Journal of the International AIDS Society, vol. 21 Issue no. 6 e 25142
Weaknesses in care programmes providing anti‐retroviral therapy (ART) persist and are often instigated by late HIV diagnosis and poor linkage to care. We investigated the potential for a home‐based counselling and testin...g (HBCT) campaign to be improved through the optimal timing and enhancement of testing rounds to generate greater health outcomes at minimum cost.
Countries implementing HBCT can reduce costs by optimally timing rounds and generate greater health outcomes through improving linkage, coverage, and retention. Tailoring HBCT campaigns to individual settings can enhance patient outcomes for minimal cost.
https://doi.org/10.1002/jia2.25142
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This study aimed to understand the patterns of HIV drug resistance in pregnant women in Mozambique. This might help in tailoring optimal regimens for prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV (pMTCT) and antenatal care.
The first important change is a new priority ranking of the available medicines for MDR-TB treatment, based on a careful balance between expected benefits and harms. Treatment success for MDR-TB is currently low in many countries. This could be increased by improving access to the highest-ranked med...icines for all patients with MDR-TB.
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This scoping study done in Myanmar offers the chance for FoodSTART+ to explore prospects for future partnerships in another important country of the region. The study was done from October 2016 to February 2017 and included visits to selected major potato and cassava production areas to meet with re...spective stakeholders and market actors.
Although root and tuber crop (RTC) production in Myanmar has gradually increased since the late 1990s, they still lag behind the other major crops like rice. No RTCs are included in the country’s list of primary important crops even though potatoes are regularly consumed in daily meals while other common RTCs like cassava, elephant foot yam and sweetpotato are consumed occasionally. RTCs primarily contribute to food security and livelihoods through the income generated from their sale, whether fresh or processed, rather than directly through consumption.
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A large meta-analysis of observational studies that provided the basis for the recent makeover of global recommendations for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) treatment shows that newer and repurposed drugs produced better outcomes and fewer deaths than older treatments.
The meta-analysis... of 50 studies involving 12,000 patients from 25 countries, published yesterday in The Lancet, found that bedaquiline, linezolid, levofloxacin, and moxifloxacin were associated with greater treatment success and reduced mortality compared with the previously recommended first-line treatments, while clofazimine and carbapenem antibiotics were associated with significantly improved treatment outcomes (but not reduced mortality)
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The new WHO recommendations for the treatment of isoniazid-resistant, rifampicin-susceptible TB are based upon a review of evidence from patients treated with such regimens by a Guideline Development Group in conformity with WHO requirements for evidence-based policies.
Robust clinical research capacity in low- and middle-income countries is key to stemming the spread of epidemics, according to a new report from the International Vaccines Task Force (IVTF). The report lays out how to develop the political support, financing and coordination required to build this c...apacity as a crucial component of global epidemic preparedness. The IVTF was convened by the World Bank Group (WBG) and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) in October 2017.
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A new formulation of a drug to prevent excessive bleeding following childbirth could save thousands of women’s lives in low- and lower-middle-income countries, according to a study led by the World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with MSD for Mothers and Ferring Pharmaceuticals.
Curren...tly WHO recommends oxytocin as the first-choice drug for preventing excessive bleeding after childbirth. Oxytocin, however, must be stored and transported at 2–8 degrees Celsius, which is hard to do, in many countries, depriving many women of access to this lifesaving drug. When they can obtain it, the drug may be less effective because of heat exposure.
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Web annex 6: Injectable prostaglandins versus
placebo or no treatment
Evidence to Decision Framework
Web annex 5: Oxytocin and ergometrine versus placebo or no treatment
Evidence to decision framework
Web annex 2: Carbetocin versus placebo or no treatment
Evidence to decision framework
The reports bring together the latest findings and conclusions about the state of resistance to artemisinins and artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), summarize WHO’s current policy and treatment recommendations, and highlight areas of concern.
Current and expected problems such as ageing, increased prevalence of chronic conditions and multi-morbidity, increased emphasison healthy lifestyle and prevention, and substitution for care from hospitals by care provided in the community encourage countries worldwide to develop new models of prima...ry care delivery. Owing to the fact that many tasks do not necessarily require the knowledge and skills of a doctor, interest in using nurses to expand the capacity of the primary care workforce is increasing. Substitution of nurses for doctors is one strategy used to improve access, efficiency, and quality of care. This is the first update of the Cochrane review published in 2005.
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