Current Issue : July - September Volume : 2016 Issue Number : 3 Articles : 4 Articles
Aim.We determined the prevalence of anaemia and evaluatedmarkers of iron homeostasis in a cohort of HIV patients. Methods. A\ncomparative cross-sectional study on 319 participants was carried out at the Tamale Teaching Hospital from July 2013 to December\n2013, 219 patients on HAART (designated On-HAART) and 100 HAART-naive patients. Data gathered include sociodemography,\nclinical history, and selected laboratory assays. Results. Prevalence of anaemia was 23.8%. On-HAART participants had higher\nCD4/CD3 lymphocyte counts, Hb, HCT/PCV, MCV, MCH, iron, ferritin, and TSAT (...
Background. The prevalence of syphilis among HIV-infected people is a public health concern, but there is limited literature to\ndescribe the true burden of syphilis in resource-limited settings. We conducted this survey in 2013 to estimate the prevalence of\nsyphilis. Methods. A cross-sectional survey. Participants were tested for syphilis and HIV. Factors associated with syphilis infection\nwere identified. Results. The prevalence of syphilis was 0.9% (95% CI: 0.7ââ?¬â??1.1). This prevalence was higher in the 25ââ?¬â??49-year-old\nage (1.1% [95% CI: 0.8ââ?¬â??1.3]) than in the 15ââ?¬â??24-year-old age (0.6% (95% CI: 0.4ââ?¬â??0.9)). Women with lower education had a higher\nprevalence of syphilis (1.2% (95% CI: 0.9ââ?¬â??1.5)) compared to others (0.4% (95% CI: 0.2ââ?¬â??0.8)). This prevalence among HIV-infected\npeople was six times higher: 4.8% (95% CI: 2.9ââ?¬â??7.9) compared to HIV-negative people (0.8% (95% CI: 0.6ââ?¬â??1.0)). The prevalence\nof syphilis among HIV-infected females was 5.9% (95% CI: 3.4ââ?¬â??10.0). HIV-infected or concurrent sexual partners was associated\nwith increased syphilis prevalence with aOR = 4.2 (95% CI: 2.5ââ?¬â??7.2) and aOR = 4.2 (95% CI: 2.8ââ?¬â??6.5), respectively. Conclusions.\nThe prevalence of syphilis was significantly higher among HIV-infected patients. HIV infection and concurrent sexual partners are\nassociated with an increased prevalence of syphilis. Preventing HIV might help in preventing syphilis....
Background. Kenyan antiretroviral (ART) guidelines encourage treatment buddies (TBy) to maximize treatment adherence. This\nstudy examined the effect of TBys on clinic attendance in men and women on ART. Methods. This retrospective cohort study\nincluded all adult patients initiating ART from August 2007 to December 2011 at four health facilities in Kenya. Data were\nabstracted from electronic medical records and analyzed using Poisson regression. Results. Of 2,430 patients, 2,199 (91%) had a\nTBy. Relationship between TBy and clinic attendance differed in females and males (interaction ...
Background. Skin diseases associated with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection are associated with significant\nmorbidity andmortality. In resource-limited settings, nondermatologists and lay health care providers on the front line of HIV care\nprovide much of the treatment for these conditions. Objective. To evaluate guidelines for treatment of HIV-related skin conditions\nand assess their accessibility, comprehensiveness, and quality of evidence employed. Methods. A review was undertaken of all\nnational and society guidelines which included treatment information on the ten highest burden HIV-related skin conditions. The\nsearch strategy included gray and peer-reviewed literature. Results. Of 430 potential guidelines, 86 met inclusion criteria, and only\n2 were written specifically to address HIV-related skin diseases as a whole. Treatment information for HIV-related skin conditions\nwas embedded within guidelines written for other purposes, primarily HIV/AIDs treatment guidelines (49%). Development of\nguidelines relied either partially or completely on expert opinion (62%). Only 16% of guidelines used gradation of evidence quality\nand these were primarily from high-income countries (...
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