African health sciences
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African health sciences · Mar 2020
Chronic HIV infection and health related quality of life in resource poor settings-an assessment from South East Nigeria.
Health-related quality of life reflects a patient's general subjective perception of the effect of an illness or intervention on physical, psychological and social aspects of daily life. HIV infection is a major public health problem especially in developing countries where poor health infrastructure and poverty are prevalent. This paper addresses the quality of life in patients with chronic HIV infection in South East Nigeria and addresses issues that may help improve the current situation. ⋯ HIV impairs the quality of life for affected individuals in South East Nigeria especially across the domains of physical and psychological health. No age group is spared. The presence of co-morbidities significantly reduces quality of life in these patients. Younger patients may require mental health services in the management of their disease.
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African health sciences · Mar 2020
Meta AnalysisMagnitude of Cryptococcosis among HIV patients in sub-Saharan Africa countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Cryptococcus is encapsulated opportunistic yeast that causes life threatening meningoencephalitis of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The magnitude of Cryptococcosis among HIV patients varies from 1-10% in Western countries as opposed to almost a one third of HIV-infected individuals in sub-Saharan Africa where it is associated with high mortality. ⋯ The overall pooled magnitude of Cryptococcosisis high among HIV patients in sub-Saharan African countries. The studies showed substantial heterogeneity, and little publication bias. Most of the studies relied on LFA & LA that showed the scarcity of facilities for fungal culture. Therefore, paying attention to screening HIV patients; those with signs and symptoms of meningitis may help to reduce the loss of HIV patients.
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African health sciences · Mar 2020
Seroprevalence of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women of the Marrakech-Safi region, Morocco.
Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic infection caused by an intracellular protozoan named Toxoplasma gondii. Its prevalence had been investigated in several studies throughout the world showing that it varied from one country to another. In contrast, few studies had been carried out on this infection across the kingdom of Morocco, hence the objective of this work, which is the determination of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence in the region of Marrakech-Safi. ⋯ The variation of Toxoplasma gondii seroprevalence is related not only to climatic factors but also to lifestyle, eating habits, socio-economic status and hygiene conditions. In this study, we noticed that in Morocco, as in other countries, pregnant women encounter several difficulties when serologic screening for toxoplasmosis.
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African health sciences · Mar 2020
Comparative StudyA comparative study of the prevalence of zinc deficiency among children with acute diarrhoea in SouthWestern Nigeria.
Zinc deficiency has been associated with increased incidence, severity and duration of childhood diarrhoea. ⋯ Zinc deficiency is significantly associated with diarrhoea among under-five children in the study community. Hence, routine zinc supplementation should be encouraged for the treatment of diarrhoea, and availability should be ensured.
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African health sciences · Mar 2020
Acceptance and utilization of HIV testing among the youth: a cross-sectional study in Techiman, Ghana.
In Ghana, efforts including 'Know Your Status' campaign have been made to increase awareness and improve the uptake of HIV screening. ⋯ The youth should therefore be targeted in the awareness and the 'Know Your Status campaigns', and in an effortsto promote screening for HIV.