South Africa

BACKGROUND: The liver is one of the most injured organs in both blunt and penetrating trauma. The aim of this study was to identify whether the AAST liver injury grade is predictive of need for intervention, risk of complications and mortality in our patient population, and whether this differs between blunt and penetrating-trauma mechanisms. METHODS: Retrospective review of all liver injuries from a single high-volume metropolitan trauma centre in South Africa from December 2012 to January 2022...

BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer remains a leading cause of death, particularly in developing countries. WHO screening guidelines recommend human papilloma virus (HPV) detection as a means to identify women at risk of developing cervical cancer. While HPV testing identifies those at risk, it does not specifically distinguish individuals with neoplasia. We investigated whether a quantitative molecular test that measures methylated DNA markers could identify high-risk lesions in the cervix with accuracy...

Transition from traditional high-fiber to Western diets in urbanizing communities of Sub-Saharan Africa is associated with increased risk of non-communicable diseases (NCD), exemplified by colorectal cancer (CRC) risk. To investigate how urbanization gives rise to microbial patterns that may be amenable by dietary intervention, we analyzed diet intake, fecal 16 S bacteriome, virome, and metabolome in a cross-sectional study in healthy rural and urban Xhosa people (South Africa). Urban Xhosa individuals had higher intakes of energy (urban: 3,578 ± 455; rural: 2,185 ± 179 kcal/d), fat and animal protein...

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to evaluate the quality and reliability of YouTube videos focusing on Unilateral Biportal Endoscopic(UBE) spine surgery, a novel technique for spinal decompression in degenerative spinal disease. METHODS: This cross-sectional study, conducted in February 2023, involved an online search on YouTube using the term "unilateral biportal endoscopic spine surgery".Video popularity was assessed using the Video Power Index. Video reliability and quality were measured using the Global Quality Scale, the Journal of American Medical Association benchmark criteria, and the modified-DISCERN instrument...

INTRODUCTION: Posterior tibial nerve (PTN) cross-sectional area (CSA) reference values for the diagnosis of tarsal tunnel syndrome (TTS) using ultrasound imaging exist in several countries but not in South Africa (SA). Therefore, the objective was to measure the CSA reference values for PTN in SA. METHODS: Ultrasound CSA measurements of PTN in both ankles on 112 participants were performed, the mean measurement was recorded, and the effect of race, age, gender, and body mass index (BMI) were recorded...

OBJECTIVE: Explore health professionals' perceptions toward how to address malnutrition within the first 1,000 days of life in underresourced communities. DESIGN: A qualitative explorative-descriptive study using 8 face-to-face focus group discussions. SETTING: Health facilities serving underresourced communities within Nelson Mandela Bay, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. PARTICIPANTS: Fifty-six health professionals (n = 13 doctors, n = 28 nurses, n = 6 dietitians, and n = 9 social workers) aged between 20 and 60 years, with 1-16 years (5 years average) of working experience...

OBJECTIVE: The variant BA.2.86 of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is causing concern globally. The virus contains a large number of mutations, and transmission trends are rapidly changing globally. This study investigates the global epidemiological and transmission trends of SARS-CoV-2 new variant BA.2.86 in various continents and countries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The data were recorded using key terms, including SARS-CoV-2, Omicron, BA...

BACKGROUND: Heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is common in the elderly (≥75 years) and associated with arterial stiffness. The mean age of HFpEF presentation is lower (40-55 years) in sub-Saharan Africa. No clinical study has been conducted on HFpEF in identifying and characterising this phenotype at a younger age, moreover in a South African black population where the risk of HFpEF is two times higher than in other ethnic groups. This study investigated the characteristics of HFpEF in a black South African population, the biochemical markers that predict HFpEF and cardiac structural changes in this HF phenotype...

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Background: Adolescence is a vulnerable developmental stage for the onset of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and borderline features, which are related psychological phenomena. Self-compassion reflects a sensitivity to own suffering and a motivation to relieve it, consisting of a more positive and beneficial self-to-self relationship. The aim of the present study was to test the effect of self-compassion between borderline features at baseline and six months with a sample of adolescents with a history of NSSI...

Objective : This study aimed to examine the association between social withdrawal motivations (peer isolation, shyness, unsociability, low mood, and avoidance) and symptoms of hikikomori using both variable- and person-oriented analyses. Method : Adolescents ( N = 212) participated in this cross-sectional study. Data were collected using the Social Withdrawal Motivations Scale and the Avoidance subscale of the Child Social Preference Scale-Revised, the 25-item Hikikomori Questionnaire, the Personality Inventory for the DSM-5 Brief Form, and the Interpersonal sensitivity subscale of the Brief Symptom Inventory...

Background : Social restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on the mental health of children. Yet, analyses on the mental health of younger children in the later course of the pandemic are scarce. The present study assessed 8- to 11-year-olds' internalising disorder symptoms during the last three weeks, from the third week of February through to the first week of March, of the 2021 national lockdown. Method : One hundred and forty-five pupils, including a subset of keyworkers' children who had face-toface schooling, completed the validated Revised Child Anxiety and Depression scales, items on COVID-related stress at home, and evaluations of home-learning and school's measures for reopening...

Objective: The current cross-sectional study aimed to examine the association between childhood trauma, impulsivity, binge eating symptoms, and body mass index (BMI) in a sample of males and females. We also aimed to investigate the indirect association of childhood trauma with binge eating through impulsivity while controlling for BMI. Method: Participants were 410 young adults (mean age = 20.9 years, range 18-24; female = 73.9%) who completed online measures of childhood trauma, impulsivity, binge eating symptoms, and self-reported height and weight...

Background: Psychotic symptoms are present in a wide range of both clinical and non-clinical populations. Psychotic symptoms in adolescents often take the form of psychotic-like experiences (PLEs), which are considered a risk factor for numerous serious mental illnesses. Socioeconomic disadvantages are across rural areas, and poverty is known as the third most important risk factor of PLEs. However, there have been limited studies on PLEs which focus on populations in rural areas. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of PLEs and investigate their predictors among early adolescents living in rural areas...

BACKGROUND: The ethical governance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in health care and public health continues to be an urgent issue for attention in policy, research, and practice. In this paper we report on central themes related to challenges and strategies for promoting ethics in research involving AI in global health, arising from the Global Forum on Bioethics in Research (GFBR), held in Cape Town, South Africa in November 2022. METHODS: The GFBR is an annual meeting organized by the World Health Organization and supported by the Wellcome Trust, the US National Institutes of Health, the UK Medical Research Council (MRC) and the South African MRC...

Losses from catastrophic floods are driving intense efforts to increase preparedness and improve response to disastrous flood events by providing early warnings. Yet accurate flood forecasting remains a challenge due to uncertainty in modeling, calibrating, and validating a useful early warning system. This paper presents the Requisitely Simple (ReqSim) flood forecasting system that includes key variables and processes of basin hydrology and atmospheric forcing in a data-driven modeling framework. The simplicity of the modeling structure and data requirements of the system allows for customization and implementation in any medium to large rain-fed river basin globally, provided there are water level or discharge measurements at the forecast locations...

Prioritizing adolescent health is a public health priority to achieve the sustainable development goals, including reducing the risk of unsafe sex. Data on unsafe sex have remained scarce among adolescents in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). To estimate the prevalence of unsafe sex in LMICs, we conducted secondary data analysis on the Global School-based Student Health Surveys among 244,863 students aged 13-17 years from 68 countries across five World Health Organization regions. The overall prevalence of ever had sex was 16...

OBJECTIVES: We explored the role of metabolic hormones and the B-cell repertoire in the association between nutritional status and vaccine responses. METHODS: In this prospective cohort study, nested within a larger randomized open-label trial, 211 South African children received two doses of measles vaccine and two or three doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV). Metabolic markers (leptin, ghrelin and adiponectin) and distribution of B-cell subsets (n = 106) were assessed at 18 months of age...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Personalized donation strategies based on haemoglobin (Hb) prediction models may reduce Hb deferrals and hence costs of donation, meanwhile improving commitment of donors. We previously found that prediction models perform better in validation data with a high Hb deferral rate. We therefore investigate how Hb deferral prediction models perform when exchanged with other blood establishments. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Donation data from the past 5 years from random samples of 10,000 donors from Australia, Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands and South Africa were used to fit random forest models for Hb deferral prediction...

BACKGROUND: There is increasing interest in utilising two-drug regimens for HIV treatment with the goal of reducing toxicity and improve acceptability. The D3 trial evaluates the efficacy and safety of DTG/3TC in children and adolescents and includes a nested pharmacokinetics(PK) substudy for paediatric drug licensing. METHODS: D3 is an ongoing open-label, phase III, 96-week non-inferiority randomised controlled trial(RCT) conducted in South Africa, Spain, Thailand, Uganda and the United Kingdom...