Sexual norms, real or perceived, shape young people's sexual behaviour and may constitute one of the greatest challenges in HIV/STIs prevention among this population. This study used sexual script ...theory to explore how international students in Sydney, Australia - from traditional cultures of East Asian and sub-Saharan African countries - construct home backgrounds and Australian sexual norms and how this may shape their sexual practices during their studies in Australia.
The study involved face-to-face and telephone semi-structured in-depth interviews. Data were provided by 20 international students who are enrolled in various universities in Sydney. Interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, coded into NVivo and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.
Identified patterns in the data showed three themes through which participants perceive sexual norms in Australia as distinctly different from their home country norms. First, participants stated that unlike their home country norms, sexual norms in Australia are permissive. Second, participants hold the view that compared to their home country norms, sex in Australia is largely casual as it is not always attached to love. Some participants revealed that this could shape their own sexual practices during their studies in Australia. Finally, participants noted that compared to their home countries' norm of sex talk taboo, Australia has an open sexual communication norm; which they believe, enables young people in western societies to easily acquire sexual health information.
Findings provide evidence to support a need for contextualized and effective sexual health services for international students that take account of perceptions around sexual norms and how they can be modified to ensure that sexual practices which these students may engage in, will be managed in a safe and responsible manner.
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Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Incidence and prevalence of blood-borne viruses and sexually transmissible infections among young people continue to necessitate population-based studies to understand how contextualised sexual ...health services can be developed and implemented to promote protective behaviours such as consistent condom use. This study examined condomless sexual practice among a sample of East Asian and sub-Saharan African international university students in Sydney, Australia.
This qualitative study was methodologically guided by interpretative phenomenological analysis. Data was provided by 20 international students sampled from five universities in Sydney, who participated in either face-to-face or telephone semi-structured in-depth interviews. The interview sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim, coded in NVivo and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.
Condomless sexual practices appear to be common among the study group based on participants' self-reports of their own practices and the practices of friends and peers. Three themes contextualising condomless among the study participants were generated from the interview transcripts: (1) unanticipated sex, condom related stigma and alcohol use (2) pleasure-seeking, curiosity and intimacy (3) condomless sex as a gendered practice.
The result of this study has implications for public health research, practice and policy around design, implementation and evaluation of multi-layered and population-specific sexual health services that are tailored to addressing the needs of international students, who migrate from traditional sexual cultures to Australia, where sexual norms are more liberal.
Though women in sub-Saharan Africa have increased risk of intimate sexual violence, research on the association between sexual autonomy and intimate partner violence among this population has not ...received the requisite attention. Consequently, we investigated if sexual autonomy is a protective factor against intimate partner violence among women in sub-Saharan Africa. Secondary data analysis was conducted based on the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHSs) of 27 sub-Saharan African countries from 2008 to 2021. A total of 104,523 married or cohabitating women were included in the study. We applied a multilevel Poisson regression model with robust variance to identify associated factors. Variables with a p-value<0.2 in the bi-variable multilevel Poisson regression analysis were considered for the multivariable analysis. The Adjusted Prevalence Ratio (APR) with its 95% confidence interval (CI) was reported, and variables with a p-value <0.05 were included in the multivariable analysis. The prevalence of intimate partner violence and sexual autonomy among women in SSA were 32.96% 95% CI: 32.68%, 33.25% and 88.79% 95% CI: 88.59%, 88.97%, respectively. Women in Sierra Leone had the highest prevalence of IPV (52.71%) while Comoros had the lowest prevalence of IPV (8.09%). The prevalence of sexual autonomy was highest in Namibia (99.22%) and lowest in Mali (61.83%). The MOR value in the null model was 1.26. We found that women who had sexual autonomy are 1.28 times APR = 1.28, 95% CI: 1.17, 1.40 more likely to experience IPV than women who had no sexual autonomy. This study has demonstrated that sexual autonomy is significantly associated with intimate partner violence, however, it does not necessarily act as a protective factor. The study suggests the need for more education on intimate partner violence targeting women's partners. This can help secure the commitment of the perpetrators to rather become proponents of anti-intimate partner violence and further offer women the necessary support for them to attain their full fundamental rights in all spheres of life.
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Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Communities with diverse ethnicity in high-income countries are disproportionately affected by poor diet-related health outcomes. In England, the United Kingdom's government's healthy eating dietary ...resources are not well accepted and are underutilised among this population. Thus, this study explored perceptions, beliefs, knowledge, and practices around dietary intake among communities with African and South Asian ethnicity residing in Medway, England.
This qualitative study generated data from 18 adults aged 18 and above using a semi-structured interview guide. These participants were sampled using purposive and convenience sampling strategies. All the interviews were conducted in English over the telephone, and responses were thematically analysed.
Six overarching themes were generated from the interview transcripts: eating patterns, social and cultural factors, food preferences and routines, accessibility and availability, health and healthy eating, and perceptions about the United Kingdom government's healthy eating resources.
The results of this study indicate that strategies to improve access to healthy foods are required to improve healthy dietary practices among the study population. Such strategies could help address this group's structural and individual barriers to healthy dietary practices. In addition, developing a culturally responsive eating guide could also enhance the acceptability and utilisation of such resources among communities with ethnic diversity in England.
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Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
BackgroundIron deficiency is a major public health problem that affects the physical and cognitive development of children under 5 years of age (under-5 children) in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). ...However, the factors associated with the limited consumption of iron-rich foods in the region are poorly understood.ObjectiveThis study examined the prevalence and determinants of iron-rich food deficiency among under-5 children in 26 SSA countries.DesignThis nationally representative quantitative study employed pooled data from Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 2010 and 2019.MethodsRepresentative samples comprising 296 850 under-5 children from the various countries were used. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine the associations between the lack of iron-rich food uptake and various sociodemographic factors.ResultThe overall prevalence of iron-rich food deficiency among the children in the entire sample was 56.75%. The prevalence of iron-rich food deficiency varied widely across the 26 countries, ranging from 42.76% in Congo Democratic Republic to 77.50% in Guinea. Maternal education, particularly primary education (OR 0.62, 95% CI 0.57 to 0.68) and higher education (OR 0.58, 95% CI 0.52 to 0.64), demonstrated a reduced likelihood of iron-rich food deficiency in the sample. Likewise, paternal education, with both primary education (OR 0.69, 95% CI 0.63 to 0.75) and higher education (OR 0.66, 95% CI 0.60 to 0.73) showed decreased odds of iron-rich food deficiency. Postnatal visits contributed significantly to reducing the odds of iron-rich food deficiency (OR 0.90, 95% CI 0.83 to 0.95), along with antenatal visits, which also had a positive impact (OR 0.84, 95% CI 0.74 to 0.95). Finally, residents in rural areas showed slightly higher odds of iron-rich food deficiency (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.10 to 1.28).ConclusionBased on the findings, interventions targeting iron-food deficiency in the SSA region should take into strong consideration the key determinants highlighted in this study.
This study assessed the temporal and spatial drought regimes in Kasungu Agricultural Development Division from 1977 to 2017. The previous studies in Malawi only used the Percentile Index such that ...other indices including the timescale standardized precipitation index were not considered for drought analysis. This study bridged this gap by using 3-month and 6-month Standardized Precipitation Indices in Drought Monitoring and Prediction software. This study found that the rainfall patterns are highly variable with decreasing trends as determined by high coefficient of variation values (> 0.5). These variations have subjected the region to frequent mild and moderate meteorological droughts. Based on driest years, the respective maximum drought severities were 5,358 in 1994, 3,638 in 1999, 3,492 in 2005 and 3,112 in 2015. Results suggest that drought severity is highly correlated to the rainfall variations in the corresponding districts. This study recommends usage of timescale indices to aid drought monitoring.
IntroductionAccess and utilisation of sexual and reproductive health services remain an important component in averting adverse sexual and reproductive health outcomes. However, the unprecedented ...emergence of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) left most of these services disrupted in Africa. Thus, this protocol study seeks to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of barriers and facilitators to accessing and using sexual and reproductive health services during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Africa.Method and analysisAn open electronic database search will be conducted in African journals online, PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE and PsycINFO to identify potentially eligible studies published between January 2020 and December 2022. Two authors from the research team will screen the title and abstract of the potential studies, and another two authors will independently assess the full articles based on the inclusion or exclusion criteria. Studies will be selected if they examine barriers and facilitators to accessing and using sexual and reproductive health services, including family planning counselling and services, sexually transmitted infections (STIs)/HIV testing, consultation, and treatment, and provision of abortion services during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Africa. The data extracted from the included studies will be analysed using Review Manager (RevMan V.5) and Meta-Analysis software V.3. Each outcome measure will be analysed separately against barriers and facilitators; the dichotomous data will be presented in odd ratios with a 95% CI, while mean and standardised mean differences will be employed to present the continuous data. We envisage that the potential results of this study will identify the barriers and facilitators to family planning counselling and services, STIs/HIV testing, consultation, and treatment, and provision of abortion services during the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in Africa, which can be used to develop required interventions and policies to curb identified barriers.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval is not required for a systematic review and meta-analysis. Findings from this study will be disseminated through conferences and peer-reviewed publication.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42022373335.
Summary Background Many randomised controlled trials have investigated the effect of adjuvant chemotherapy in operable non-small-cell lung cancer. We undertook two comprehensive systematic reviews ...and meta-analyses to establish the effects of adding adjuvant chemotherapy to surgery, or to surgery plus radiotherapy. Methods We included randomised trials, not confounded by additional therapeutic differences between the two groups and that started randomisation on or after Jan 1, 1965, which compared surgery plus adjuvant chemotherapy versus surgery alone, or surgery plus adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy versus surgery plus adjuvant radiotherapy. Updated individual patient data were collected, checked, and included in meta-analyses stratified by trial. The primary endpoint was overall survival, defined as time from randomisation until death by any cause. All analyses were by intention to treat. Findings The first meta-analysis of surgery plus chemotherapy versus surgery alone was based on 34 trial comparisons and 8447 patients (3323 deaths). We recorded a benefit of adding chemotherapy after surgery (hazard ratio HR 0·86, 95% CI 0·81–0·92, p<0·0001), with an absolute increase in survival of 4% (95% CI 3–6) at 5 years (from 60% to 64%). The second meta-analysis of surgery plus radiotherapy and chemotherapy versus surgery plus radiotherapy was based on 13 trial comparisons and 2660 patients (1909 deaths). We recorded a benefit of adding chemotherapy to surgery plus radiotherapy (HR 0·88, 95% CI 0·81–0·97, p=0·009), representing an absolute improvement in survival of 4% (95% CI 1–8) at 5 years (from 29% to 33%). In both meta-analyses we noted little variation in effect according to the type of chemotherapy, other trial characteristics, or patient subgroup. Interpretation The addition of adjuvant chemotherapy after surgery for patients with operable non-small-cell lung cancer improves survival, irrespective of whether chemotherapy was adjuvant to surgery alone or adjuvant to surgery plus radiotherapy. Funding UK Medical Research Council, Institut Gustave-Roussy, Programme Hospitalier de Recherche Clinique (AOM 05 209), Ligue Nationale Contre le Cancer, and Sanofi-Aventis.
Streptococcus agalactiae or Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality resulting in septicaemia, bacteraemia and meningitis. Long term problems in children ...range from loss of hearing to mental retardation. While Intrapartum Antibiotic Prophylaxis (IAP) has reduced the incidence of S. agalactiae infection, it still remains the leading cause of disease in neonates. GBS has ten capsular types whose distribution varies across the world. Therefore, this study sought to determine the prevalence of GBS in Namibia and South Africa amongst pregnant women between 35 and 37 weeks gestation and elucidate the capsular types.
Lower vaginal and rectal swabs were collected from pregnant women between 35 and 37 weeks gestation. Five hundred and thirty pregnant women were recruited into the study in Windhoek, Namibia while one hundred pregnant women were recruited in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The swabs were cultured on 5% sheep blood agar (Biomerieux, New Jersey, USA) for isolation of GBS. Presumptive isolates were confirmed using both the Vitek (2) and molecular techniques targeting the scpB gene. Capsular typing was performed in a multiplex PCR with capsular specific primer pairs.
The prevalence of GBS in Namibia was 13.6 and 37% in South Africa respectively. In both countries most women were dually colonised with GBS. Capsular types II, III and V were the most prevalent.
The prevalence of GBS in Namibia was lower than in South Africa in this study. The prevalence in both countries was not different from those reported in other African countries and around the world. The predominant capsular types in this study are the ones commonly associated with adverse maternal outcomes.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
The potential role of the transient receptor potential Vanilloid 1 (TRPV1) non-selective cation channel in gastric carcinogenesis remains unclear. The main objective of this study was to evaluate ...TRPV1 expression in gastric cancer (GC) and precursor lesions compared with controls. Patient inclusion was based on a retrospective review of pathology records. Patients were subdivided into five groups: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)-associated gastritis with gastric intestinal metaplasia (GIM) (n = 12), chronic atrophic gastritis (CAG) with GIM (n = 13), H. pylori-associated gastritis without GIM (n = 19), GC (n = 6) and controls (n = 5). TRPV1 expression was determined with immunohistochemistry and was significantly higher in patients with H. pylori-associated gastritis compared with controls (p = 0.002). TRPV1 expression was even higher in the presence of GIM compared with patients without GIM and controls (p < 0.001). There was a complete loss of TRPV1 expression in patients with GC. TRPV1 expression seems to contribute to gastric-mucosal inflammation and precursors of GC, which significantly increases in cancer precursor lesions but is completely lost in GC. These findings suggest TRPV1 expression to be a potential marker for precancerous conditions and a target for individualized treatment. Longitudinal studies are necessary to further address the role of TRPV1 in gastric carcinogenesis.
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