scholarly journals Newborn and Infant Hearing Screening Facing Globally Growing Numbers of People Suffering from Disabling Hearing Loss

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrin Neumann ◽  
Shelly Chadha ◽  
George Tavartkiladze ◽  
Xingkuan Bu ◽  
Karl White
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Data Transfer ◽  
Hearing Screening ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
National Committee ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Screening Programs ◽  
The World

Recent prevalence estimates indicate that in 2015 almost half a billion people—about 6.8% of the world’s population—had disabling hearing loss and that prevalence numbers will further increase. The World Health Organization (WHO) currently estimates that at least 34 million children under the age of 15 have disabling hearing loss. Based on a 2012 WHO report, approximately 7.5 million of these children were under the age of 5 years. This review article focuses on the importance of high-quality newborn and infant hearing screening (NIHS) programs as one strategy to ameliorate disabling hearing loss as a global health problem. Two WHO resolutions regarding the prevention of deafness and hearing loss have been adopted urging member states to implement screening programs for early identification of ear diseases and hearing loss in babies and young children. The effectiveness of these programs depends on factors such as governmental mandates and guidance; presence of a national committee with involvement of professionals, industries, and stakeholders; central oversight of hearing screening; clear definition of target parameters; presence of tracking systems with bi-directional data transfer from screening devices to screening centers; accessibility of pediatric audiological services and rehabilitation programs; using telemedicine where connectivity is available; and the opportunity for case discussions in professional excellence circles with boards of experts. There is a lack of such programs in middle- and low-income countries, but even in high-income countries there is potential for improvement. Facing the still growing burden of disabling hearing loss around the world, there is a need to invest in national, high-quality NIHS programs.

scholarly journals Medical waste: the dark side of healthcare

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 (suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 231-251
Author(s):  
Iris Borowy
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Medical Waste ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Dark Side ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Quality Healthcare ◽  
Healthcare Waste ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

Abstract Hospitals and other health facilities generate an ever-increasing amount of waste, approximately 15% of which may be infectious, toxic, or radioactive. The World Health Organization has been addressing the issue since the 1980s. After initially focusing on high-income countries, it then focused on low-income countries, with unsafe disposal methods in landfills and inadequate incinerators as major concerns. Gradually, the understanding of the issue has undergone several shifts, including from a focus on the component of medical waste considered “hazardous” to all forms of waste, and from accepting medical waste as a necessary downside of high-quality healthcare to seeing the avoidance of healthcare waste as a component of high quality healthcare.

scholarly journals Tuberculosis and Non-Communicable Disease Multimorbidity: An Analysis of the World Health Survey in 48 Low- and Middle-Income Countries

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2439
Author(s):  
Brendon Stubbs ◽  
Kamran Siddiqi ◽  
Helen Elsey ◽  
Najma Siddiqi ◽  
Ruimin Ma ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Survey ◽  
Low Income ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Multivariable Logistic Regression Analysis ◽  
World Health Survey ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Middle Income Countries ◽  
The World ◽  
Low And Middle Income

Tuberculosis (TB) is a leading cause of mortality in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). TB multimorbidity [TB and ≥1 non-communicable diseases (NCDs)] is common, but studies are sparse. Cross-sectional, community-based data including adults from 21 low-income countries and 27 middle-income countries were utilized from the World Health Survey. Associations between 9 NCDs and TB were assessed with multivariable logistic regression analysis. Years lived with disability (YLDs) were calculated using disability weights provided by the 2017 Global Burden of Disease Study. Eight out of 9 NCDs (all except visual impairment) were associated with TB (odds ratio (OR) ranging from 1.38–4.0). Prevalence of self-reported TB increased linearly with increasing numbers of NCDs. Compared to those with no NCDs, those who had 1, 2, 3, 4, and ≥5 NCDs had 2.61 (95% confidence interval (CI) = 2.14–3.22), 4.71 (95%CI = 3.67–6.11), 6.96 (95%CI = 4.95–9.87), 10.59 (95%CI = 7.10–15.80), and 19.89 (95%CI = 11.13–35.52) times higher odds for TB. Among those with TB, the most prevalent combinations of NCDs were angina and depression, followed by angina and arthritis. For people with TB, the YLDs were three times higher than in people without multimorbidity or TB, and a third of the YLDs were attributable to NCDs. Urgent research to understand, prevent and manage NCDs in people with TB in LMICs is needed.

Improving life after stroke needs global efforts to implement evidence-based physical activity pathways

2019 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 457-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frederike van Wijck ◽  
Julie Bernhardt ◽  
Sandra A Billinger ◽  
Marie-Louise Bird ◽  
Janice Eng ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Recurrent Stroke ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Preliminary Evidence ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Active Lifestyle ◽  
High Quality ◽  
The World

There is an urgent need to improve life after stroke across the world—especially in low-income countries—through methods that are effective, equitable and sustainable. This paper highlights physical activity (PA) as a prime candidate for implementation. PA reduces modifiable risk factors for first and recurrent stroke and improves function and activity during rehabilitation and following discharge. Preliminary evidence also indicates PA is cost-effective. This compelling evidence urgently needs to be translated into seamless pathways to enable stroke survivors across the world to engage in a more active lifestyle. Although more quality research is needed—particularly on how to optimize uptake and maintenance of PA—this should not delay implementation of high-quality evidence already available. This paper shares examples of best practice service models from low-, middle-, and high-income countries around the world. The authors call for a concerted effort to implement high-quality PA services to improve life after stroke for all.

scholarly journals Field Evaluation of Xpert HPV Point-of-Care Test for Detection of Human Papillomavirus Infection by Use of Self-Collected Vaginal and Clinician-Collected Cervical Specimens

2016 ◽  
Vol 54 (7) ◽  
pp. 1734-1737 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Toliman ◽  
S. G. Badman ◽  
J. Gabuzzi ◽  
S. Silim ◽  
L. Forereme ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Papillomavirus ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Cervical Screening ◽  
Field Evaluation ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
High Burden ◽  
Screening Programs ◽  
Hpv Test

The World Health Organization has recommended that testing for high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) (hrHPV) infection be incorporated into cervical screening programs in all settings worldwide. In many high-burden, low-income countries, it will not be feasible to achieve high cervical screening coverage using hrHPV assays that require clinician-collected samples. We conducted the first evaluation of self-collected vaginal specimens compared with clinician-collected cervical specimens for the detection of hrHPV infection using the Xpert HPV test. Women aged 30 to 54 years attending two well-woman clinics in Papua New Guinea were invited to participate and provided self-collected vaginal and clinician-collected cervical cytobrush specimens. Both specimen types were tested at the point of care by using the Xpert HPV test. Women were given their cervical test result the same day. Those with a positive hrHPV test and positive examination upon visual inspection of the cervix with acetic acid were offered same-day cervical cryotherapy. A total of 1,005 women were enrolled, with 124 (12.3%; 95% confidence interval [CI], 10.3%, 14.4%) being positive for any hrHPV infection. There was a 99.4% overall percent agreement (OPA) between vaginal and cervical tests for HPV-16 (95% CI, 98.9%, 99.9%), a 98.5% OPA for HPV-18/45 (95% CI, 97.7%, 99.3%), a 94.4% OPA for other hrHPV infections (95% CI, 92.9%, 95.9%), and a 93.4% OPA for all hrHPV types combined (95% CI, 91.8%, 95.0%). Self-collected vaginal specimens had excellent agreement with clinician-collected cervical specimens for the detection of hrHPV infection using the Xpert HPV test. This approach provides for the first time an opportunity to incorporate point-of-care hrHPV testing into clinical cervical screening algorithms in high-burden, low-income settings.

scholarly journals Democratizing Health Research

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Fraser Terry ◽  
Erik Lieungh
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Royal Society ◽  
Research Policy ◽  
Cultural Barriers ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Research Assessment ◽  
The World ◽  
New Research ◽  
And Training

Is it fair that researchers and policymakers in low-income countries have to pay to read new research on diseases they treat? Today's guest is Robert Terry from the World Health Organization’s Special Programme for Research and Training in Tropical Diseases (TDR), where he works as a manager of research policy. His background is from both the Royal Society and the Wellcome Trust. For Terry, achieving open access requires addressing barriers across political, technical and cultural barriers, with the culture of research assessment and reward needing the biggest change to democratizing science. The host of this episode is Erik Lieungh. This episode was first published 16 December 2019.

scholarly journals Mitotic Poisons in Research and Medicine

Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (20) ◽  
pp. 4632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Škubník ◽  
Michal Jurášek ◽  
Tomáš Ruml ◽  
Silvie Rimpelová
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Cancer Therapeutics ◽  
Modern Medicine ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Cancer Therapies ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Treatment Services ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

Cancer is one of the greatest challenges of the modern medicine. Although much effort has been made in the development of novel cancer therapeutics, it still remains one of the most common causes of human death in the world, mainly in low and middle-income countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer treatment services are not available in more then 70% of low-income countries (90% of high-income countries have them available), and also approximately 70% of cancer deaths are reported in low-income countries. Various approaches on how to combat cancer diseases have since been described, targeting cell division being among them. The so-called mitotic poisons are one of the cornerstones in cancer therapies. The idea that cancer cells usually divide almost uncontrolled and far more rapidly than normal cells have led us to think about such compounds that would take advantage of this difference and target the division of such cells. Many groups of such compounds with different modes of action have been reported so far. In this review article, the main approaches on how to target cancer cell mitosis are described, involving microtubule inhibition, targeting aurora and polo-like kinases and kinesins inhibition. The main representatives of all groups of compounds are discussed and attention has also been paid to the presence and future of the clinical use of these compounds as well as their novel derivatives, reviewing the finished and ongoing clinical trials.

scholarly journals Treatment of suicidal people around the world

2011 ◽  
Vol 199 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Bruffaerts ◽  
K. Demyttenaere ◽  
I. Hwang ◽  
W.-T. Chiu ◽  
N. Sampson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Suicide Ideation ◽  
Medical Practitioner ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Structural Barriers ◽  
General Medical Practitioner ◽  
The World

BackgroundSuicide is a leading cause of death worldwide; however, little information is available about the treatment of suicidal people, or about barriers to treatment.AimsTo examine the receipt of mental health treatment and barriers to care among suicidal people around the world.MethodTwenty-one nationally representative samples worldwide (n=55 302; age 18 years and over) from the World Health Organization's World Mental Health Surveys were interviewed regarding past-year suicidal behaviour and past-year healthcare use. Suicidal respondents who had not used services in the past year were asked why they had not sought care.ResultsTwo-fifths of the suicidal respondents had received treatment (from 17% in low-income countries to 56% in high-income countries), mostly from a general medical practitioner (22%), psychiatrist (15%) or non-psychiatrist (15%). Those who had actually attempted suicide were more likely to receive care. Low perceived need was the most important reason for not seeking help (58%), followed by attitudinal barriers such as the wish to handle the problem alone (40%) and structural barriers such as financial concerns (15%). Only 7% of respondents endorsed stigma as a reason for not seeking treatment.ConclusionsMost people with suicide ideation, plans and attempts receive no treatment. This is a consistent and pervasive finding, especially in low-income countries. Improving the receipt of treatment worldwide will have to take into account culture-specific factors that may influence the process of help-seeking.

scholarly journals The Inequities of Motherhood: The Challenges of Obstetric Anesthesia in Low-Income Countries

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Ricci
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Obstetric Anesthesia ◽  
World Health ◽  
Low Income Countries ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Anesthetic Care ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
The World ◽  
Health Organization

The maternal mortality rate (MMR) is unconscionably high around the world, with women in low to middle income countries (LMICs) disproportionately passing away from potentially preventable causes. While this is a complicated and multifaceted problem, anesthesia has been identified as a contributing cause of death. From the moment the parturient enters the operating room, the anesthetist is responsible for their well-being. This integrative review was designed to further explore relationship between anesthesia and the MMR in LMICs. Twelve articles published within the last 15 years were selected through an extensive literature search using Medline and CINAHL. Each article was examined using the Polit and Beck (2017) assessment criteria followed by a cross table analysis. The results identified common themes across the studies including lack of infrastructure such as access to reliable power, water and oxygen, resources such as medications and basic anesthesia equipment, training focusing on maternal care and anesthesia and continuing education for providers. Knowing these deficiencies in anesthetic care, nurse anesthetists can assist in implementing changes to help reduce the MMR. Recommendations include encouraging hospitals and governments to make updating hospital infrastructure a priority, reaching out to groups such as the World Health Organization who help fund basic equipment such as pulse oximeters, establishing relationships with medical institutions in other regions to provide training and guidance, and focusing on the development of non-physician anesthetist programs to increase the number of proficient providers.

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