MPH / Department of Public Health / Background: Malaria is a public health issue killing more than 435 000 people in Sub Saharan Africa. In South Africa, malaria is endemic in 3 provinces namely: Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Kwazulu Natal. Limpopo Province contributes more cases than the other provinces in the country. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to assess community knowledge and prevention practices of malaria at Masisi village, in Mutale Municipality, Vhembe District. The study was conducted at Mutale municipality, Vhembe District. Methodology: A quantitative cross-sectional descriptive approach was used. Data was collected using a questionnaire with open and close ended questions. The targeted population was made up of males and females between the ages of 18 to 75. Validity and reliability have been ensured in the study and the results for reliability were 0.85. Pretesting was done in 5 household at Sanari village which is near Masisi village as they share the same characteristics. A sample of 152 participants was selected from the target population by means of systematic sampling and then select them randomly. Questionnaires were used to collect data. There after Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24.0. The analyzed data were presented in tables, graphs, and in percentages. Results: The findings revealed that majority of the participants 103(67.8%) have secondary education, and most of them, 103(67.8%) are unemployed. The study revealed that about 77% have knowledge regarding malaria transmission. About 130(85.5%) indicated that malaria is caused by a mosquito bite. About 57(38.51%) indicated that they use mosquito coils and nets in their household. Conclusion: Malaria still poses a threat to the lives of people living in malaria endemic areas. Community members at Masisi village have better insight regarding malaria transmission, causes and signs and symptoms. Although the community shows a better understanding of the prevention method they still has to put this into practice in order to eliminate malaria in the area. Health workers are doing a great job in educating the community regarding malaria related issues. / NRF

La tuberculose est une maladie contagieuse causée par les bactéries appartenant au complexe Mycobacterium tuberculosis. On estime près de neuf millions de nouveaux cas et un million de décès chaque année dans le monde. De plus, approximativement un tiers de la population mondiale est infecté de manière latente, donc à risque de développer la maladie. Le seul vaccin préventif jusqu’à présent disponible est le Bacille de Calmette-Guérin (BCG). Cependant, son efficacité contre la forme pulmonaire de la maladie, contagieuse et plus fréquente chez l’adulte, est extrêmement variable. Le développement de nouveaux vaccins prophylactiques contre la tuberculose est basé sur une stratégie de remplacement ou d’amélioration de l’actuel vaccin BCG. De nombreux candidats vaccins sous-unitaires sont évalués dans un protocole de vaccination de rappel après le BCG. Ce dernier est en effet administré à plus de 80% des nouveau-nés et des nourrissons des populations à haut risque.<p>Le présent travail a eu pour but principal d’étudier une nouvelle approche de vaccination combinant le Bacille de Calmette-Guérin avec des vaccins sous-unitaires à ADN plasmidique dans différents modèles précliniques.<p>Plusieurs hypothèses tentent d’expliquer la faible efficacité du vaccin BCG, comme la faible induction de réponses immunitaires de type cellulaire T CD8+, le déclin de l’immunité protectrice induite au cours du temps, ou son répertoire antigénique limité. Les vaccins à ADN plasmidique induisant de telles réponses, le travail proposé a consisté au développement d’un nouveau protocole de vaccination basé sur la coadministration par la voie intradermique du vaccin BCG formulé avec un vaccin à ADN plasmidique codant pour un antigène mycobactérien. Nous avons observé dans plusieurs modèles murins (adulte et néonatal) une augmentation significative des réponses cellulaires de type CD4+ Th1 et CD8+, ainsi que de la réponse humorale spécifique. L’immunogénicité de cette approche a également été analysée dans un modèle animal de grande taille, à savoir le modèle porcin. Les résultats obtenus indiquent que les vaccins à ADN plasmidique sont capables d’augmenter les réponses spécifiques à l’antigène codé par le plasmide mais également celles spécifiques à d’autres antigènes exprimés par le vaccin BCG. Enfin, dans la deuxième partie du travail, nous avons développé des vaccins plasmidiques codant pour des combinaisons d’antigènes phase-spécifiques de M. tuberculosis et nous avons analysé leur immunogénicité en modèle murin.<p>En conclusion, nous avons montré que la stratégie de coadministration par la voie intradermique du vaccin BCG avec un vaccin à ADN plasmidique encodant des antigènes mycobactériens s’avère être un protocole de vaccination réaliste et efficace pour améliorer l’immunité induite par le vaccin BCG. Elle offre par ailleurs des perspectives pour être appliquée avec des plasmides codant pour des antigènes caractéristiques de la tuberculose latente, peu reconnus après vaccination BCG, pour protéger à la fois contre la tuberculose active d’une primo-infection et contre la réactivation d’une infection latente. / Doctorat en Sciences / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Plusieurs études à ce jour démontrent que la consommation d’aliments ultra-transformés (AUT) serait associée à une alimentation de faible qualité et à une augmentation du risque de maladies chroniques non-transmissibles (MCNT) et d’obésité. Actuellement, pour les adultes canadiens, il n’existe encore aucun questionnaire permettant de discriminer rapidement entre différents profils de consommateurs d’AUT. Ce mémoire présente donc un projet pilote de développement et de validation initiale d’un Outil pour mesurer la consommation de Produits Ultra-Transformés (le OUTPUT). Pour ce faire, les catégories d’AUT contribuant à 0,5% et plus de l’apport énergétique total des adultes canadiens ont été identifiées d’après les données de consommation nationale (ESCC) de 2015. Ces catégories ont été représentées par des photos d’AUT vendus en épicerie et en restauration rapide. Celles-ci constituaient les deux questionnaires alimentaires simplifiés développés (rappel de 24 heures et questionnaire de fréquence). La validité apparente et de contenu du OUTPUT a été évaluée par un comité d’experts, avec la méthode Delphi. Deux tours d’enquête ont été nécessaires pour observer un consensus (fixé à 80% et plus) quant aux dimensions évaluées. La validité apparente de l’outil a ensuite été évaluée par 11 membres de la communauté de l’UdeM. Les données recueillies à travers cette étude pilote ont permis d’émettre des recommandations pour l’étude future de développement et de validation de l’outil. Une fois validé, celui-ci permettra aux nutritionnistes, aux chercheurs en épidémiologie et aux décideurs politiques une meilleure identification, gestion et prévention des MCNT et d’obésité, en lien avec la consommation d’AUT. / Several studies to date have shown that ultra-processed food consumption (UPF) is associated with low diet quality and increased risk of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and obesity. Currently, there is no rapid screener to estimate UPF consumption based on Canadian dietary patterns. This research presents a pilot study that addresses the early stages of the development and validation of a screener to this purpose (the OUTPUT). Ultra-processed food categories contributing to 0.5% or more of the total energy intake for Canadian adults (18 years and older) were identified based on 2015 national consumption data (CCHS). Thus, two simplified dietary screeners were developed (a 24-hour recall and a food frequency questionnaire). The face and content validity of the OUTPUT was evaluated by an expert advisory committee, through the Delphi method. Two rounds were required to observe an agreement (set at 80% or more) regarding the different metrics that were assessed. The face validity of the screener was then evaluated by 11 participants from the UdeM community. The data collected through this pilot study made it possible to provide recommendations for the future study in which the development and validation of the tool will take place. Once validated, this tool will enable nutritionists, epidemiology researchers, and policymakers to better identify, manage and prevent NCDs and obesity.

Due to their contagiousness, communicable disease require healthcare staff to not only see to the needs of their patient, but also to the protection of themselves and other people from getting infected. Ethical issues and dilemmas tied to the patient’s anatomy and confidentiality arise as interventions to prevent further spread of the disease necessarily involve informing others about the risk of infection. Knowledge of and about communicable disease is necessary for acts of caution to be taken by both the person carrying it and those who are at risk of becoming infected. The Swedish communicable disease control system is regulated mainly with the Communicable Diseases Act (smittskyddslag, SFS 2004:168) and confidentiality within healthcare is regulated by the Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act (offentlighets- och sekretesslag, SFS 2009:400). In this thesis we identify dilemmas and concessions in the taking of measures to prevent the spread of communicable diseases, focusing especially on these two laws. This is done from the perspective of social work in healthcare settings with some focus on healthcare counsellors. For this purpose we have used content analysis with a deductive approach, produced a coding schedule, and analyzed relevant data in official documents. To discuss identified dilemmas and concessions further, we have used a theory of care ethics and utilitarianism. In our results we describe dilemmas consisting of situations where it is impossible to both maintain secrecy regarding the patient’s status as ill while informing others about their risk of infection, situations where differing interests arise, and situations where several principles which need to be followed differ from one another. These dilemmas are ethical in nature rather than legal, although professionals must make decisions regarding what information to share and what to keep secret. This makes for situations where practical answers to ethical dilemmas are necessary, and the contagious nature of the patient’s disease makes work more difficult. / I arbetet med smittsamma sjukdomar ska hälso- och sjukvårdspersonal inte enbart värna om patienten, utan även andra människor. Sjukdomarnas smittsamhet medför försvårande omständigheter och medför andra etiska frågor än andra sjukdomar. Inte minst uppstår etiska problem kopplade till patientens autonomi och sekretesskydd vid smittsamma sjukdomar på grund av risken för att också andra kan bli sjuka. Vetskap om sjukdomen är ett måste för att rimliga försiktighetsåtgärder ska kunna vidtas av både den smittade och osmittade personer. Smittskyddet i Sverige regleras främst genom smittskyddslagen (SFS 2004:168) och hälso- och sjukvårdens sekretess genom offentlighets- och sekretesslagen (SFS 2009:400). Vi identifierar dilemman och avvägningar i det praktiska arbetet med att besluta om och vidta smittskyddsåtgärder utifrån lagstiftningen, och diskuterar sedan dessa. Vårdetik lyfts och appliceras. Uppsatsens utgångspunkt är socialt arbete i hälso- och sjukvård, och delvis rollen som hälso- och sjukvårdskurator. Metoden består av innehållsanalytisk bearbetning, kodning, av lagtext och förarbeten med en deduktiv ansats. I resultatet redovisar vi hur balans mellan olika rättigheter och skyldigheter genomsyrar smittskyddslagen (2004), vars primära syfte är att tillgodose befolkningens behov av skydd mot smittsamma sjukdomar. För att uppnå detta görs flera avsteg från sekretessen som annars gäller i hälso- och sjukvård. Vi identifierar och beskriver de dilemman och avvägningar som uppstår som situationer där det är omöjligt att både hemlighålla patientens sjukdomsstatus och skydda andra från smitta, då det råder skilda intressen, och situationer då skilda principer behöver följas. Dessa dilemman är främst etiska och praktiska i och med att den som fattar beslut om och vidtar smittskyddsåtgärder måste besluta vilka uppgifter som ska röjas och på vilket sätt. Etiska riktlinjer är inte irrelevanta och kan utgöra både vägledning genom olika dilemman och avvägningar, men också försvåra det praktiska arbetet i och med de verkliga konsekvenser smittskyddsåtgärder har för människorna de berör. Dessutom väger alltid lagen tyngre när det gäller att instruera professionella i hur de ska agera. Skyddet mot spridning av vissa sjukdomar prioriteras över skyddet av patientens sekretess.

Comorbid diabetes with depression is a challenging and often under-recognized clinical problem. During the current COVID-19 pandemic, a communicable disease is thriving on the increasing incidences of these non-communicable diseases. These three different health problems are bidirectionally connected forming a vicious cycle. Firstly, depressed individuals show a higher risk of developing diabetes and patients with diabetes have a higher risk of developing symptoms of depression. Secondly, patients with diabetes have a higher risk of developing severe COVID-19 as well as of experiencing breakthrough infections. Thirdly, in both patients with type 2 diabetes and in COVID-19 survivors the prevalence of depression seems to be increased. Fourthly, lockdown and quarantine measurements during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in depression. Therefore, it is of importance to increase the awareness of this interface between depression, diabetes and COVID-19. Finally, as symptoms of post-COVID, diabetes and depression may be overlapping, there is a need for educating skilled personnel in the management of these comorbidities.

Background: Group B streptococcus (GBS) is regarded as one of the most important causes of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in many parts of the world. GBS recto-vaginal colonization is important in the health of a mother and her neonate, especially in developing countries. Maternal vaginal colonization with GBS at the time of delivery can cause vertical transmission to the neonate. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) is a technique used to characterize microbial isolates by means of sequencing internal fragments of housekeeping genes and has the advantage of reproducibility and has been shown to correlate with the other typing techniques and thus has emerged as the standard for delineating the clonal population of GBS. The study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of GBS colonization among pregnant women and their neonates, and to characterize the isolates by multilocus sequence typing technique at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital, Pretoria. Methodology: A total of 413 pregnant women who visited the antenatal clinic were recruited and screened. Participants were interviewed using a questionnaire to gather demographic and other relevant information such as history of current pregnancy, previous miscarriages and still births. Samples from maternal rectum and vagina as well as neonate ear and umbilical cord were taken for culture using colistin and nalidixic acid (CNA) blood agar and incubated for 24-48 hours. If negative after 48 hours, Todd-Hewitt broth was subcultured after 18-48 hours onto sheep blood agar. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was used to characterize seven group B streptococcus isolates collected at Dr George Mukhari academic hospital. Fragments of seven housekeeping genes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for each strain and sequenced. CLC bio software (Inqaba biotech, South Africa; Pretoria) was used to analyse sequenced loci and UPGMA dendrogram was constructed. Results: The colonization rate for GBS in pregnant women and their neonates was 30.9% and 0%, respectively. A higher proportion of GBS were isolated from the rectum (37.9%) as compared to the vagina (20.6%). Most socio-economic, demographic and obstetric factors analysed were not significantly associated with.GBS colonization. On 128 positive samples, the results of Todd-Hewitt enrichment broth and direct plating method using CNA were compared. A total of 45.3% of colonised were positive on direct selective agar (CNA); an additional 54.7% samples were recovered from Todd-Hewitt broth. Three genes (adhP, glnA and tkt) were sequenced successfully for six samples (1, 2. 4,6,12 and 65). The UPGMA tree with 1000 bootstrap showing the relationship between six samples was drawn.Conclusion: This study revealed that pregnant women of all ages are at risk of group B streptococcus colonization. Group B streptococcus was common among pregnant women at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital. No socio-economic risk factor was associated with group B streptococcus colonization. Results confirm that the combination of Todd-Hewitt broth and CNA agar plate is a time saving and sensitive method. The allelic profile, characteristics such as G+C (guanine+cytosine) content and dN/dS ratio were not analysed because of the smaller sample size used in this study, which shows that the MLST method was unsuccessful in this study. The UPGMA tree based on differences in consensus of the isolates showed that all group B streptococcus isolates are clustered and descend from a single node. / Life & Consumer Sciences / Life Sciences / M.Sc. (Life Sciences)

Background: Group B streptococcus (GBS) is regarded as one of the most important causes of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality in many parts of the world. GBS recto-vaginal colonization is important in the health of a mother and her neonate, especially in developing countries. Maternal vaginal colonization with GBS at the time of delivery can cause vertical transmission to the neonate. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) is a technique used to characterize microbial isolates by means of sequencing internal fragments of housekeeping genes and has the advantage of reproducibility and has been shown to correlate with the other typing techniques and thus has emerged as the standard for delineating the clonal population of GBS. The study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of GBS colonization among pregnant women and their neonates, and to characterize the isolates by multilocus sequence typing technique at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital, Pretoria. Methodology: A total of 413 pregnant women who visited the antenatal clinic were recruited and screened. Participants were interviewed using a questionnaire to gather demographic and other relevant information such as history of current pregnancy, previous miscarriages and still births. Samples from maternal rectum and vagina as well as neonate ear and umbilical cord were taken for culture using colistin and nalidixic acid (CNA) blood agar and incubated for 24-48 hours. If negative after 48 hours, Todd-Hewitt broth was subcultured after 18-48 hours onto sheep blood agar. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST) was used to characterize seven group B streptococcus isolates collected at Dr George Mukhari academic hospital. Fragments of seven housekeeping genes were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for each strain and sequenced. CLC bio software (Inqaba biotech, South Africa; Pretoria) was used to analyse sequenced loci and UPGMA dendrogram was constructed. Results: The colonization rate for GBS in pregnant women and their neonates was 30.9% and 0%, respectively. A higher proportion of GBS were isolated from the rectum (37.9%) as compared to the vagina (20.6%). Most socio-economic, demographic and obstetric factors analysed were not significantly associated with.GBS colonization. On 128 positive samples, the results of Todd-Hewitt enrichment broth and direct plating method using CNA were compared. A total of 45.3% of colonised were positive on direct selective agar (CNA); an additional 54.7% samples were recovered from Todd-Hewitt broth. Three genes (adhP, glnA and tkt) were sequenced successfully for six samples (1, 2. 4,6,12 and 65). The UPGMA tree with 1000 bootstrap showing the relationship between six samples was drawn.Conclusion: This study revealed that pregnant women of all ages are at risk of group B streptococcus colonization. Group B streptococcus was common among pregnant women at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital. No socio-economic risk factor was associated with group B streptococcus colonization. Results confirm that the combination of Todd-Hewitt broth and CNA agar plate is a time saving and sensitive method. The allelic profile, characteristics such as G+C (guanine+cytosine) content and dN/dS ratio were not analysed because of the smaller sample size used in this study, which shows that the MLST method was unsuccessful in this study. The UPGMA tree based on differences in consensus of the isolates showed that all group B streptococcus isolates are clustered and descend from a single node. / Life Sciences / M.Sc. (Life Sciences)

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Vaccinations are an important step in preventing childhood illnesses and disease outbreaks in the community. Complete immunizations before school assure eligibility for enrollment and protect children against severe illness. The fact that foreign-born children of Latino immigrants face health disparities in receiving vaccinations is well documented. However, there is little information in the literature about the actual experience of immigrants facing the complexities of the health system, and through their eyes, which factors ultimately affect vaccination rates of immigrant Latino children. The purpose of this study is to give voice to Latino immigrant families who have recently immigrated to the United States, in terms of the issues they encountered when engaging the health care system for vaccinations.

Thesis in English, Annexure E: Consent form (leaf 81) as well as KABP Survey Questionnaire (leaves 87-91) in English and SiSwati. / The purpose of the study was to assess knowledge, explore attitudes and determine practices of breastfeeding mothers living with HIV regarding post-natal PMTCT interventions and services. The study was quantitative and descriptive in nature, utilising a retrospective cohort design. The study sample included breastfeeding mothers living with HIV, who attended the King Sobhuza II public health unit in the Manzini region of Swaziland. A written questionnaire was administered to a non-random sample of 90 consecutively selected mothers living with HIV attending the above-cited public health unit for post-natal health purposes. The overall study results revealed that the majority of breastfeeding mothers living with HIV in the afore-mentioned region (77.8%) presented high levels of knowledge on PMTCT, and 90% demonstrated a positive attitude; while a further 90% also demonstrated positive behaviour towards PMTCT. However, stigma and discrimination among family members, non-disclosure of HIV status to sexual partners; as well as poverty and fear of future drug-resistance are the cause of non-adherence to ARV prophylaxis. Furthermore, inconsistent condom use, mixed-feeding methods and wet-nursing also emerged as other contributing factors to the increase of post-natal mother-to-child transmission of HIV among breastfeeding mothers living with HIV. / Health Studies / M.A. (Nursing Science)

In its efforts to reduce maternal mortality and prevent Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV, the government of Swaziland developed and implemented several programmes including a special antenatal care package for HIV-positive pregnant women in line with the WHO (2009) guidelines. Since the implementation of this latest special ANC package for HIV-positive women, little is known about how these services are experienced by the intended recipients. The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the actual experiences of HIV-positive women with the antenatal care services provided at a regional referral hospital in Swaziland, with the view of providing more insight into the quality of ANC services from the users' perspectives. A qualitative descriptive, exploratory design was used to address the above purpose. The researcher used purposive sampling to select the participants who met the inclusion criteria for the study. Semi-structured individual interviews were used and saturation was reached after 18 individual face-to-face interviews. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse the collected data. Forteen themes related to the participants experiences with the ANC services and seven related to measures for improvement emerged from data. In general HIV positive pregnant women expressed positive views towards ANC services they received at the target institution. The results give an indication on the quality of the focussed ANC package provided at the hospital and specific recommendations for improvement are outlined. / Health Studies / M. A. (Nursing Science)