Background Glycated proteins, such as glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) and glycated albumin (GA%), are increasingly being used for glycaemic control assessment and the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. GA% is an intermediate marker of glycaemic control that is not influenced by factors that affect HbA1c concentrations. The aim of this study was to determine reference intervals and assess confounding factors for glycated albumin in a well-characterized healthy population in South Africa. Methods We measured glycated albumin using an enzymatic method on stored serum samples of healthy individuals recruited in Cape Town, South Africa. Reference intervals (overall and specific for age, sex and ethnicity) were determined using non-parametric methods and confounding factors were assessed using multiple regression analysis. Results The reference interval (2.5th to 97.5th percentile) for glycated albumin of 663 healthy individuals (mean age, 34 years, 38.6% males) ranged from 10.7 to 15.2%. Sex, body mass index categories and ethnicity were significantly associated with the glycated albumin and were considered of practical importance because their standardized regression coefficients (Beta) were greater than a cut-off of 0.15, implying a stronger effect on glycated albumin ( P < 0.001). The glycated albumin reference intervals for subjects with body mass index <25 kg/m2 was 11.2–15.3%, for body mass index 25–30 kg/m2 it was 10.5–14.9% and 10.0–14.6% for body mass index >30 kg/m2 ( P = 0.0001). Conclusions The overall reference interval showed good correlation with reference intervals determined in other studies. However, sex, ethnicity and body mass index were statistically significant confounding factors that may influence the overall reference interval. Therefore, overall glycated albumin reference intervals should be used cautiously.

ObjectivesEarly-onset severe preeclampsia is associated with significant maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality especially in low-resource settings, where women have limited access to antenatal care. This dataset was generated from a retrospective cross-sectional study carried out at Mpilo Central Hospital, covering the period February 1, 2016 to July 30, 2018. The aim of the study was to determine the incidence of early-onset severe preeclampsia and eclampsia, and associated risk factors in a low-resource setting. The reason for examining the incidence of preeclampsia specifically in a low-resource setting; was to document it as women in these settings appear to suffer from poor outcomes.Data descriptionThe dataset contains data of 238 pregnant women who had a diagnosis of early onset severe preeclampsia/eclampsia. There were 243 babies from singleton and twin gestations. There were five sets of twins. There were 21,505 live births during the study period giving an incidence of 1.1%. The dataset contains data on maternal socio-demographic, signs and symptoms, therapeutic interventions and mode of delivery, adverse outcomes characteristics, and fetal characteristics. This large dataset can be used to calculate the incidence and risk factors for adverse maternal and fetal outcomes or develop predictive models in severe preeclampsia/eclampsia.

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Background Neonatal sepsis is a public health issue that consistently emerges as one of the main causes of neonatal morbidity and mortality. The aim of this study was to determine the risk factors and practices contributing to neonatal sepsis among neonates admitted at a Children’s Hospital in Bulawayo Zimbabwe. Methods A cross sectional study was conducted at a children’s hospital in Bulawayo Zimbabwe between September and October 2018. A total of 98 mothers of sick new-borns admitted in the children’s hospital and 36 health workers were recruited for the study. The mothers’ demographic characteristics, antenatal history, birth circumstances, and new-born practices were used to predict factors associated with neonatal sepsis risk using odds ratios and regression logistics. Qualitative data from health providers were transcribed, coded, analyzed into themes and triangulated with the information from the questionnaire. Results There were 40 (40.8%) new-borns clinically confirmed to have neonatal sepsis. The majority of sepsis cases (60%) were amongst neonates with low birth weight. Poor hand hygiene, application of substances including cow dung and breast milk for cord care and using information from other sources other than health care workers were the variables found to be associated with neonatal sepsis. Being a young mother (15–20 years) and experiencing some pregnancy related problems before or during delivery were also found to be significantly associated with neonatal sepsis. Problems highlighted by health care workers included shortage of medical sundries in the children’s hospital, infection control training programs not being attended by all personnel and poor hand washing and hygiene practices due to inadequate facilities Conclusions There was high prevalence of clinically confirmed neonatal sepsis among neonates admitted with suspected sepsis. Neonatal sepsis was associated with a variety of factors which included neonatal factors such as low birth weight; maternal factors such as age of the mother, attendance of antenatal clinic and practices associated with hygiene and cord care. Health facility related factors that are linked to infection control such as provision of adequate hand hygiene facilities, medical sundries and disinfectants and adequate training may also be associated with neonatal sepsis