Category Archives: Epidemiology and Determinants of Health
Diagnostic performance of the HCV core Antigen test to identify hepatitis C in HIV-infected patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis
The standard algorithm for diagnosing hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection has two steps, an HCV antibody test for screening and a nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) for confirmation. However, the...
Chinese herbal medicine for drug-induced liver injury in patients with HIV/AIDS: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials
BACKGROUND: To explore the effectiveness and safety of Chinese herbal medicine (CHM) for drug-induced liver injury (DILI) in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). METHODS: A systematic...
Chemsex and chemsex associated substance use among men who have sex with men in Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of chemsex has been reported by multiple systematic reviews among men who have sex with men (MSM) focussing predominantly on the Global North. An Asian perspective with...
Anti-cytomegalovirus preemptive therapy to prevent cytomegalovirus disease in HIV-infected patients: A systematic review
BACKGROUND: HIV patients are at higher risk of contracting and developing into an asymptomatic form of CMV infection. This review aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of preemptive therapy...
Accuracy of self-diagnosis in conditions commonly managed in primary care: Diagnostic accuracy systematic review and meta-analysis
OBJECTIVES: To assess the diagnostic accuracy of self-diagnosis compared with a clinical diagnosis for common conditions in primary care. DESIGN: Systematic review. DATA SOURCES: Medline, Embase, Cochrane CENTRAL, Cochrane Database...
The impacts of COVID-19 pandemic on service delivery and treatment outcomes in people living with HIV: A systematic review
INTRODUCTION: The COVID-19 epidemic and various control and mitigation measures to combat the widespread outbreak of the disease may affect other parts of health care systems. There is a concern...
A review of factors associated with methadone maintenance treatment adherence and retention in Vietnam
BACKGROUND: Starting in 2008, Vietnam’s national MMT program expanded quickly, but it is struggling with increasing attrition rates and poor adherence among patients. Several studies have reported on MMT retention...
Associations between the prevalence of chronic hepatitis B among people who inject drugs and country-level characteristics: An ecological analysis
Introduction: Globally, hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a leading cause of liver disease. People who inject drugs (PWID) are at greater risk than the general population of contracting HBV. This risk...
Prevalence of sexualized drug use and risk of HIV among sexually active MSM in East and South Asian countries: Systematic review and meta-analysis
Introduction: Sexualized drug use (SDU), the use of psychoactive drugs in the context of sexual intercourse, has been identified as a risk factor for HIV among men who have sex with...
Interventions to increase the uptake and continuation of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) by adolescent girls and young women at high risk of HIV in low-income and middle-income countries: A scoping review
INTRODUCTION: Effective strategies to increase pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) uptake and continuation among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) who engage in sex work or transactional sex are sparsely reported. We...
Integrating pre-exposure prophylaxis of HIV infection into family planning services: A scoping review
INTRODUCTION: The aim of this review was to map evidence of integrating pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention into family planning services. A comprehensive package, using a combination of PrEP...
