Category Archives: Population(s)
HIV infection does not affect the risk of death of COVID-19 patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of epidemiological studies
Background: Even during the current Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the infection with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) continues to pose a major threat, worldwide. In fact, the World Health Organization...
Priorities in the implementation of partner services for HIV/STIs in high-income nations: A narrative review of evidence and recommendations
Partner notification (PN) remains a crucial prevention tool to reduce sexually transmitted infection (STI) transmission and prevent STI-related morbidity. Although there have been a variety of different approaches taken to...
Ingestible electronic sensors for monitoring real-time adherence to HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis and antiretroviral therapy
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: This review summarizes the recent advancements and future directions of digital pill systems (DPS) – which utilize ingestible sensors to directly measure medication ingestion events in real-time...
HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT-HIV) effectiveness for sexual risk-reduction among key populations: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Background: HIV disproportionately affects people who inject drugs, transgender people, sex workers, men who have sex with men, and incarcerated people. Recognized as key populations (KP), these groups face increased impact...
Pediatrics HIV-positive status disclosure and its predictors in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis
INTRODUCTION: HIV-positive status disclosure for children is challenging for family members, guardians, and healthcare professionals. Disclosure is very challenging, particularly for children, yet no systematic synthesis of evidence accurately measures...
Condom use and risk factors of inconsistent or low use of the condoms during heterosexual anal intercourse in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review
BACKGROUND: Anal intercourse (AI) has been reported to be the riskiest among other sexual intercourses in spreading human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and the risk could be minimized by the use...
Screening performance of C-reactive protein for active pulmonary tuberculosis in HIV-positive patients: A systematic review with a meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading infectious cause of mortality worldwide. In the last years, resistant strains of the etiological agent, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, have emerged, thus demanding more triage tests...
The performance of using dried blood spot specimens for HIV-1 viral load testing: A systematic review and meta-analysis
BACKGROUND: Accurate routine HIV viral load testing is essential for assessing the efficacy of antiretroviral treatment (ART) regimens and the emergence of drug resistance. While the use of plasma specimens...
The HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis continuum of care among women who inject drugs: A systematic review
INTRODUCTION: People who inject drugs have a substantial risk for HIV infection, especially women who inject drugs (WWID). HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), a highly-effective HIV prevention drug, is uncommonly studied...
The demographic and socioeconomic correlates of behavior and HIV infection status across sub-Saharan Africa
Background: Predisposition to become HIV positive (HIV + ) is influenced by a wide range of correlated economic, environmental, demographic, social, and behavioral factors. While evidence among a candidate handful have...
Multimorbidity of communicable and non-communicable diseases in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review
OBJECTIVE: The aim of this systematic review is to analyse existing evidence on prevalence, patterns, determinants, and healthcare challenges of communicable and non-communicable disease multimorbidity in low- and middle-income countries...
Determinants of voluntary counseling and testing service uptake among adult sub-Saharan Africans: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Objective: To examine the major determinants of VCT service uptake among adults in SSA. Methods: Electronic databases were searched to identify eligible English language publications. Reporting of the study selection...
