in Uganda.

Background: Short-course tuberculosis (TB) prevention regimens, including 12 weeks of isoniazid and rifapentine (3HP), are increasingly used in high TB-burden countries. Despite established safety and tolerability in efficacy trials, 3HP-related adverse events (AE) could differ in routine settings. Real-world data on AE type, frequency, and timing is crucial for health systems considering 3HP programmatic scale-up.

Challenges towards an AIDS-free generation in Africa and Asia.

Purpose Of Review: To review the latest data on prevention of HIV vertical transmission in Asia and Africa and discuss strategic directions to achieve an AIDS free generation by 2030.

Recent Findings: Progress in vertical transmission elimination efforts in Africa and Asia have stalled in the last decade, with 130 000 new infections in 2022. Main causes of vertical transmissions vary; in Asia-Pacific due to its low-burden, thus low testing coverage, but high overall vertical transmission rates, in South and East Africa due to new HIV infections during pregnancy and breast/chestfeeding, whereas in Western and Central Africa due to low antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage.

Incidence of Acute Kidney Injury and Associated Mortality among Individuals with Drug-Susceptible Tuberculosis in Uganda.

Key Points: AKI is thought to be a rare complication in patients with tuberculosis (TB) infection and is mostly attributed to TB drugs. Our findings show AKI occurs more often than previously thought and approximately 33% of patients with drug-susceptible TB may have kidney dysfunction. According to our study findings, monitoring kidney function should be routine among patients diagnosed with TB even before treatment initiation.

Clinical Significance of Respiratory Involvement in Cryptosporidiosis: Cross-Sectional Study of Children with Diarrhea and Respiratory Symptoms in Uganda.

Respiratory cryptosporidiosis is considered an occasional, late-stage complication of HIV/AIDS. This study aimed to assess the clinical importance of respiratory cryptosporidiosis in children with diarrhea and respiratory symptoms at Mulago Hospital, Kampala, Uganda. Children aged 9 to 36 months presenting with diarrhea and cough or unexplained tachypnea (N = 1,918) were screened for fecal Cryptosporidium using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).

A retrospective analysis of drug resistance markers detects an early (2016/17) high prevalence of the k13 C469Y mutation in asymptomatic infections in Northern Uganda.

The emergence of drug-resistant parasites in sub-Saharan Africa will substantially challenge malaria control. Here, we evaluated the frequency of common drug resistance markers among adolescents from Northern Uganda with asymptomatic infections. We used an established amplicon deep sequencing strategy to screen dried blood spot samples collected from 2016 to 2017 during a reported malaria epidemic within the districts of Kitgum and Pader in Northern Uganda.

Uptake of human papilloma virus vaccination among adolescent girls living with HIV in Uganda: A mixed methods study.

Background: Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccination can prevent more than 90% of cancers caused by HPV. Although this vaccination is recommended and provided at no cost to all adolescent girls aged 9 to19 years in Uganda, its uptake remains low. We sought to determine the uptake of, and factors associated with HPV vaccination among adolescent girls living with HIV in Uganda.

Perceptions and attitudes of Nursing students towards end-of-life care: a Phenomenological Study at a tertiary hospital in Uganda.

Introduction: Clinical practice is an important part of nursing education as it helps nursing students transition into competent health professionals who can provide quality services. However, research studies convey it as a significant stressor for nursing students when they are obliged to end of life during clinical practice. The perceptions of nursing students on caring for end-of-life care have not been exhaustively studied in the Ugandan context.

Best practices for user consultation in flow cytometry shared resource laboratories.

This "Best Practices in User Consultation" article is the result of a 2022 International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry (ISAC) membership survey that collected valuable insights from the shared research laboratory (SRL) community and of a group discussion at the CYTO 2022 workshop of the same name. One key takeaway is the importance of initiating a consultation at the outset of a flow cytometry project, particularly for trainees. This approach enables the improvement and standardization of every step, from planning experiments to interpreting data.

COVID-19 screening as an opportunity to find TB cases; experiences from an urban National Referral Hospital in Kampala, Uganda.

Background: Following the World Health Organization's declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic, several countries implemented population-wide lockdowns. However, these responses to COVID-19 caused severe healthcare system disruptions to service delivery. The TB case notification rate in Uganda decreased by 22% between January and April 2020, which coincided with a lockdown and an increase in COVID-19 cases.

Cross-disciplinary mathematical modelling to benefit healthcare - could clinical pharmacology play an enabling role?

Clinical pharmacology is often the nexus in any cross-disciplinary team that is seeking solutions for human healthcare issues. The use and application of real-world data and artificial intelligence to better understand our ecosystem has influenced our view at the world and how we do things. This has resulted in remarkable advancements in the healthcare space and development of personalized medicines with great attributes from the application of models and simulations, contributing to a more efficient healthcare development process.

May Measurement Month 2021: an analysis of blood pressure screening results from Uganda.

High blood pressure (BP) is the leading cause of cardiovascular disease in Uganda accounting for more than 50% of cardiovascular related deaths each year. In Uganda, more than 25% of adults have high BP with lack of awareness being the main barrier to achieving satisfactory control rates. May measurement month (MMM) is a global initiative aimed at raising awareness of high BP and to act as a temporary solution to the lack of BP screening programmes.

Academic achievement in Ugandan children with sickle cell anaemia: A cross-sectional study.

Objective: Academic achievement in school-age children is crucial for advancing learning goals. Children with sickle cell anaemia (SCA) in Sub-Saharan Africa may be at risk of disease-associated school difficulties. Limited data exist on the academic achievement of children with SCA in the region.