A combined school survey and reactive case detection reveals minimal local transmission of malaria in the Highlands Region of Papua New Guinea.

Background: The Highlands of Papua New Guinea are non-endemic for malaria compared to the rest of the country. This study aimed to explore the local transmission of malaria in the Highlands through a cross-sectional school survey coupled with reactive case detection.

Methods: Between July and November 2019, 5575 schoolchildren and 1048 household members were screened for malaria using Rapid Diagnostic Tests, subsequently validated by light microscopy.

Human and entomological determinants of malaria transmission in the Lihir Islands of Papua New Guinea: A cross-sectional study.

Background: The Lihir Islands of Papua New Guinea, located in an area with high burden of malaria and hosting a large mining operation, offer a unique opportunity to study transmission. There, we investigated human and vector factors influencing malaria transmission.

Methods: In 2019, a cross-sectional study was conducted on 2,914 individuals assessing malaria prevalence through rapid diagnostic tests (RDT), microscopy, and quantitative PCR (qPCR).

Tuberculosis treatment and undernutrition on Daru Island, Papua New Guinea: A qualitative exploration of a local foodscape.

A substantial proportion of people with tuberculosis (TB)-one of the world's deadliest infectious diseases-live in resource-poor, food insecure settings. It is widely recognised that undernutrition significantly heightens vulnerability to TB, as well as contributes to poor treatment adherence and outcomes. However, more attention is needed to understand what shapes food insecurity and undernutrition in a particular setting.

Young men's everyday life experiences with contraception and unintended pregnancy in Papua New Guinea.

Unintended adolescent pregnancy is a public health priority in Papua New Guinea (PNG), where national policies specify need for easier access to reliable modern contraceptives. To reduce young people's experiences of unintended pregnancy in PNG, improved understandings of use of modern and other forms of contraception within young people's relationships is required to support the development of new sexual and reproductive health (SRH) programs and policies. The aim of this paper is to understand young men's use of modern and other contraceptives.

Sputum culture contamination and associated characteristics in a diagnostic clinical trial, Papua New Guinea.

Setting: Papua New Guinea is a high-burden multidrug-resistant TB (MDR/RR-TB) country that reports low rates of bacteriological confirmation. Sputum drug susceptibility testing for second-line drugs is important. Access to culture is limited.

What does it cost to deliver antenatal care in Papua New Guinea? Results from a health system costing and budget impact analysis using cross-sectional data.

Objective: In Papua New Guinea (PNG), antenatal clinic attendance averaged 50% for one or more visits, and 30% for four visits in the last decade. In 2016, the WHO revised its focused antenatal care (ANC) model recommending eight rather than four visits. If implemented, this new model would require additional resources.

The effects of COVID-19 on maternal, newborn and child health services in Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea's health system faces ongoing challenges in the provision of maternal and child health and has some of the poorest health indicators in the world. In this paper, we describe the impact of COVID-19 on maternal and child health, as examples of primary health care services. We conducted 131 semi-structured interviews with different population groups in seven provinces (Jul-Nov 2021).

HIV and sexual health needs of young key populations in Papua New Guinea: results of biobehavioural surveys (2016-2017).

Papua New Guinea lacks data characterising the sexual health needs of younger key populations (KP): female sex workers (FSW) and commercially and sexually exploited girls (CSE), men who have sex with men (MSM), and transgender women (TGW). Biobehavioural surveys among KP were conducted in three cities. We conducted unweighted and weighted analysis for sample and population proportions, respectively.

The role and value of counsellors in the treatment journeys of people with tuberculosis and their families: Qualitative insights from the South Fly District of Papua New Guinea.

Combined education and counselling can contribute to person-centred care for tuberculosis (TB), improving uptake, adherence, and outcomes of treatment for TB disease and TB infection. Though strongly recommended by the World Health Organization for all people diagnosed with TB, education and counselling is not widely implemented in TB programs around the world. In 2016, a pilot TB education and counselling program, delivered by trained professionals and peers, was initiated to support people on TB treatment in the South Fly District of Papua New Guinea.

Exploring the association between multidimensional poverty and antenatal care utilization in two provinces of Papua New Guinea: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Although global poverty rates have declined in the last decade, the fall in the Asia-Pacific region has been slow relative to the rest of the world. Poverty continues to be a major cause of poor maternal and newborn health, and a barrier to accessing timely antenatal care. Papua New Guinea has one of the highest poverty rates and some of the worst maternal and neonatal outcomes in the Asia-Pacific region.

Genetic Signatures of Positive Selection in Human Populations Adapted to High Altitude in Papua New Guinea.

Papua New Guinea (PNG) hosts distinct environments mainly represented by the ecoregions of the Highlands and Lowlands that display increased altitude and a predominance of pathogens, respectively. Since its initial peopling approximately 50,000 years ago, inhabitants of these ecoregions might have differentially adapted to the environmental pressures exerted by each of them. However, the genetic basis of adaptation in populations from these areas remains understudied.

The prioritisation of curable sexually transmitted infections among pregnant women in Zambia and Papua New Guinea: Qualitative insights.

Curable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are neglected in public health policy, services and society at large. Effective interventions are available for some STI but seem not to be prioritised at global, regional or local levels. Zambia and Papua New Guinea (PNG) have a high burden of STIs among pregnant women but little is known about the prioritisation of STI treatment and care among this group.

Breastfeeding and Neonatal Age Influence Neutrophil-Driven Ontogeny of Blood Cell Populations in the First Week of Human Life.

The first few days of life are characterized by rapid external and internal changes that require substantial immune system adaptations. Despite growing evidence of the impact of this period on lifelong immune health, this period remains largely uncharted. To identify factors that may impact the trajectory of immune development, we conducted stringently standardized, high-throughput phenotyping of peripheral white blood cell (WBC) populations from 796 newborns across two distinct cohorts (The Gambia, West Africa; Papua New Guinea, Melanesia) in the framework of a Human Immunology Project Consortium (HIPC) study.

Assessing the Effectiveness of Multilevel Intervention Sequences on "Tension" Among Men Living with HIV: A Randomized-Control Trial.

Background: Tension (often times called "Tenshun" in Hindi) is a cultural expression used to convey feelings of distress and common mental disorders in India and among South Asia communities. This study compared the effectiveness of different intervention sequences in reducing tension among alcohol-consuming men living with HIV in India.

Method: This secondary data analysis paper utilized data from a randomized trial study titled "Alcohol and Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) Adherence: Assessment, Intervention, and Modeling in India.

Acceptability of self-collected vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing for sexually transmitted and genital infections among pregnant women in Papua New Guinea.

The self-collection of vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing and treatment of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) is reported from several low-and middle-income countries. However, the reporting on women's experiences of self-collection and same-day testing and treatment of STIs is less well described. In this paper, we present the acceptability of self-collected vaginal swabs and point-of-care testing and treatment among pregnant women enrolled in a clinical trial (Women and Newborn Trial of Antenatal Intervention and Management - WANTAIM) in Papua New Guinea.

DNA methylation at individual CpG-sites of EPB41L3, HTERT and FAM19A4 are useful for detection of cervical high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) or worse: Analysis of individual CpG-sites outperforms averaging.

Global methylation analysis of gene promoters is promising for detection of high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions or worse (HSIL+) in high-risk human papillomavirus (hrHPV)-positive women. However, diagnostic performance of methylation data at individual CpG-sites is limited. We explored methylation for predicting HSIL+ in self- and clinician-collected samples from Papua New Guinea.

Performance of and methylation as triage markers for early detection of cervical cancer in self-collected and clinician-collected samples: an exploratory observational study in Papua New Guinea.

Objective: WHO recommends human papillomavirus (HPV) testing for cervical screening, with triage of high-risk HPV (hrHPV) positive women. However, there are limitations to effective triage for low-resource, high-burden settings, such as Papua New Guinea. In this exploratory study, we assessed the performance of host methylation as triage tools for predicting high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesions (HSIL) in self-collected and clinician-collected samples.