293 results match your criteria: "the University of Cape Town[Affiliation]"

Climate Justice, Humans Rights, and the Case for Reparations.

Health Hum Rights

December 2021

Honorary professor at the University of Cape Town, South Africa; an adjunct professor of occupational and environmental medicine at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, USA; and a founding board member of the Global Council for Science and the Environment, Washington, DC, USA.

The global community is facing an existential crisis that threatens the web of life on this planet. Climate change, in addition to being a fundamental justice and ethical issue, constitutes a human rights challenge. It is a human rights challenge because it undermines the ability to promote human flourishing and welfare through the implementation of human rights, particularly the right to life and the right to health.

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We examined how different sectors of society experienced the first 21 days of the stay-at-home lockdown following the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in South Africa. This rapid qualitative assessment was conducted remotely with 60 key and community informants from different socio-cultural and economic backgrounds in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape provinces of South Africa. Atlas.

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Twice neglected? Neglected diseases in neglected populations.

Br J Clin Pharmacol

February 2022

Division of Pediatric Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Pediatrics, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada.

It is unfortunately true that clinicians lack the necessary evidence to know how to use medications properly in large sections of the population and do not have optimal treatments to use for many neglected tropical diseases (NTDs). NTDs often disproportionately affect neglected populations that are left out of research efforts, such as children and pregnant women. As reliable access to safe, effective preventives and treatments can break the cycle of poverty, illness, and ensuing debility that further perpetuates poverty, it is of paramount importance to investigate and develop new medicines for neglected populations suffering from NTDs.

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The 2019 and 2020 Super League (SL) seasons included several competition rule changes. This study aimed to quantify the difference between the 2018, 2019 and 2020 SL seasons for duration, locomotor and event characteristics of matches. Microtechnology and match event data were analysed from 11 SL teams, comprising 124 players, from 416 competitive matches across a three-year data collection period.

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Development of an expected possession value model to analyse team attacking performances in rugby league.

PLoS One

December 2021

Carnegie Applied Rugby Research (CARR) Centre, Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, United Kingdom.

Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated team attacking performance in rugby league using expected possession value (EPV) models, analyzing data from 59,233 plays in 180 Super League matches during the 2019 season.
  • Six EPV models were created based on different zone sizes, with a focus on understanding how varying the number of zones impacts the reproducibility of value distributions during matches.
  • Results showed that reducing the number of zones improved consistency in value distributions, with EPV-19 and EPV-13 being the most effective models for evaluating performance, while EPV-9 was deemed less useful due to insufficient variation in values.
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Associations between sexual risk behavior (SRB) and sexual violence perpetration (SVP) contribute to the intersecting HIV and sexual violence epidemics in South Africa. We examined SVP and SRB, and their potential correlates among South African boys (N = 80; ages 15-17). Fifty-one percent endorsed SVP in the past year; 61% engaged in past-3-month SRB.

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Athlete external load is typically quantified as volumes or discretised threshold values using distance, speed and time. A framework accounting for the movement sequences of athletes has previously been proposed using radio frequency data. This study developed a framework to identify sequential movement sequences using GPS-derived spatiotemporal data in team-sports and establish its stability.

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Background: Healthcare workers are at a higher risk of COVID-19 infection during care encounters compared to the general population. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) have been shown to protect COVID-19 among healthcare workers, however, Kenya has faced PPE shortages that can adequately protect all healthcare workers. We, therefore, examined the health and economic consequences of investing in PPE for healthcare workers in Kenya.

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The Training of Medium- to Long-Distance Sprint Performance in Football Code Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Sports Med

February 2022

Carnegie Applied Rugby Research (CARR) Centre, Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University, Headingley Campus, Leeds, LS6 3QS, UK.

Background: Within the football codes, medium-distance (i.e., > 20 m and ≤ 40 m) and long-distance (i.

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Safety and immunogenicity of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 in people living with and without HIV in South Africa: an interim analysis of a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 1B/2A trial.

Lancet HIV

September 2021

South African Medical Research Council Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; Department of Science and Innovation/National Research Foundation South African Research Chair Initiative in Vaccine Preventable Diseases Unit, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; African Leadership in Vaccinology Expertise, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.

Background: People living with HIV are at an increased risk of fatal outcome when admitted to hospital for severe COVID-19 compared with HIV-negative individuals. We aimed to assess safety and immunogenicity of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine in people with HIV and HIV-negative individuals in South Africa.

Methods: In this ongoing, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 1B/2A trial (COV005), people with HIV and HIV-negative participants aged 18-65 years were enrolled at seven South African locations and were randomly allocated (1:1) with full allocation concealment to receive a prime-boost regimen of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, with two doses given 28 days apart.

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This mixed methods study aimed to assess the agreement between coaches ranking of youth rugby league players compared against objective physical performance data and gather coaches' subjective descriptions of their players performance. Five hundred and eight male rugby league players (U16  = 255, U18  = 253) completed a fitness testing battery of anthropometric and physical performance measures. Subsequently, 22 rugby ( = 11) and strength and conditioning (S&C) coaches ( = 11) ranked each player's physical qualities using a 4-point Likert scale (1 - top 25%; 2-25-50%; 3-50-75%; and 4 - bottom 25%) and described their performance.

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Background: Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES) programmes are vital for type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) management. However, they are limited in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). To address this gap, a DSMES, namedEXTEND was developed in Lilongwe (Malawi) and Maputo (Mozambique).

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This cross-sectional study evaluated the sprint and jump mechanical profiles of male academy rugby league players, the differences between positions, and the associations between mechanical profiles and sprint performance. Twenty academy rugby league players performed 40-m sprints and squat jumps at increasing loads (0-80 kg) to determine individual mechanical (force-velocity-power) and performance variables. The mechanical variables (absolute and relative theoretical maximal force-velocity-power, force-velocity linear relationship, and mechanical efficiency) were determined from the mechanical profiles.

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Establishing dose-response relationships between training load and fatigue can help the planning of training. The aim was to establish the relative importance of external training load measurements to relate to the musculoskeletal response on a group and individual player level. Sixteen elite male rugby league players were monitored across three seasons.

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Disability, relationship, and the negotiation of loss.

Med Humanit

March 2022

Department of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa.

Oppressive stereotypes of invalidity and tragedy have positioned loss and grieving as contested issues in the field of disability studies. Ascriptions of 'denial' are rejected by many disabled people, as a reductive medicalisation of their lived reality. For these and other reasons, this paper asserts that disabled people are afforded limited or awkward social spaces for grief, be it to do with social positioning, embodiment, or any other aspect of human experience.

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The Applied Sports Science and Medicine of Netball: A Systematic Scoping Review.

Sports Med

August 2021

Carnegie Applied Rugby Research (CARR) Centre, Carnegie School of Sport, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, LS6 3QS, UK.

Background: Netball is the one of the most popular women's sports in the world. Since gaining professional status in 2008 there has been a rapid growth in research in the applied sports science and medicine of the sport. A scoping review of the area would provide practitioners and researchers with an overview of the current scientific literature to support on-court performance, player welfare and reduce injury.

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The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between matchday wellness status and a technical-tactical performance construct during rugby match-play. One hundred and thirty-three male rugby union players (73 forwards and 60 backs) from five under-18 national squads who participated in the under-18 Six Nations competition completed a subjective wellness questionnaire on each matchday morning. Players subjectively rated each item (sleep quality, fatigue, muscle soreness, stress and mood) on a five-point Likert scale to calculate their daily wellness status (i.

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Four-Month Rifapentine Regimens with or without Moxifloxacin for Tuberculosis.

N Engl J Med

May 2021

From the Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston (S.E.D.); the UCSF Center for Tuberculosis, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco (P.N., P.P.J.P., R.M.S.); the Vietnam National Tuberculosis Program-University of California, San Francisco Research Collaboration Unit (P.N., P.P.J.P., H.T.T.P., N.V.N., T.H.P., R.M.S.) and the National Lung Hospital (N.V.N., T.H.P.) - both in Hanoi; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta (E.V.K., K.B., S.V.G., A.E.P., N.A.S., E.S., A.V.); the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and the South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio (M.E., M.W.); the University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Harare (J.H., W.S.); Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland (J.L.J.); the Uganda-Case Western Reserve University Research Collaboration, Kampala (J.L.J., G.M.); TASK (M.L.), the University of Cape Town Lung Institute (K.N.), and the South African Tuberculosis Vaccine Initiative (J.S.), Cape Town, the Perinatal HIV Research Unit, University of the Witwatersrand (N.A.M., Z.W.), and the Wits Health Consortium (I.S.), Johannesburg - all in South Africa; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore (K.E.D., N.A.M., R.E.C.), and the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, Rockville (A.E.P.) - both in Maryland; the Haitian Group for the Study of Kaposi's Sarcoma and Opportunistic Infections (GHESKIO), Port-au-Prince (S.N., S.P.); and the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha (S.S.).

Background: Rifapentine-based regimens have potent antimycobacterial activity that may allow for a shorter course in patients with drug-susceptible pulmonary tuberculosis.

Methods: In an open-label, phase 3, randomized, controlled trial involving persons with newly diagnosed pulmonary tuberculosis from 13 countries, we compared two 4-month rifapentine-based regimens with a standard 6-month regimen consisting of rifampin, isoniazid, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol (control) using a noninferiority margin of 6.6 percentage points.

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Background: Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) is an important cause of mortality and morbidity globally. This bacterium is responsible for a range of different infections and post-infectious sequelae. Summarising the current knowledge of Strep A transmission to humans will address gaps in the evidence and inform prevention and control strategies.

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Efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 Covid-19 Vaccine against the B.1.351 Variant.

N Engl J Med

May 2021

From the South African Medical Research Council Vaccines and Infectious Diseases Analytics Research Unit (S.A.M., V.B., A.L.K., G.K., S.B., J.P., A.J., M.L., S.M., A.M., C.T., A.T., A.I.), African Leadership in Vaccinology Expertise (C.L.C.), Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute (L.F., E.H., M. Masenya, F.P., S.E.), the Antibody Immunity Research Unit, School of Pathology (J.N.B., C.K.W., P.L.M.), and the Perinatal HIV Research Unit (C.B.), Faculty of Health Sciences, and the Department of Science and Innovation/National Research Foundation South African Research Chair Initiative in Vaccine Preventable Diseases Unit (S.A.M., V.B., A.L.K., G.K., S.B., A.I.), University of the Witwatersrand, and the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) of the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) (J.N.B., C.K.W., P.L.M.), Johannesburg, Setshaba Research Centre, Tshwane (S.D.P., K.A., M. Malahleha, M. Masilela, K.M.), the Division of Pulmonology, Groote Schuur Hospital and the University of Cape Town (K.D., A.E., S.O.), and the Family Centre for Research with Ubuntu, Department of Paediatrics, University of Stellenbosch (S.L.B., M.G., L.R.), Cape Town, Soweto Clinical Trials Centre, Soweto (Q.E.B., A.E.B.), and the Africa Health Research Institute (S.-H.H., H.R., A.S.) and the KwaZulu-Natal Research and Innovation Sequencing Platform (KRISP), University of KwaZulu-Natal (S.P., H.T., T.O., A.S.), Durban - all in South Africa; the Oxford Vaccine Group, Department of Paediatrics (M.V., P.A., S.R., A.J.P.), and Jenner Institute, Nuffield Department of Medicine (T.L., S.G.), University of Oxford, Oxford, the Faculty of Infectious and Tropical Diseases, Department of Immunology and Infection, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London (K.D., A.E.), Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, London (K.D.), and AstraZeneca Biopharmaceuticals, Cambridge (N.M.D., E.J.K., T.L.V.) - all in the United Kingdom; and Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Berlin (S.-H.H., H.R.).

Background: Assessment of the safety and efficacy of vaccines against the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in different populations is essential, as is investigation of the efficacy of the vaccines against emerging SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern, including the B.1.351 (501Y.

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Background: Despite the end of apartheid in the early 1990s, South Africa remains racially and economically segregated. The country is beset by persistent social inequality, poverty, unemployment, a heavy burden of disease and the inequitable quality of healthcare service provision. The South African health system is currently engaged in the complex project of establishing universal health coverage that ensures the system's ability to deliver comprehensive care that is accessible, affordable and acceptable to patients and families, while acknowledging the significant pressures to which the system is subject.

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Background: The ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine has been approved for emergency use by the UK regulatory authority, Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, with a regimen of two standard doses given with an interval of 4-12 weeks. The planned roll-out in the UK will involve vaccinating people in high-risk categories with their first dose immediately, and delivering the second dose 12 weeks later. Here, we provide both a further prespecified pooled analysis of trials of ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 and exploratory analyses of the impact on immunogenicity and efficacy of extending the interval between priming and booster doses.

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Sixteen novel lineages of SARS-CoV-2 in South Africa.

Nat Med

March 2021

KwaZulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform (KRISP), Nelson R Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, South Africa.

The first severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in South Africa was identified on 5 March 2020, and by 26 March the country was in full lockdown (Oxford stringency index of 90). Despite the early response, by November 2020, over 785,000 people in South Africa were infected, which accounted for approximately 50% of all known African infections. In this study, we analyzed 1,365 near whole genomes and report the identification of 16 new lineages of SARS-CoV-2 isolated between 6 March and 26 August 2020.

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