Category Archives: Epidemiology and Determinants of Health
Is sexual risk behaviour associated with an increased risk of transfusion-transmissible infections in blood donors from Western and Pacific countries? A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The donor medical questionnaire is designed to aid blood establishments in supporting a safe blood supply. According to blood donor deferral policies, sexual risk behaviour (SRB) leads...
Socio-demographic characteristics and risk factors for HIV transmission in female bar workers in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic literature review
BACKGROUND: Although sex workers are considered a key population in the HIV epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), less consideration has been given to female bar workers (FBW), whose primary occupation...
Adolescent mothers affected by HIV and their children: A scoping review of evidence and experiences from sub-Saharan Africa
While adolescents have received increasing attention in the global HIV response and international strategies and commitments, adolescent mothers and their children remain largely overlooked in research, funding and, programming for...
Delivery of sexual and reproductive health interventions in conflict settings: A systematic review
BACKGROUND: It is essential to provide comprehensive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) interventions to women affected by armed conflict, but there is a lack of evidence on effective approaches to...
Use of the multiplier method to estimate the size of populations most at risk of human immunodeficiency virus infection in China: A systematic review
OBJECTIVE: United Nations Programme on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and World Health Organization believe that some of the benchmark numbers collected may be inaccurate when using the multiplier...
Informing the measurement of wellbeing among young people living with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa for policy evaluations: A mixed-methods systematic review
Young people living with HIV (YPLHIV) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) are at high risk of having a poor quality of life. Addressing wellbeing explicitly within HIV/AIDS policies could assist mitigation...
Burden of Talaromyces marneffei infection in people living with HIV/AIDS in Asia during ART era: A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Talaromyces marneffei (TM) is a dimorphic fungus mainly prevalent in Southeast Asian countries, which often causes disseminated life-threatening infection. TM infection often occurs in HIV/AIDS patients even in the...
Cryptococcal antigenemia and its predictors among HIV infected patients in resource limited settings: A systematic review
BACKGROUND: Cryptococcosis is an opportunistic fungal infection that primarily affects people with advanced HIV/AIDS and is an important cause of morbidity and mortality around the globe. By far the most...
A systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the association between urogenital schistosomiasis and HIV/AIDS infection
BACKGROUND: Urogenital schistosomiasis and HIV/AIDS infections are widespread in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) leading to substantial morbidity and mortality. The co-occurrence of both diseases has led to the possible hypothesis that...
The prevalence of cryptococcal antigen (CrAg) and benefits of pre-emptive antifungal treatment among HIV-infected persons with CD4+ T-cell counts < 200 cells/muL: Evidence based on a meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Current WHO guidelines (2018) recommend screening for cryptococcal antigen (CrAg) in HIV-infected persons with CD4+ T cell counts< 100 cells/muL, followed by pre-emptive antifungal therapy among CrAg positive (CrAg+)...
