BackgroundEast and South Africa contributes 59% of all pediatric HIV infections globally. In Uganda, HIV prevalence among HIV exposed infants was estimated at 5.3% in 2014. Understanding the remaining bottlenecks to elimination of mother-to-child transmission (eMTCT) is critical to accelerating efforts towards eMTCT. This study determined factors associated with HIV positive sero-status among exposed infants attending mother-baby care clinics in rural Kasese so as to inform enhancement of interventions to further reduce MTCT.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional mixed methods study. Quantitative data was derived from routine service data from the mother’s HIV care card and exposed infant clinical chart. Key informant interviews were conducted with health workers and in-depth interviews with HIV infected mothers. Quantitative data was analyzed using Stata version 12. Logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with HIV sero-status. Latent content analysis was used to analyse qualitative data.ResultsOverall, 32 of the 493 exposed infants (6.5%) were HIV infected. Infants who did not receive ART prophylaxis at birth (AOR = 4.9, 95% CI: 1.901–13.051, p=0.001) and those delivered outside of a health facility (AOR = 5.1, 95% CI: 1.038 – 24.742, p = 0.045) were five times more likely to be HIV infected than those who received prophylaxis and those delivered in health facilities, respectively. Based on the qualitative findings, health system factors affecting eMTCT were long waiting time, understaffing, weak community follow up system, stock outs of Neverapine syrup and lack of HIV testing kits.ConclusionIncreasing facility based deliveries and addressing underlying health system challenges related to staffing and availability of the required commodities may further accelerate eMTCT.

Globally, early initiation of antiretroviral therapy for HIV led to a reduction in the estimated mortality from cryptococcal meningitis (CCM) from 624,700 in 2009 to 181,100 in 2014. However, CCM remains one of the leading causes of mortality among HIV infected patients especially in sub-Saharan Africa where 75% of the deaths occur. Most of the studies evaluating mortality have reported short-term mortality (at or before 10 weeks of therapy). We determined mortality and associated factors among patients treated for CCM in the CryptoDex trial (ISRCTN59144167) in Uganda, and the effect of dexamethasone adjunctive therapy on mortality at two years. We conducted a retrospective cohort study between May 2017 and July 2017 to determine the long term survival (up to 2 years post-randomization) of all patients who had been enrolled into the CryptoDex trial in Uganda. The CryptoDex trial recruited between April 2013 and February 2015. We estimated mortality rates and determined factors affecting mortality at two years using Cox regression. The study followed up 211 participants, 127 (60.2%) of whom were male. Sixteen participants (7.58%) were diagnosed with HIV at the same admission when CCM was diagnosed. By two years following randomization 127 (60%) participants had died, a mortality rate of 67 deaths per 100 person-years. Mortality was associated with Glasgow coma score (GCS) below 15 (adjusted Hazard ratio (aHR) 1.77, 95% CI: 1.02–2.44), p = 0.040; weight (aHR 0.97, per 1 Kg increase; 95% CI: 0.94–0.99), p = 0.003; and presence of convulsions (aHR 2.31, 95% CI: 1.32–4.04), p = 0.004, while dexamethasone use and fungal burden had no effect. Long-term mortality in CCM patients remains high even among patients receiving recommended therapy. Strategies to improve long-term survival in CCM patients are urgently needed, especially targeting those with reduced GCS, low weight, and convulsions.

Introduction The incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) is increasing in East Africa. Changes in lifestyle and dietary changes, particularly alcohol consumption, smoking, and consumption of cooked meats with a reduction in fibre in the diet may be responsible. The objective of our study was to determine the risk factors responsible for CRC in Uganda. Methods We recruited 129 participants with histologically proven colorectal adenocarcinoma and 258 control participants from four specialized hospitals in central Uganda from 2019 to 2021. Controls were block matched for age (±5 years) and sex of the case participants. The risk factor variables included; area of residence, tribe, body mass index (BMI), smoking, alcohol consumption and family history of gastrointestinal cancer. We used conditional or ordinal logistic regression to obtain crude and adjusted odds ratios for risk factors associated with CRC. Results In bivariate analysis, case participants were more likely to be associated with urban residence (cOR:62.11; p<0.001); family history of GI cancer (cOR: 14.34; p=0.001); past smokers (cOR: 2.10; p=0.080); past alcohol drinkers (cOR: 2.35; p=0.012); current alcohol drinkers (cOR: 3.55; p<0.001); high BMI 25–29.9 kg/m 2 (cOR: 2.49; p<0.001); and high BMI ≥30kg/m 2 (cOR: 2.37; p=0.012). In the multivariate analysis, urban residence (aOR: 82.79; p<0.001), family history of GI cancer (aOR: 61.09; p<0.001) and past smoking (aOR: 4.73; p=0.036) were independently associated with a higher risk of developing CRC. Conclusion A family history of gastrointestinal cancer was a risk factor for CRC. While population-based CRC screening may not be feasible in low income-countries, targeted CRC screening for first-degree relatives with CRC should be considered in East Africa. Molecular genetic studies need to be carried out to determine the role of hereditary factors in our population. Prevention strategies should be adopted to avoid smoking in our population which was associated with an increased risk of CRC.

Background:In Uganda, similar to other countries in East Africa, the incidence of colorectal cancer (CRC) has been steadily increasing. This increase in incidence is accompanied by a poor prognosis. There is limited knowledge on factors responsible for the poor outcome of patients with CRC in Uganda. Cancer survival analysis is one way of determining some of these prognostic factors. The aim of this study was to determine prognostic factors associated with CRC survival in Ugandan patients. Methods: This was a retroprospective cohort study involving patients with linked data in the Kampala cancer registry and medical records from hospitals in Uganda. Participants with a diagnosis of colorectal adenocarcinoma between 1st January 2008 and 31st December 2018 were included. Variables included patients' demographic data, grade, stage and location of CRC, data on whether a patient was operated on, type of operation, treatment modalities and date of diagnosis. Our outcome variable was time to death after diagnosis. We computed and compared survival using the Log rank test and used Cox proportional hazards regression to determine factors associated with survival. Results: A total of 247 patients were included in the study with a mean (SD) age of 53.3 (15.7) years and a female:

Background Cryptococcal meningitis (CCM) remains one of the leading causes of mortality among HIV infected patients. Due to factors such as the severity of CCM pathology, the quality of life (QOL) of patients post-treatment is likely to be poor. Few studies have reported on QOL of CCM patients post treatment completion. We used data collected among patients in the CryptoDex trial (ISRCTN59144167) to determine QOL and associated factors at week 10 and six months from treatment initiation. Methodology CryptoDex was a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of adjunctive dexamethasone in HIV infected adults with CCM, conducted between 2013 and 2015 in six countries in Asia and Africa. QOL was determined using the descriptive and Visual Analog Scales (VAS) of the EuroQol Five-Dimension-Three-Level (EQ-5D-3L) tool. We derived index scores, and described these and the VAS scores at 10 weeks and 6 months; and used linear regression to determine the relationship between various characteristics and VAS scores at both time points. VAS scores were interpreted as very good (81–100), good (51–80), normal (31–50) and bad/very bad (0–30). Results Of 451 patients enrolled in the trial, 238 had QOL evaluations at week 10. At baseline, their mean age (SD) was 35.2(8.5) years. The mean index scores (SD) were 0.785(0.2) and 0.619(0.4) among African and Asian patients respectively at week 10, and 0.879(0.2) and 0.731(0.4) among African and Asian patients respectively at month six. The overall mean VAS score (SD) at 10 weeks was 57.2 (29.7), increasing significantly to 72(27.4) at month six (p<0.001). At week 10, higher VAS score was associated with greater weight (p = 0.007) and being African (p<0.001), while lower VAS score was associated with positive yeast culture at day 14 (p = 0.026). At month six, higher VAS score remained associated with African origin (p = 0.006) while lower VAS score was associated with positive yeast culture (p = 0.006). Lower VAS scores were associated with higher number of inpatient days at 10 weeks and 6 months (p = 0.003 and 0.002 respectively). Conclusion QOL was good among patients that had completed therapy for CCM, but below perfect. Strategies to improve QOL among CCM survivors are required.