HIV infection significantly increases severe malnutrition case death. WHO guidelines for the management of severe malnutrition in high HIV prevalence settings need to be modified to include routine HIV and TB testing and offer guidance on the criteria and timing of TB treatment and highly active antiretroviral therapy initiation.
Aim: To identify risk factors for severe childhood malnutrition in a rural South African district with a high HIV/AIDS prevalence. Design: Case-control study. Setting: Bushbuckridge District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Participants: 100 children with severe malnutrition (marasmus, kwashiorkor, and marasmic kwashiorkor) were compared with 200 better nourished (w22 SD weight-for-age) controls, matched by age and village of residence. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted on a variety of biological and social risk factors. Results: HIV status was known only for a minority of cases (39%), of whom 87% were HIV positive, while 45% of controls were stunted. In multivariate analysis, risk factors for severe malnutrition included suspicion of HIV in the family (parents or children) (OR 217.7, 95% CI 22.7-2091.3), poor weaning practices (OR 3.0, 95% CI 2.0-4.6), parental death (OR 38.0, 95% CI 3.8-385.3), male sex (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.2-6.0), and higher birth order (third child or higher) (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.0-5.1). Protective factors included a diverse food intake (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.41-0.67) and receipt of a state child support grant (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.20-0.97). A borderline association existed for family wealth (OR 0.9 per unit, 95% CI 0.83-1.0), father smoking marijuana (OR 3.9, 95% CI 1.1-14.5), and history of a pulmonary tuberculosis contact (OR 3.2, 95% CI 0.9-11.0). Conclusions: Despite the increasing contribution of HIV to the development of severe malnutrition, traditional risk factors such as poor nutrition, parental disadvantage and illness, poverty, and social inequity remain important contributors to the prevalence of severe malnutrition. Interventions aiming to prevent and reduce severe childhood malnutrition in high HIV prevalence settings need to encompass the various dimensions of the disease: nutritional, economic, and social, and address the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.
Background. The implementation of early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) remains a challenge in developing countries, despite the known benefits. Objectives. To investigate challenges encountered during implementation of universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) at a secondarylevel public hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa. Methods. A prospective cohort study design that assessed the feasibility of conducting UNHS was adopted. This feasibility assessment was conducted during a 3-month period, and all challenges encountered were identified and documented. Screening time was also recorded for each neonate. Data were entered into Excel, and later analysed using Stata version 11. Results. Of 2 740 neonates born during the study period, 490 (17.9%) were identified for screening, and distortion product otoacoustic emissions screening was conducted on 121 (4.4%). The majority (74.4%) were screened in the first 24 hours of life. Repeat screening was required in 57 (47.1%) neonates, but only 20 returned for follow-up. The most important challenges to the feasibility of UNHS implementation were the insufficient number of audiologists available to provide screening, the high rate of false positive test results and the unacceptably high rates of loss to follow-up. Two modifiable factors, namely the presence of vernix caseosa in the external ear canal and high ambient noise levels, were found to have significantly influenced the screening process. Conclusion.The identified challenges are important considerations for any successful implementation of universal screening protocols. Careful planning to mitigate the challenges will have a positive impact on EHDI initiatives in these contexts.
Background The Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) issued early hearing detection and intervention guidelines, which has universal newborn hearing screening (UNHS) as one of the important goals. Despite established evidence of the importance of UNHS globally, there has been no mandated formalised and standardised implementation as yet in South Africa. Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the outcomes of newborn hearing screening (NHS) in an academic secondary level hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa. Methods This was a prospective non-experimental feasibility study over a 3-month period, involving conducting hearing screening of 121 neonates. Audiologists conducted a risk factor assessment, otoscopic examinations and distortion product otoacoustic emissions (DPOAEs) screening on each neonate, with follow-up appointments for re-screening and diagnostic audiological assessments for all neonates with refer findings. Data were analysed using STATA intercooled version 11 © , through both descriptive and inferential statistics (Fisher’s exact test), with significance established where p -values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results Of the 121 neonates screened, the majority (75%) were screened in the first 24 h of life. A high refer rate (47%) of the total sample was found on DPOAE screening. No maternal or neonatal risk factors were found to be significantly associated with refer findings. Conclusion Findings contribute towards the existing evidence base that raises implications for successful implementation of NHS programmes in public healthcare in South Africa. Screening protocols need to consider the timing of screening, the measures and procedures adopted in the screening protocols, as well as the follow-up strategies.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.