scholarly journals PIMA Point of Care CD4+ Cell Count Machines in Remote MNCH Settings: Lessons Learned from Seven Districts in Zimbabwe

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. IDRT.S12801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sekesai Mtapuri-Zinyowera ◽  
Edward T. Chiyaka ◽  
Wellington Mushayi ◽  
Godfrey Musuka ◽  
Florence Naluyinda-Kitabire ◽  
...  

An evaluation was commissioned to generate evidence on the impact of PIMA point-of-care CD4+ count machines in maternal and new-born child health settings in Zimbabwe; document best practices, lessons learned, challenges, and recommendations related to scale up of this new technology. A mixed methodology approach that included 31 in-depth interviews with stakeholders involved in procurement, distribution, and use of the POC machines was employed. Additionally, data was also abstracted from 207 patient records from 35 sites with the PIMA POC CD4+ count machines and 10 other comparative sites without the machine. A clearer training strategy was found to be necessary. The average time taken to initiate clients on antiretroviral treatment (ART) was substantially less, 15 days (IQR-1-149) for sites with a PIMA POC machine as compared to 32.7 days (IQR-1-192) at sites with no PIMA POC machine. There was general satisfaction because of the presence of the PIMA POC CD4+ count machine at sites that also initiated ART.

Intervirology ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Mohammad Reza Jabbari ◽  
Hoorieh Soleimanjahi ◽  
Somayeh Shatizadeh Malekshahi ◽  
Mohammad Gholami ◽  
Leila Sadeghi ◽  
...  

<b><i>Objectives:</i></b> The aim of present work was to assess cytomegalovirus (CMV) viremia in Iranian human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-1-infected patients with a CD4+ count &#x3c;100 cells/mm<sup>3</sup> and to explore whether CMV DNA loads correlate with CD4+ cell counts or associated retinitis. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> This study was conducted at the AIDS research center in Iran on HIV-1-infected patients with CD4+ count &#x3c;100 cells/mm<sup>3</sup>, antiretroviral therapy-naive, aged ≥18 years with no previous history of CMV end-organ disease (CMV-EOD). <b><i>Results:</i></b> Thirty-nine of 82 patients (47.56%) had detectable CMV viral load ranging from 66 to 485,500 IU/mL. CMV viral load in patients with retinitis ranges from 352 to 2,720 IU/mL, and it was undetectable in 2 patients. No significant associations between CMV viremia and CD4+ cell count was found (<i>p</i> value = 0.31), whereas significant association of CMV viremia in HIV-infected patients with retinitis was found (<i>p</i> &#x3c; 0.02). <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> We estimated the frequency of CMV viral load infection in Iranian HIV-1-infected patients with a CD4+ cell count &#x3c;100 mm<sup>3</sup>/mL in the largest national referral center for HIV-1 infection in Iran. Further research is required on the relevance of CMV viral load in diagnostic and prognostic value of CMV-EOD.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 283-290
Author(s):  
A. Amoko ◽  
P.O. Ajiboye ◽  
F.A. Olagunju ◽  
R.O. Shittu

Objective: Depression is a common mental health problem among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA); because low count of lymphocytes with  cluster of differentiation 4 (CD4 cell count) is associated with severe symptoms of HIV infection, there are thoughts that low CD4 cells count can provoke depressive illness. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between CD4 count and depression among adult HIV positivepatients attending Family Medicine clinics at University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH), Ilorin, Nigeria.Method: A hospital based descriptive cross-sectional study was done over a period of 6 months among 350 systematically randomly selected adult HIV-positive patients. PHQ-9 was used to obtain information on depression and the CD4 count was determined using a flow-cytometric method. Data were obtained and analyzed using SPSS-17. Chi-square was used to determine degree of association between the depression and the level of CD4 count. P-value of < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.Results: The prevalence of depression among the respondents was 33.4%. The prevalence of depression was highest among respondents with low CD4 count (≤349cells/ul), 37.0%, and least among those with high CD4 count (≥500cells/ul), 28.3%. This relationship was however not statistically significant.Conclusion: The overall prevalence of depression was high among the respondents (33.4%) suggesting the need for routine depression screening among HIV positive patients. There was no statistically significant association between presence of depression and level of CD4 count (p-value=0.302). Keywords: Depression, CD4count, PLWHA, Family Medicine, UITH.


Author(s):  
Chodziwadziwa Whiteson Kabudula ◽  
Georges Reniers ◽  
Francesc Xavier Gómez-Olivé ◽  
Kathleen Kahn ◽  
Stephen Tollman

ABSTRACT ObjectivesTo assess the impact of late presentation (CD4 cell count <200 cells/μl at presentation) for care and treatment on short-term mortality (death within a year of presentation) among HIV-infected adults in rural South Africa. ApproachWe applied deterministic and probabilistic record linkage approaches to link adult patients seeking care and treatment for HIV from a health facility between 2007 and 2013 to population under continuous surveillance by the Agincourt Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS) in rural northeast South Africa. The resulting record-linked dataset was thereafter analysed to estimate short-term mortality (death within a year of presentation) differences in late presenters (initial presentation at health facility with CD4 cell count less than 200 cells/μl) and early presenters (presentation with CD4 cell count of 200 or more cells/μl). In the linked dataset, CD4 cell count was extracted from the health facility database where as date of death came from the HDSS database. ResultsA total of 3,553 patients who sought care and treatment for HIV at Bhubhezi clinic between 2007 and 2013 were linked to the Agincourt HDSS surveillance population. Proportion of patients classified as late presenters was 60.9%. Short-term mortality was 8.9% (317/3,553): 11.1% among those who presented late and 5.5 % among those who presented early (P<0.001). ConclusionRecord linkage facilitated the assessment of the impact of late presentation for care and treatment on short-term mortality among HIV-infected adults in rural South Africa. In the population studied, late presentation is high and is contributing to high mortality among people living with HIV. Strategies that would facilitate early presentation are needed in order to reduce mortality among people living with HIV.


2021 ◽  
pp. 70-72
Author(s):  
Anubhav Agrawal ◽  
Simmi Dube ◽  
Aditya Tejwani

BACKGROUND-The study was conducted to describe systematic clinical manifestations among HIV in PLHA at tertiary care centre. METHODOLOGY- This study was designed as cross sectional study at Department of Medicine, tertiary care centre. A total of 100 HIV infected patients were included detailed enquiry about presence of skin lesions along with CD4 cell count was obtained and entered in pretested questionnaire RESULTS-The mean age of patients with HIV was 43.9±10.2 years and Slight female preponderance was observed with male: 3 female ratio of 0.89:1. Mean CD4 count was 243.2±103.2 cells/mm . Majority of patients had CD4 count in the range of less than 3 200 cells/mm (64%) Staphylococcal skin infections were the most common skin lesions observed in 34% patients. All the patients with cutaneous manifestations presented in present study had low CD4 cell count. However, no statistically signicant association between CD4 count and cutaneous manifestations could be documented (p>0.05). CONCLUSION-Cutaneous manifestations are more prevalent in patients with lower CD4 counts and can also be observed with normal CD4 count levels amongst patients with HIV. Occurrence of cutaneous manifestations was higher in patients with lower CD4 count but the observed difference was not statistically signicant.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. e2019063
Author(s):  
Benedetto Maurizio Celesia ◽  
Andrea Marino ◽  
Rosa Fontana del Vecchio ◽  
Roberto Bruno ◽  
Filippo Palermo ◽  
...  

Background CD4 lymphocyte cell count represents the main immunological marker used to monitor HIV infection. However, frequent monitoring may be unnecessary, could cause anxiety to the patient as well as burdening healthcare with extra expenses.   Objectives and methods To analyse the probability of maintaining a safe number of CD4 in HIV-positive subjects under treatment with ≥350 cells/µl at baseline during a three-year follow up. We conducted a retrospective study performing three analyses with Kaplan-Meyer method considering: 1) all patients independently from their viral load (VL); 2) patients with 500 > CD4 ≥ 350 cells/µl versus (vs) CD4 ≥ 500 cells/µl at baseline; 3) patients with VL < 20 copies/ml vs VL > 20 copies/ml.   Results 253 subjects were enrolled. The median CD4 count was 623 (489-805) cells/µl. Subjects maintaining ≥ 350 cells/µl in the first, second and third year were respectively 238 (94.1%), 229 (90.5%) and 226 (89.3%), independently from VL. Within subjects with ≥ 350 CD4/µl vs ≥ 500 CD4/µl at baseline, those who maintained ≥ 350 cells/µl until the third year were respectively 241 (95.3%) and 158 (98.1%). The probability of maintaining these values in the third year was 89.3% for those who had CD4 ≥ 350/µl at baseline and 98.1% for those who had CD4 ≥ 500/µl. This probability was around 90% vs 99% for subjects with HIV-RNA above or below 20 copies/ml. Secondly, we tried to estimate the costs of CD4 determinations in a three-year period (from April 1, 2013 to March 31, 2016). We analysed respectively 343 subjects in the first period, 364 in the second and 383 in the third, with a median value of 500 CD4/µl during the research time taken into account. We found a mean value of about two determinations patient/year (2.41 in 2013/2014; 2.32 in 2014/2015; 2.18 in 2015/2016), with a significant decrease between the first and the last period (p<0.001). The mean cost patient/year was €101.51 in the first year, €97.61 in the second, €92.00 in the third (p<0,001). Assuming to extend these procedures to all our patients with stable CD4 cells/µl and monitoring CD4 cell count once in a year, it could be possible to obtain an overall saving of €19,152/year.   Conclusions A very high percentage of subjects maintained a high and safe number of CD4 cells (>350 cells/µl) during a three-year follow up. It could be possible to save up to 66% of the costs by reducing the number of CD4 count determinations in a year, to have other favourable consequences as well, releasing new resources for patient’s management.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wietse A. Tol ◽  
Alastair Ager ◽  
Cecile Bizouerne ◽  
Richard Bryant ◽  
Rabih El Chammay ◽  
...  

Abstract Major knowledge gaps remain concerning the most effective ways to address mental health and psychosocial needs of populations affected by humanitarian crises. The Research for Health in Humanitarian Crisis (R2HC) program aims to strengthen humanitarian health practice and policy through research. As a significant portion of R2HC’s research has focused on mental health and psychosocial support interventions, the program has been interested in strengthening a community of practice in this field. Following a meeting between grantees, we set out to provide an overview of the R2HC portfolio, and draw lessons learned. In this paper, we discuss the mental health and psychosocial support-focused research projects funded by R2HC; review the implications of initial findings from this research portfolio; and highlight four remaining knowledge gaps in this field. Between 2014 and 2019, R2HC funded 18 academic-practitioner partnerships focused on mental health and psychosocial support, comprising 38% of the overall portfolio (18 of 48 projects) at a value of approximately 7.2 million GBP. All projects have focused on evaluating the impact of interventions. In line with consensus-based recommendations to consider a wide range of mental health and psychosocial needs in humanitarian settings, research projects have evaluated diverse interventions. Findings so far have both challenged and confirmed widely-held assumptions about the effectiveness of mental health and psychosocial interventions in humanitarian settings. They point to the importance of building effective, sustained, and diverse partnerships between scholars, humanitarian practitioners, and funders, to ensure long-term program improvements and appropriate evidence-informed decision making. Further research needs to fill knowledge gaps regarding how to: scale-up interventions that have been found to be effective (e.g., questions related to integration across sectors, adaptation of interventions across different contexts, and optimal care systems); address neglected mental health conditions and populations (e.g., elderly, people with disabilities, sexual minorities, people with severe, pre-existing mental disorders); build on available local resources and supports (e.g., how to build on traditional, religious healing and community-wide social support practices); and ensure equity, quality, fidelity, and sustainability for interventions in real-world contexts (e.g., answering questions about how interventions from controlled studies can be transferred to more representative humanitarian contexts).


1994 ◽  
Vol 5 (suppl a) ◽  
pp. 36A-41A
Author(s):  
Margaret I Johnston ◽  
Patricia E Fast ◽  
Mary Clare Walker ◽  
Daniel Hoth

The goal of a prophylactic human immunodeficiency (HIV) vaccine is to elicit immune response(s) that will, upon subsequent exposure to HIV. prevent lnfection and/or disease. On the other hand. therapeutic administration of a vaccine to an individual in whom infection is already established might benefit the individual by augmenting existing functional immune responses or inducing new ones. Development of vaccines for the prevention of AIDS offers unique challenges. Concerns regarding the safely of attenuated and whole-killed products have led to the pursuit of alternativc designs. including recombinant proteins, vectors and particles, synthetic peptides and naked DNA. Seven recombinant envelope. two recombinant vector and four other candidate vaccines that have entered into phase 1 trials in noninfected individuals have proven safe to date, and have differed In their ability lo induce functional antibody and Cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Two recombinant envelope products have recently progressed to phase 2 testing, Five envelope-based and six other products have entered trial in HIV-infected and individuals and have appeared to be safe, Evidence of new antibody, increased T cell proliferation and lncreased cytotoxic T lymphocyte activity have been reported. Additional placebo controlled trials will be required to evaluate the impact of therapeutic vaccination on CD4 cell count. viral burdrn and clinical end-points. The status of HIV/AIDS vaccine development is reviewed. with emphasis on the challenging task of finding an effieacious, safe, prophylactic vaccine.


2006 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lt. Col. Mark Stanovich, USMCR

The last two decades have seen technological innovations that have revolutionized the collection and transfer of information, permitting access to and dissemination of massive amounts of data with unprecedented speed and efficiency. These innovations have been incorporated into virtually every aspect of modern society, from personal communications, to commercial and business processes, to governmental function and military operations. The concept of network-centric warfare (NCW) grew out of these new capabilities and has been a prominent topic in strategic and operational discussions in the US military since the late 1990s.In recent years, the concepts behind NCW have been increasingly applied to emergency response, particularly as responders prepare for an increasingly complex threat spectrum in a post-9/11 world. As emergency responders adopt the technological innovations and organizational concepts that enable network-centric operations, attention should be paid to the lessons learned by the US armed forces in the application of the network-centric approach to war-fighting. Emergency operations centers (EOCs), incident command centers (ICCs), and field personnel will require extensive training and experimentation to sort out the impact of this new technology. They must develop protocols and procedures to leverage maximum advantage, while avoiding the undesirable and damaging effects of that technology improperly applied. Because most emergency response organizations lack the vast training resources of the US military, they must be innovative and adaptable in taking advantage of every opportunity to train their personnel in the assimilation of this new technology.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Win Lei Yee ◽  
Hla Htay ◽  
Yasmin Mohamed ◽  
Claire E. Nightingale ◽  
Htay Htay Tin ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Timely diagnosis and early initiation of life-saving antiretroviral therapy are critical factors in preventing mortality among HIV-infected infants. However, resource-limited settings experience numerous challenges associated with centralised laboratory-based testing, including low rates of testing, complex sample referral pathways and unacceptably long turnaround times for results. Point-of-care (POC) HIV testing for HIV-exposed infants can enable same-day communication of results and early treatment initiation for HIV-infected infants. However, complex operational issues and service integration can limit utility and must be well understood prior to implementation. We explored and documented the challenges and enabling factors in implementing the POC Xpert® HIV-1 Qual test (Cepheid, Sunnyvale, CA, USA) for early infant diagnosis (EID) as part of routine services in four public hospitals in Myanmar. Methods This sub-study was part of a randomised controlled stepped-wedge trial (Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry, number 12616000734460) designed to investigate the impact of POC testing for EID in Myanmar and Papua New Guinea. Infants recruited during the intervention phase underwent POC testing at the participating hospitals as part of routine care. Semi-structured interviews with 23 caregivers, 12 healthcare providers and 10 key informants were used to explore experiences of POC-EID testing. The research team and hospital staff documented and discussed implementation challenges throughout the study. Results Overall, caregivers and healthcare workers were satisfied with the short turnaround time of the POC test. Occasional delays in POC testing were mostly attributable to late receipt of samples by laboratory technicians and communication constraints among healthcare staff. Hospital staff valued technical assistance from the research group and the National Health Laboratory. Despite staff shortages and infrastructure challenges such as unreliable electricity supply and cramped space, healthcare workers and caregivers found the implementation of the POC test to be feasible at pilot sites. Conclusions As plans for national scale-up evolve, there needs to be a continual focus on staff training, communication pathways and infrastructure. Other models of care, such as allowing non-laboratory-trained personnel to perform POC testing, and cost effectiveness should also be evaluated.


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