Modelling fertility in rural South Africa with combined nonlinear parametric and semi-parametric methods.

Background: Central to the study of populations, and therefore to the analysis of the development of countries undergoing major transitions, is the calculation of fertility patterns and their dependence on different variables such as age, education, and socio-economic status. Most epidemiological research on these matters rely on the often unjustified assumption of (generalised) linearity, or alternatively makes a parametric assumption (e.g.

Evidence for Inhibition of Topoisomerase 1A by Gold(III) Macrocycles and Chelates Targeting Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium abscessus.

and the fast-growing species are two important human pathogens causing persistent pulmonary infections that are difficult to cure and require long treatment times. The emergence of drug-resistant strains and the high level of intrinsic resistance of call for novel drug scaffolds that effectively target both pathogens. In this study, we evaluated the activity of bis(pyrrolide-imine) gold(III) macrocycles and chelates, originally designed as DNA intercalators capable of targeting human topoisomerase types I and II (Topo1 and Topo2), against and We identified a total of 5 noncytotoxic compounds active against both mycobacterial pathogens under replicating conditions.

Cryptogenic Cirrhosis and Hepatopulmonary Syndrome in a Boy with Hepatic Hemangioma in Botswana: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Hepatic hemangiomas are considered to be the most common benign tumors of the liver. They are often found incidentally while investigating for other causes of liver disease. Hemangiomas that are less than 10 cm are not expected to cause any problems.

Romanov type problems.

Romanov proved that the proportion of positive integers which can be represented as a sum of a prime and a power of 2 is positive. We establish similar results for integers of the form and where and ,  are primes. In the opposite direction, Erdős constructed a full arithmetic progression of odd integers none of which is the sum of a prime and a power of two.

Associations between friendship characteristics and HIV and HSV-2 status amongst young South African women in HPTN-068.

Introduction: Prevalence of HIV among young women in South Africa remains extremely high. Adolescent peer groups have been found to be an important influence on a range of health behaviours. The characteristics of young women's friendships might influence their sexual health and HIV risk via connections to sexual partners, norms around sexual initiation and condom use, or provision of social support.

Prevalence and correlates of frailty in an older rural African population: findings from the HAALSI cohort study.

Background: Frailty is a key predictor of death and dependency, yet little is known about frailty in sub-Saharan Africa despite rapid population ageing. We describe the prevalence and correlates of phenotypic frailty using data from the Health and Aging in Africa: Longitudinal Studies of an INDEPTH Community cohort.

Methods: We analysed data from rural South Africans aged 40 and over.

Household structure vs. composition: Understanding gendered effects on educational progress in rural South Africa.

Background: Demographers have long been interested in the relationship between living arrangements and gendered outcomes for children in sub-Saharan Africa. Most extant research conflates household structure with composition and has revealed little about the pathways that link these components to gendered outcomes.

Objectives: First, we offer a conceptual approach that differentiates structure from composition with a focus on gendered processes that operate in the household; and second, we demonstrate the value of this approach through an analysis of educational progress for boys and girls in rural South Africa.

How to do (or not to do)… Measuring health worker motivation in surveys in low- and middle-income countries.

A health system's ability to deliver quality health care depends on the availability of motivated health workers, which are insufficient in many low income settings. Increasing policy and researcher attention is directed towards understanding what drives health worker motivation and how different policy interventions affect motivation, as motivation is key to performance and quality of care outcomes. As a result, there is growing interest among researchers in measuring motivation within health worker surveys.

Evidence-informed capacity building for setting health priorities in low- and middle-income countries: A framework and recommendations for further research.

Priority-setting in health is risky and challenging, particularly in resource-constrained settings. It is not simply a narrow technical exercise, and involves the mobilisation of a wide range of capacities among stakeholders - not only the technical capacity to "do" research in economic evaluations. Using the Individuals, Nodes, Networks and Environment (INNE) framework, we identify those stakeholders, whose capacity needs will vary along the evidence-to-policy continuum.

Effectiveness of an Integrated Approach to HIV and Hypertension Care in Rural South Africa: Controlled Interrupted Time-Series Analysis.

Background: South Africa faces a dual burden of HIV/AIDS and noncommunicable diseases. In 2011, a pilot integrated chronic disease management (ICDM) model was introduced by the National Health Department into selected primary health care (PHC) facilities. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the ICDM model in controlling patients' CD4 counts (>350 cells/mm) and blood pressure [BP (<140/90 mm Hg)] in PHC facilities in the Bushbuckridge municipality, South Africa.

Relationships between structure, process and outcome to assess quality of integrated chronic disease management in a rural South African setting: applying a structural equation model.

Background: South Africa faces a complex dual burden of chronic communicable and non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In response, the Integrated Chronic Disease Management (ICDM) model was initiated in primary health care (PHC) facilities in 2011 to leverage the HIV/ART programme to scale-up services for NCDs, achieve optimal patient health outcomes and improve the quality of medical care. However, little is known about the quality of care in the ICDM model.

A CD99+ primary spinal central PNET in a pregnant patient- therapeutic concerns and issues.

Spinal tumours in pregnancy are rare. Spinal tumours account for only 10-15% of all primary central nervous system (CNS) tumours. Most spinal tumours in pregnant women have been described as meningiomas or vascular tumours.

Quality of integrated chronic disease care in rural South Africa: user and provider perspectives.

The integrated chronic disease management (ICDM) model was introduced as a response to the dual burden of HIV/AIDS and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in South Africa, one of the first of such efforts by an African Ministry of Health. The aim of the ICDM model is to leverage HIV programme innovations to improve the quality of chronic disease care. There is a dearth of literature on the perspectives of healthcare providers and users on the quality of care in the novel ICDM model.

Factors associated with the choice of public health service among nursing students in Thailand.

Background: Despite the fact that public and private nursing schools have contributed significantly to the Thai health system, it is not clear whether and to what extent there was difference in job preferences between types of training institutions. This study aimed to examine attitudes towards rural practice, intention to work in public service after graduation, and factors affecting workplace selection among nursing students in both public and private institutions.

Methods: A descriptive comparative cross-sectional survey was conducted among 3349 students from 36 nursing schools (26 public and 10 private) during February-March 2012, using a questionnaire to assess the association between training institution characteristics and students' attitudes, job choices, and intention to work in the public sector upon graduation.

Effects of recall time on cause-of-death findings using verbal autopsy: empirical evidence from rural South Africa.

Background: Verbal autopsy (VA) is a widely used technique for assigning causes to non-medically certified deaths using information gathered from a close caregiver. Both operational and cultural factors may cause delays in follow-up of deaths. The resulting time lag-from death to VA interview-can influence ways in which terminal events are remembered, and thus affect cause-of-death assignment.

Diversity and divergence: the dynamic burden of poor maternal health.

Maternal health is a big issue and is central to sustainable development. Each year, about 210 million women become pregnant and about 140 million newborn babies are delivered-the sheer scale of maternal health alone makes maternal well being and survival vital concerns. In this Series paper, we adopt primarily a numerical lens to illuminate patterns and trends in outcomes, but recognise that understanding of poor maternal health also warrants other perspectives, such as human rights.

Bibliometric trends of health economic evaluation in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Background: Collaboration between Sub-Saharan African researchers is important for the generation and transfer of health technology assessment (HTA) evidence, in order to support priority-setting in health. The objective of this analysis was to evaluate collaboration patterns between countries.

Methods: We conducted a rapid evidence assessment that included a random sample of health economic evaluations carried out in 20 countries (Angola, Botswana, Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Uganda).

Invading a mutualistic network: to be or not to be similar.

Biological invasion remains a major threat to biodiversity in general and a disruptor to mutualistic interactions in particular. While a number of empirical studies have directly explored the role of invasion in mutualistic pollination networks, a clear picture is yet to emerge and a theoretical model for comprehension still lacking. Here, using an eco-evolutionary model of bipartite mutualistic networks with trait-mediated interactions, we explore invader trait, propagule pressure, and network features of recipient community that contribute importantly to the success and impact of an invasion.

Can innovative ambulance transport avert pregnancy-related deaths? One-year operational assessment in Ethiopia.

Background: To maximise the potential benefits of maternity care services, pregnant women need to be able to physically get to health facilities in a timely manner. In most of sub-Saharan Africa, transport represents a major practical barrier. Here we evaluate the extent to which an innovative national ambulance service in Ethiopia, together with mobile phones, may have been successful in averting pregnancy-related deaths.

Application of mucilage from Dicerocaryum eriocarpum plant as biosorption medium in the removal of selected heavy metal ions.

The ability of mucilage from Dicerocaryum eriocarpum (DE) plant to act as biosorption medium in the removal of metals ions from aqueous solution was investigated. Functional groups present in the mucilage were identified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Mucilage was modified with sodium and potassium chlorides.

The development of a localised HIV epidemic and the associated excess mortality burden in a rural area of South Africa.

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic in South Africa rapidly developed into a major pandemic. Here we analyse the development of the epidemic in a rural area of the country. The data used were collected between 1992 and 2013 in a longitudinal population survey, the Agincourt Health and Demographic Surveillance Study, in the northeast of the country.

Naive Bayes classifiers for verbal autopsies: comparison to physician-based classification for 21,000 child and adult deaths.

Background: Verbal autopsies (VA) are increasingly used in low- and middle-income countries where most causes of death (COD) occur at home without medical attention, and home deaths differ substantially from hospital deaths. Hence, there is no plausible "standard" against which VAs for home deaths may be validated. Previous studies have shown contradictory performance of automated methods compared to physician-based classification of CODs.

Behavior change communication and mobile populations: the evaluation of a cross-border HIV/AIDS communication strategy amongst migrants from Swaziland.

This study investigates the effect of being exposed to the Soul City Southern Africa Regional OneLove campaign, a behavior change communication program, on sexual behavior and condom use among a mobile population in Swaziland. Data for this study come from a nationally representative sample of 845 individuals who reported traveling to neighboring countries for at least two weeks at any time in the previous two years. Respondents were asked about exposure to the campaign through television, radio, booklets, posters, and advertisements both in Swaziland and in the other countries where they had traveled in the previous two years.