BackgroundRoad traffic injuries (RTIs) are a growing but neglected global health crisis, requiring effective prevention to promote sustainable safety. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) share a disproportionately high burden with 90% of the world’s road traffic deaths, and where RTIs are escalating due to rapid urbanization and motorization. Although several studies have assessed the effectiveness of a specific intervention, no systematic reviews have been conducted summarizing the effectiveness of RTI prevention initiatives specifically performed in LMIC settings; this study will help fill this gap.MethodsIn accordance with PRISMA guidelines we searched the electronic databases MEDLINE, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science, TRID, Lilacs, Scielo and Global Health. Articles were eligible if they considered RTI prevention in LMICs by evaluating a prevention-related intervention with outcome measures of crash, RTI, or death. In addition, a reference and citation analysis was conducted as well as a data quality assessment. A qualitative metasummary approach was used for data analysis and effect sizes were calculated to quantify the magnitude of emerging themes.ResultsOf the 8560 articles from the literature search, 18 articles from 11 LMICs fit the eligibility and inclusion criteria. Of these studies, four were from Sub-Saharan Africa, ten from Latin America and the Caribbean, one from the Middle East, and three from Asia. Half of the studies focused specifically on legislation, while the others focused on speed control measures, educational interventions, enforcement, road improvement, community programs, or a multifaceted intervention.ConclusionLegislation was the most common intervention evaluated with the best outcomes when combined with strong enforcement initiatives or as part of a multifaceted approach. Because speed control is crucial to crash and injury prevention, road improvement interventions in LMIC settings should carefully consider how the impact of improvements will affect speed and traffic flow. Further road traffic injury prevention interventions should be performed in LMICs with patient-centered outcomes in order to guide injury prevention in these complex settings.

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the most common cause of death and disability globally disproportionately affecting low- and middle-income countries where increasing injury rates are compounded by limited quality care. The objective of this study is to describe quality of care for TBI patients who presented to Kilimanjaro Christian Medical Center, Moshi, Tanzania. We evaluated a prospective quality improvement TBI registry that enrolled consecutive patients with acute TBI. Descriptive statistics and qualitative comparative analysis was performed. Overall, 893 TBI patients were enrolled during the study period, with a mean age of 32.1 years and who were mostly (80%) male. 12.9% suffered severe TBI (GCS < 9). Most injuries were road traffic (66%) especially motorcyclists (49%) and 26.8% were alcohol related. One intubation occurred, and 22.9% of hypoxic patients received oxygen. Severe TBI mortality was 47%. TBI affects men 15-45 years old in traffic crashes with high mortality for severe TBI (47%) patients. Care addressing secondary injury, hypoxemia, and hypotension is limited.

PurposeLittle is known about the prevalence of pediatric surgical conditions in low- and middle-income countries. Many children never seek medical care, thus the true prevalence of surgical conditions in children in Uganda is unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of surgical conditions in children in Uganda.MethodsUsing the Surgeons OverSeas Assessment of Surgical Need (SOSAS) survey, we enumerated 4248 individuals in 2315 households in 105 randomly selected clusters throughout Uganda. Children aged 0–18 were included if randomly selected from the household; for those who could not answer for themselves, parents served as surrogates.ResultsOf 2176 children surveyed, 160 (7.4 %) reported a currently untreated surgical condition. Lifetime prevalence of surgical conditions was 14.0 % (305/2176). The predominant cause of surgical conditions was trauma (48.4 %), followed by wounds (19.7 %), acquired deformities (16.2 %), and burns (12.5 %). Of 90 pediatric household deaths, 31.1 % were associated with a surgically treatable proximate cause of death (28/90 deaths).ConclusionAlthough some trauma-related surgical burden among children can be adequately addressed at district hospitals, the need for diagnostics, human resources, and curative services for more severe trauma cases, congenital deformities, and masses outweighs the current capacity of hospitals and trained pediatric surgeons in Uganda.

IntroductionBreast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death among women.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to analyze time trends in overall mortality from breast cancer in Brazil, Brazilian regions and States.MethodsThis is an exploratory study, of the time series of deaths from breast cancer contained in the Mortality Information System (SIM), of women living in Brazil, Brazilian regions and States, from 1996 to 2013. For the trend analysis, the polynomial regression model was used, and a significant trend was considered when the estimated model obtained a p value <0.05.ResultsThere was a tendency of increased mortality from breast cancer in Brazilian women (average increase of 0.18 per year; p <0.001), with regional differences, particularly in the age group 20–49 years (0.07 per year; p <0.001). The age group 50–69 years remained constant but had high average rates (37.14).ConclusionMore effective planning is needed to focus on the different scenarios of the Brazilian regions. Screening strategies for the incidence and mortality from breast cancer must also be rethought according to age group in the country.

BackgroundTrends in the prevalence of acute myocardial infarction in sub-Saharan Africa have not been well described, despite growing recognition of the increasing burden of cardiovascular disease in low- and middle-income countries. The aim of this systematic review was to describe the prevalence of acute myocardial infarction in sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsWe searched PubMed, EMBASE, Global Health Archive, CINAHL, and Web of Science, and conducted reference and citation analyses. Inclusion criteria were: observational studies, studies that reported incidence or prevalence of acute myocardial infarction, studies conducted in sub-Saharan Africa, and studies that defined acute myocardial infarction by EKG changes or elevation of cardiac biomarkers. Studies conducted prior to 1992 were excluded. Two independent reviewers analyzed titles and abstracts, full-texts, and references and citations. These reviewers also performed quality assessment and data extraction. Quality assessment was conducted with a validated scale for observational studies.FindingsOf 2292 records retrieved, seven studies met all inclusion criteria. These studies included a total of 92,378 participants from highly heterogeneous study populations in five different countries. Methodological quality assessment demonstrated scores ranging from 3 to 7 points (on an 8-point scale). Prevalence of acute myocardial infarction ranged from 0.1 to 10.4% among the included studies.InterpretationThere is insufficient population-based data describing the prevalence of acute myocardial infarction in sub-Saharan Africa. Well-designed registries and surveillance studies that capture the broad and diverse population with acute myocardial infarction in sub-Saharan Africa using common diagnostic criteria are critical in order to guide prevention and treatment strategies.RegistrationRegistered in International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) Database #CRD42012003161.

BackgroundRoad traffic injuries (RTIs) are the eighth-leading cause of death worldwide, with low- and middle-income countries sharing a disproportionate number of fatalities. African countries, like Rwanda, carry a higher burden of these fatalities and with increased economic growth, these numbers are expected to rise. We aim to describe the epidemiology of RTIs in Kigali Province, Rwanda and create a hotspot map of crashes from police data.MethodsRoad traffic crash (RTC) report data from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013 was collected from Kigali Traffic Police. In addition to analysis of descriptive data, locations of RTCs were mapped and analyzed through exploratory spatial data analysis to determine hotspots.ResultsA total of 2589 of RTCs were reported with 4689 total victims. The majority of victims were male (94.7 %) with an average age of 35.9 years. Cars were the most frequent vehicle involved (43.8 %), followed by motorcycles (14.5 %). Motorcycles had an increased risk of involvement in grievous crashes and pedestrians and cyclists were more likely to have grievous injuries. The hotspots identified were primarily located along the major roads crossing Kigali and the two busiest downtown areas.ConclusionsDespite significant headway by the government in RTC prevention, there continue to be high rates of RTIs in Rwanda, specifically with young males and a vulnerable road user population, such as pedestrians and motorcycle users. Improvements in police data and reporting by laypersons could prove valuable for further geographic information system analysis and efforts towards crash prevention and targeting education to motorcycle taxis could help reduce RTIs in a severely affected population.

IntroductionBreast cancer remains an important public health problem that is responsible for high morbidity and mortality rates, especially in developing countries.ObjectiveTo analyze the socioeconomic and access disparities related to breast cancer mortality in 399 cities in the state of Parana, Brazil.MethodsEcological, descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study based on secondary data from the Mortality Information System from 2009 to 2012 in the state of Parana. Breast cancer mortality rate was calculated considering the mortality cases and women population of each municipality, both based on women older than 20 years old. Moran global and local analyses were used to verify the presence of spatial autocorrelation and spatial regression modeling (Spatial Lag—SAR) with the purpose of analyzing the association between socioeconomic indicators, access and mortality rates for breast cancer.ResultsSignificant positive spatial autocorrelation was found for breast cancer mortality rates (I = 0.5432, p = 0.001). In the spatial regression analysis, the model explained 61% of the variance of the mortality rates for breast cancer. The mortality rate for breast cancer was negatively associated with the illiteracy rate (Coefficient = -0.0279) and positively associated with the access index (Coefficient = 12.9525).ConclusionThe lower illiteracy rate has not been sufficient to reduce the specific mortality rate by breast cancer, and the higher the score of accessibility to cancer services, the higher the specific mortality due to breast cancer. The results show that in the state of Parana, the problem is not related to a lack of education of the patients or the distance walked, but rather with the organization of services. These conclusions have important political implications on the organization and quality of the services provided for the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer in the state of Parana.

Road traffic injuries (RTIs) continue to increase with the proliferation of motor vehicles, especially in low-income countries where safe road infrastructure is lacking Knowing where and why RTIs occur would allow for increased safety and prevention planning. In this study, police records of 300 motor vehicle collisions which occurred between February 2013 and January 2014 in Moshi, Tanzania, were reviewed. Analysis of variables including victim age, gender, type of collision, conditions, and use of safety equipment were analyzed. Geographic information system (GIS) analysis was performed to identify areas with the most collisions. Most injuries occurred at four intersections on two main corridor. Car crashes represented 48% of reports while motorcycle collisions were 35% of reports. Victims were predominantly male. The majority (64%) of RTI victims in cars used seatbelts while only 43% of motorcyclists wore helmets; none of those who used the helmet or seatbelt suffered a grievous injury. These data demonstrate that RTIs in Moshi occur in predictable high traffic locations. RTIs injure victims of all backgrounds and safety equipment is not universally utilized. More investment is needed in improved data collection methods, and a greater emphasis on intersection safety is needed to reduce these preventable injuries.