Impacts of multivalued interventions on maize farmers' welfare: Evidence from SIPMA development project in Ghana.

Recent research has highlighted the significance of agricultural development programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa for enhancing production, food security, and farmer welfare. However, these studies frequently investigate the effects of a single intervention rather than a combination of interventions. This study examines the impact of three interventions (credit access, structured market, and entrepreneurial training) on maize yield, food security, food expenditure and non-food expenditure in Ghana.

Assessment of coastal flood risk scenarios on infrastructure in the Keta municipality in Ghana using a GIS approach.

Coastal flooding and erosion, caused by climate change-induced sea level rise, pose significant threats to low-lying coastal areas worldwide. The African continent, including Ghana, has experienced severe impacts from these hazards, affecting the socio-economic development of coastal communities. This research focuses on the Keta municipality in Ghana.

Asymptomatic malaria parasitaemia and virological non-suppression among children living with HIV in a low transmission area in Accra, Ghana: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and malaria are two major diseases in sub-Saharan Africa. Co-infection can significantly impact the clinical outcomes of both conditions. We assessed the proportion of HIV-infected children at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) and Princess Marie Louise Hospital (PML) with malaria parasites.

Trade-offs and Synergies between Economic and Environmental Cocoa Farm Management Decisions.

Optimizing sustainability among smallholder farms poses challenges due to inherent trade-offs. In the study of organic and conventional cocoa smallholder farming in Ghana, 398 farms are assessed using the Food and Agriculture Organsation of the United Nations (FAO) Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture systems (SAFA) Guidelines and Sustainability Monitoring and Assessment Routine (SMART)-Farm Tool. Organic farming exhibited synergies in environmental aspects (e.

Prevalence, perceptions and associated factors of health insurance enrollment among older persons in selected cash grant communities in Ghana: a cross-sectional mixed method.

Background: Universal Health Coverage has been openly recognized in the United Nations health-related Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, though missing under the Millennium Development Goals. Ghana implemented the National Health Insurance Scheme programme in 2004 to improve financial access to healthcare for its citizens. This programme targeting low-income individuals and households includes an Exempt policy for older persons and indigents.

Exploring predictors and prevalence of postpartum depression among mothers: Multinational study.

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD) affects around 10% of women, or 1 in 7 women, after giving birth. Undiagnosed PPD was observed among 50% of mothers. PPD has an unfavorable relationship with women's functioning, marital and personal relationships, the quality of the mother-infant connection, and the social, behavioral, and cognitive development of children.

Intestinal parasitic infections and predisposing factors among prison inmates in Southern Ghana: A cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: The environment within prisons, such as overcrowding, lack of access to portable water, poor sanitation, and hygiene predisposes inmates to infections, including intestinal parasitic infections (IPIs). This study therefore determined the prevalence and associated factors of IPIs among prison inmates in Southern Ghana.

Methods: A cross-sectional study using the stratified sampling technique was employed.

Point-of-care circulating cathodic antigen positivity and associated factors in school children one year after mass praziquantel administration in an endemic district in Ghana.

Background: Mass drug administration of praziquantel is expected to reduce carriage in treated children in endemic communities. However, the effectiveness of this annual exercise has not been assessed in Ghana. Therefore, this study aimed to detect viable infection using point-of-care circulating cathodic antigen (POC-CCA) positivity as proxy and associated factors in children previously treated with praziquantel in an endemic municipality in Ghana.

Current Realities of Wilms Tumor Burden and Therapy in Ghana.

Background: Between 2005 and 2014, Ghana's Wilms tumor (WT) 2-year disease-free survival of 44% trailed behind that of high-income countries. This study aimed to uncover social determinants of health leading to preventable WT death in Ghana.

Methods: WT patient records (2014-2022) at Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH; Ghana) were reviewed retrospectively.

The relationship between climate change, globalization and non-communicable diseases in Africa: A systematic review.

Climate change and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are considered the 21st Century's major health and development challenges. Both pose a disproportionate burden on low- and middle-income countries that are unprepared to cope with their synergistic effects. These two challenges pose risks for achieving many of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and are both impacted by globalization through different pathways.

Asymptomatic malaria parasitaemia and virological non-suppression among children living with HIV in Accra, Ghana: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and malaria are two major diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, with coinfections having an impact on the outcomes of both. We assessed the association between asymptomatic malaria parasitaemia and virological non-suppression among children living with HIV attending a clinic at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) and the Princess Marie Louis Hospital (PML) in the city of Accra, Ghana.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of asymptomatic malaria in children receiving care at paediatric HIV clinics at KBTH and PML conducted from September to November 2022.

Anaemia among women of reproductive age in selected sub-Saharan African countries: multivariate decomposition analyses of the demographic and health surveys data 2008-2018.

Objectives: The burden and highest regional prevalence of anaemia is reported in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). The study evaluated changes in anaemia prevalence across the Demographic Health Surveys (DHS) periods in SSA and reported factors influencing observed changes in the trend.

Method: The study was implemented by a two-stage cross-sectional stratified sampling approach.

Assessing the Knowledge and Awareness Among Selected Tertiary Students in the Accra Metropolis on Zoonotic Infections.

Background: Zoonotic infections are a serious threat to human health and a direct risk that could potentially be fatal. Animals both domestic and wild serve as reservoirs for zoonotic infections. Thus, frequent contact with animals might occasionally result in the transfer of infections from animals to people.

In-school adolescents' sociodemographic correlates of serious unintentional injuries in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: A cross-sectional study.

Background: As a public health concern, serious adolescent injuries constitute considerable global morbidity and mortality. Despite the proliferation of literature on this problem, the evidence on the determinants of injuries among in-school adolescents in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) is insufficient.

Method: The study analyzed data from the 2018 Global School-based Student Health Survey to examine the prevalence and determinants of serious injuries in a nationwide adolescent sample in SVG.

Postpandemic fear of COVID-19, psychological distress, and resilient coping among frontline health workers in Ghana: An analytical cross-sectional study.

Background And Aims: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted the psychological well-being of healthcare workers globally. However, little is known about the mental health state of frontline health workers in the postpandemic era. The purpose of this study was to examine postpandemic COVID-19-related psychological distress and fear among frontline health workers in Ghana.

Evaluation of treatment patterns, healthcare resource utilization and cost of illness for sickle cell disease in Ghana: a private medical insurance claims database study.

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a major public health concern in sub-Saharan Africa, accounting for nearly 75% of the global disease burden. The current analysis evaluated patient characteristics, treatment patterns, healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) and associated costs in patients with SCD based on a Private Medical Insurance Database in Ghana.

Methods: This retrospective longitudinal cohort study was conducted using an e-claims database from Ghana (01 January 2015 to 31 March 2021).

PROTOCOL: The impact of infrastructure on low income consumers' nutritious diet, women's economic empowerment, and gender equality in low-and middle-income countries: An evidence and gap map.

This is the protocol for an evidence and gap map. The objectives are as follows: this evidence and gap map (EGM) aims to identify, map, and provide an overview of the existing evidence and gaps on the impact of different types of physical infrastructure on various outcomes of low-income consumers' nutritious diet, women's economic empowerment, and gender equality in low- and middle-income countries. The specific objectives of the EGM are: (1) identify clusters of evidence that offer opportunities for evidence synthesis and (2) identify gaps in evidence where new studies, research, and evaluations are needed.

Managing Excess Lead Iodide with Functionalized Oxo-Graphene Nanosheets for Stable Perovskite Solar Cells.

Stability issues could prevent lead halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) from commercialization despite it having a comparable power conversion efficiency (PCE) to silicon solar cells. Overcoming drawbacks affecting their long-term stability is gaining incremental importance. Excess lead iodide (PbI ) causes perovskite degradation, although it aids in crystal growth and defect passivation.

Investigating Environmental Determinants of Soil-Transmitted Helminths Transmission using GPS Tracking and Metagenomics Technologies.

Background: The Global Health community aims to eliminate soil-transmitted helminth (STH) infections by 2030. Current preventive methods such as Mass Drug Administration, WASH practices, and health education needs to be complimented to halt transmission. We tracked the movement of hookworm-infected and non-infected persons and investigated soil factors in the places they frequented within an endemic community to further understand the role of human movement and sources of infections.

The dose-response association between LEAP 1000 and birthweight - no clear mechanisms: a structural equation modeling approach.

Background: Birthweight is an important indicator of maternal and fetal health globally. The multifactorial origins of birthweight suggest holistic programs that target biological and social risk factors have great potential to improve birthweight. In this study, we examine the dose-response association of exposure to an unconditional cash transfer program before delivery with birthweight and explore the potential mediators of the association.

Assessing knowledge of sickle cell disease and health beliefs on premarital genetic screening among healthcare trainees at a tertiary institution: A cross-sectional study.

Background: The uptake of sickle cell trait (SCT) test is challenged by several factors. A community of healthcare professionals educating the public to undergo screening is critical in reducing the disease burden. We investigated knowledge and attitude towards premarital SCT screening among healthcare trainee students who are the next generation of healthcare practitioners.

Implications for conservation assessment from flux in the botanical record over 20 years in southwest Ghana.

At best, conservation decisions can only be made using the data available at the time. For plants and especially in the tropics, natural history collections remain the best available baseline information upon which to base conservation assessments, in spite of well-documented limitations in their taxonomic, geographic, and temporal coverage. We explore the extent to which changes to the plant biological record over 20 years have changed our conception of the conservation importance of 931 plant taxa, and 114 vegetation samples, recorded in forest reserves of the southwest Ghana biodiversity hotspot.

Incidence and determinants of maternal sepsis in Ghana in the midst of a pandemic.

Background: Despite being preventable, maternal sepsis continues to be a significant cause of death and morbidity, killing one in every four pregnant women globally. In Ghana, clinicians have observed that maternal sepsis is increasingly becoming a major contributor to maternal mortality. The lack of a consensus definition for maternal sepsis before 2017 created a gap in determining global and country-specific burden of maternal sepsis and its risk factors.

Effectiveness of adjunct telephone-based postnatal care on maternal and infant illness in the Greater Accra Region, Ghana: a randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Globally, postnatal care (PNC) is fraught with challenges. Despite high PNC coverages in Ghana's Greater Accra Region (GAR), maternal and newborn health outcomes are of great concern. In 2017, neonatal and post-neonatal mortality rates in GAR were 19 and 13 per 1000 live births respectively despite PNC coverages of 93% for at least one PNC and 87.