Norbert J van Dijk, Jane Carter, David Kiptanui, Petra F Mens, Henk D F H Schallig
{"title":"A case-control study on risk factors for visceral leishmaniasis in West Pokot County, Kenya.","authors":"Norbert J van Dijk, Jane Carter, David Kiptanui, Petra F Mens, Henk D F H Schallig","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14049","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14049","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is a severe parasitic disease transmitted by phlebotomine sandflies. VL is endemic in West Pokot County, Kenya, where effective strategies to interrupt transmission are impeded by the limited understanding of VL risk factors. Therefore, this case-control study aimed to explore environmental, behavioural and household determinants of VL in West Pokot.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>From November 2022 to January 2023, a structured questionnaire was administered to 36 symptomatic primary VL cases attending Kacheliba Sub-County Hospital in West Pokot and to 50 healthy controls from local villages. The VL status of all participants was confirmed using an rK39 rapid diagnostic test. Associations between questioned determinants and VL were investigated by means of age-corrected univariate logistic regression analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Significant associations were found between VL and housing characteristics, such as window presence and floor type. VL cases more frequently reported the presence of cattle, dogs and sheep in their house yards. VL was also associated with cutting down trees in the house yard and house proximity to several Acacia tree species. Furthermore, outdoor activities, including travelling outside the residence for more than 2 weeks, activities near termite mounds, and forest activities during the rainy season, increased the risk of VL.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This work reports a number of previously undescribed risk factors for VL in the understudied West Pokot focus. The results suggest VL transmission occurs both peri-domestically at night and outdoors during the day, particularly when sandfly resting sites are disturbed. Our findings warrant further research into sandfly ecology and potential zoonotic parasite reservoirs in West Pokot.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"904-912"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142126853","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Development of a health literacy scale for COVID-19 prevention among pregnant women in Thailand.","authors":"Nittaya Panngam, Khanitta Nuntaboot, Nopparat Senahad, Roshan Kumar Mahato","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14048","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14048","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>COVID-19 infection among pregnant women results in more severe symptoms and higher mortality rates. No comprehensive health literacy for protection against COVID-19 among pregnant women has been available for general use in Thailand. This cross-sectional study aimed to develop and examine an instrument for measuring health literacy of prevention COVID-19 infection among pregnant women (HLS-P). A total of 321 pregnant women aged older than 20 years were participated in this study, Selected through multistage cluster sampling, between September 2021 and January 2022. Data were collected using structured questions that included sociodemographic characteristics and the health literacy scale for protecting against COVID-19 (HLS-P) developed by the researchers. The content and construct validity of the health literacy scale were examined. Exploratory factor analysis performed with principal component analysis and Varimax rotation. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS AMOS 26. The model fitting was evaluated using several indices namely root mean square error of approximation, normed fit index, comparative fit index, and goodness-of-fit index. The reliability of the scale was evaluated using Cronbach's alpha and item total correlation. As a results of exploratory factor analysis of the scale, 31 items were loaded which indicated a 6-factors for the scale that collectively explained 62.59% of total variance. Confirmatory factor analysis also indicated a good fit to the six latent structures with root mean square error of approximation 0.03, normed fit index 0.94, comparative fit index 0.97, and goodness-of-fit index 0.91. Internal consistency reliability was satisfactory with Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.94 and the item-total correlation between 0.34 and 0.86. The overall scale was sufficiently reliable. As a result, the HLS-P is a reliable and relevant measure for assessing health literacy in pregnant women. Thus, this scale is profoundly used as an evaluation tool for measuring health literacy among pregnant women, providing critical information for healthcare professionals and policymakers about the health literacy needs and capacity of service receivers.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"895-903"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142141172","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nabi Jomehzadeh, Mohammad Rahimzadeh, Bahare Ahmadi
{"title":"Molecular detection of extended-spectrum β-lactamase- and carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae isolates in southwest Iran.","authors":"Nabi Jomehzadeh, Mohammad Rahimzadeh, Bahare Ahmadi","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14043","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14043","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The global emergence of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae is considered a significant contemporary concern., as carbapenems are the last resort for treating infections caused by multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria. This study aimed to investigate the carbapenem-resistance genes in extended-spectrum β-lactamase producing K. pneumoniae isolates.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Seventy-five non-duplicate clinical K. pneumoniae strains were isolated from urine, blood, sputum, and wound samples. Antimicrobial susceptibility tests for 12 different antibiotics were performed using the disk diffusion method, followed by determining minimum inhibitory concentrations of imipenem and meropenem. Phenotypic detection of extended-spectrum β-lactamase and carbapenemase enzymes was performed by double-disc synergy test and modified Hodge test, respectively. PCR assay further investigated resistant isolates for extended-spectrum β-lactamase and carbapenemase-encoding genes.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The highest and lowest resistance rates were observed against ampicillin (93.3%) and tigecycline (9.3%). According to phenotypic tests, 46.7% of isolates were positive for extended-spectrum β-lactamase enzymes and 52.8% for carbapenemase. A total of 11 isolates contained carbapenemase genes, with bla<sub>OXA-48</sub> (19.4%; 7/36) being the predominant gene, followed by bla<sub>NDM</sub> (8.3%; 3/36).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The study's findings reveal the alarming prevalence of beta-lactamase enzymes in K. pneumoniae strains. Early detection of carbapenem-resistant isolates and effective infection control measures are necessary to minimise further spread, as carbapenem resistance has become a public health concern.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"875-881"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141879589","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Alexander Dutschke, Jane Agergaard, Candida Medina, Bo Langhoff Hønge
{"title":"Prevalence of hepatitis and HIV infection among 18-months old children in Guinea-Bissau before vaccination.","authors":"Alexander Dutschke, Jane Agergaard, Candida Medina, Bo Langhoff Hønge","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14045","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14045","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This study reports on the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) in children in Guinea-Bissau before the hepatitis B vaccine was introduced.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Cross-sectional study. From 2005 to 2008, 187 children aged 18 months were enrolled in a vaccine trial and had blood samples taken to test for HBV (HbsAg, anti-HBs and anti-HBc), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>HBsAg prevalence was 11.2% and prevalence of any HBV serological marker was 16.0%. No children were positive for HCV. One was positive for HIV-1.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The prevalence of HBsAg was high compared to other sub-Saharan African countries pre-immunisation, underscoring the importance of broad and sustained HBV vaccination. This study indicates that the majority of HBV transmission is horizontal during childhood in Guinea-Bissau.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"919-921"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142074056","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Olusola Adedeji Adejumo, Firoza Haffejee, Champaklal Jinabhai, Olusoji Daniel
{"title":"Association between experienced stigma, anxiety, depression and loneliness among people with drug-resistant tuberculosis in Lagos Nigeria: The moderating role of social support.","authors":"Olusola Adedeji Adejumo, Firoza Haffejee, Champaklal Jinabhai, Olusoji Daniel","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14046","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14046","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>This study assessed the moderating effect of social support on the association between experienced stigma versus anxiety, depression and loneliness among people with drug-resistant tuberculosis.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 203 adults on treatment for drug-resistant tuberculosis for at least 8 weeks. Validated scales were used to assess experienced stigma, anxiety, depression, loneliness and social support. Partial correlations and hierarchical multiple regression were used to determine the moderating effect of social support on the association between experienced stigma versus anxiety, depression and loneliness. The interaction was visualised using slope analysis.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Anxiety, loneliness and depression were reported by 148 (72.9%), 114 (56.2%) and 128 (63.1%) of the 203 participants, respectively. Experienced stigma was positively associated with depression (B = 0.428, p < 0.001), anxiety (B = 0.374, p < 0.001) and loneliness (B = 0.285, p = 0.001). Social support was negatively associated with depression (B = -0.255, p < 0.001), anxiety (B = -0.406, p < 0.001) and loneliness (B = -0.270, p = 0.001). The impact of experienced stigma on depression was different at low (B = 0.567, SE = 0.115, p < 0.001) and high (B = 0.275, SE = 0.253, p = 0.024) groups of social support. Similarly, at low social support, the effect of experienced stigma on loneliness (B = 0.491, SE = 0.250, p < 0.001) and anxiety (B = 0.254, SE = 0.060, p = 0.044) was different compared to the effect of experienced stigma on loneliness (B = 0.275, SE = 0.253, p = 0.024) and anxiety (B = 0.127, SE = 0.094, p = 0.307) at high group of social support.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>In this study, social support reduced the effects of experienced stigma on anxiety, depression and loneliness suggesting that improving social support among people with drug-resistant tuberculosis is crucial in reducing the negative effects of stigma on anxiety, depression and loneliness.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"882-894"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142133963","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Solomon Aragie, Ayalew Shiferaw, Eshetu Sata, Dagnachew Hailu, Adane Dagnew, Taye Zeru, Adisu Abebe, Zerihun Tadesse, Dionna M Wittberg, Isabel J B Thompson, Thomas M Lietman, Scott D Nash, Kimberly A Jensen, E Kelly Callahan, Jeremy D Keenan
{"title":"Compliance with tetracycline eye ointment during annual mass drug administration for trachoma control in the Amhara region, Ethiopia.","authors":"Solomon Aragie, Ayalew Shiferaw, Eshetu Sata, Dagnachew Hailu, Adane Dagnew, Taye Zeru, Adisu Abebe, Zerihun Tadesse, Dionna M Wittberg, Isabel J B Thompson, Thomas M Lietman, Scott D Nash, Kimberly A Jensen, E Kelly Callahan, Jeremy D Keenan","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14042","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14042","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>A 6-week course of tetracycline eye ointment is an alternative to single -dose oral azithromycin in annual mass drug administration for trachoma control. Compliance with the recommended tetracycline eye ointment regimen has not been well characterised when administered as part of a trachoma control program.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A routine mass drug administration for trachoma was carried out in 40 communities in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. Two tubes of tetracycline eye ointment, to be administered twice daily for 6 weeks, was offered to all children under 6 months of age, to pregnant women who declined to take azithromycin, and to all individuals with a macrolide allergy. Seven weeks following the mass drug administration, a treatment compliance survey was performed for all community members documented to have received tetracycline eye ointment during the mass drug administration.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of the 491 individuals documented as having received tetracycline eye ointment from the treatment records, 367 completed the survey, of which 214 recalled being offered tetracycline eye ointment. A total of 105 (49%) respondents reported taking ≥1 daily dose of tetracycline eye ointment on most days of the week for at least the first week. Only 20 (9%) respondents reported taking at least 1 tetracycline eye ointment dose per week for 6 weeks. The most common reasons for low compliance included 'saving it for a future infection' and 'stopped because I (or my child) seemed healthy'. The odds of low compliance were greater for those who reported not having adequate counselling (e.g., odds ratio [OR] 5.3, 95% CI 2.5-28.9 when low compliance was defined as not taking a tetracycline eye ointment dose for most days of at least the first week).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Compliance with tetracycline eye ointment was low when administered by a trachoma program during a routine mass drug administration, especially for those reporting inadequate counselling. Further research with a larger sample size and varied settings is warranted to better understand and improve compliance.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"869-874"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141983392","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Cutaneous infection due to Mycobacterium marinum: A series of four cases from Kerala, India.","authors":"Soumya Jagadeesan, Vinitha Panicker, Anil Kumar, Malini Eapen, Lalitha Biswas, Jyothish R Pillai, Divya Vijaykumar, Lekshmi Sajini, Anjana Venugopal, Parasmal Suresh, Raja Biswas","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14033","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14033","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Mycobacterium marinum is a non-tuberculous mycobacterium which can be found in naturally occurring, non-chlorinated water sources and is a known pathogen that affects fish. In humans, M. marinum typically results in cutaneous lesions, it can occasionally lead to more invasive disorders. We discuss four cases of M. marinum-related cutaneous infections examined in a tertiary care facility. We want to draw attention to the challenges of accurately diagnosing this infection, stress the significance of having a high level of clinical suspicion in order to identify it, and discuss the available treatment choices.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"913-918"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141749199","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Camilla Alay Llamas, Renzo Guinto, Julia Addison, Nazmul Alam, Hannah Brown Amoakoh, Vicente Artola Arita, Noa Kolpa, Juliette Mattijsen, Ying Zhang, George S. Downward, Joyce L. Browne
{"title":"Collective knowledge exchange through regional hubs: Local expertise, global platform","authors":"Camilla Alay Llamas, Renzo Guinto, Julia Addison, Nazmul Alam, Hannah Brown Amoakoh, Vicente Artola Arita, Noa Kolpa, Juliette Mattijsen, Ying Zhang, George S. Downward, Joyce L. Browne","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14041","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/tmi.14041","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":"29 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142217702","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. Plasència, A. Vassall, I. Agyepong, C. Assohou‐Luty, L. Goerlitz, K. Klipstein‐Grobusch, A. Rocamora, F. Cobelens
{"title":"VIEWPOINT: The new EU Global Health Strategy and research: From policy to action","authors":"A. Plasència, A. Vassall, I. Agyepong, C. Assohou‐Luty, L. Goerlitz, K. Klipstein‐Grobusch, A. Rocamora, F. Cobelens","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14044","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/tmi.14044","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.3,"publicationDate":"2024-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142217701","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Spatiotemporal analysis of regional and age differences in tuberculosis prevalence in mainland China.","authors":"Fengwen Huang, Stephen Temitayo Bello","doi":"10.1111/tmi.14037","DOIUrl":"10.1111/tmi.14037","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Globally, tuberculosis is a leading cause of infectious disease deaths. China ranks third among the 30 high-burden countries for tuberculosis and accounts for approximately 7.4% of the cases reported worldwide. Since very few studies have investigated the age difference in tuberculosis prevalence in mainland China, therefore, the preliminary characterisation of age differences in tuberculosis patients is not well understood. The data of reported sputum smear-positive, tuberculosis and sputum smear-negative cases in 340 prefectures from mainland China were extracted from the China Information System for Disease Control and Prevention from January 2009 to December 2018. Multiple statistical analysis and GIS techniques were used to investigate the temporal trend and identify the spatial distribution of sputum smear-positive, tuberculosis and sputum smear-negative cases in the study area. The results showed that the incidence of sputum smear-positive and tuberculosis has dropped to a stable level, while sputum smear-negative exhibited a rising trend. Additionally, sputum smear-positive, tuberculosis and sputum smear-negative are still highly prevalent in northwestern and southwestern regions of China. Interestingly, the young adult group (20-50 age) and elder group (>50 age) are more susceptible to being infected with tuberculosis, while lower infection levels were recorded in the juvenile group (<20 age). The present study investigated the temporal-spatial distribution of sputum smear-positive, tuberculosis and sputum smear-negative cases in mainland China before the COVID-19 pandemic breakout, which would help the government agency establish an effective mechanism of tuberculosis prevention in high-risk periods and high-risk areas in the study region.</p>","PeriodicalId":23962,"journal":{"name":"Tropical Medicine & International Health","volume":" ","pages":"833-841"},"PeriodicalIF":2.6,"publicationDate":"2024-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"141752985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}