Provider alerts and reminders to improve tuberculosis care among people living with HIV in Kenya: TB Tech formative report

People living with HIV (PLHIV) have a 20-fold higher risk of dying from tuberculosis (TB) than the general population. Reducing TB morbidity and mortality among PLHIV requires identifying those with active TB and treating them, as well as preventing new TB infections among those not infected. WHO recommends screening all HIV-infected patients for symptoms of active TB infection, testing those who show symptoms, treating those with positive TB tests, and providing isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) for those who are either asymptomatic or whose TB test results are negative. WHO classifies Kenya among the “high burden” countries for TB and notes high rates of HIV-TB co-infection. Screening and testing of HIV-infected patients for TB is the focus of this report. The TB Tech study, under USAID’s HIVCore project led by the Population Council was initiated. The study team conducted research to address: preparedness of Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare (AMPATH) facilities and providers to screen for TB symptoms and provide IPT for symptom-negative HIV-infected patients; preparedness of AMPATH Medical Record System (AMRS) to capture and report critical indicators of IPT/TB service performance; preparedness of AMRS and other data sources to capture and report critical indicators of reminder-system performance

Do clinical decision-support reminders for medical providers improve isoniazid preventative therapy prescription rates among HIV-positive adults? Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BACKGROUND: This document describes a research protocol for a study designed to estimate the impact of implementing a reminder system for medical providers on the use of isoniazid preventative therapy (IPT) for adults living with HIV in western Kenya. People living with HIV have a 5% to 10% annual risk of developing active tuberculosis (TB) once infected with TB bacilli, compared to a 5% lifetime risk in HIV-negative people with latent TB infection. Moreover, people living with HIV have a 20-fold higher risk of dying from TB. A growing body of literature suggests that IPT reduces overall TB incidence and is therefore of considerable benefit to patients and the larger community. However, in 2009, of the estimated 33 million people living with HIV, only 1.7 million (5%) were screened for TB, and about 85,000 (0.2%) were offered IPT. METHODS/DESIGN: This study will examine the use of clinical decision-support reminders to improve rates of initiation of preventative treatment in a TB/HIV co-morbid population living in a TB endemic area. This will be a pragmatic, parallel-group, cluster-randomized superiority trial with a 1:1 allocation to treatment ratio. For the trial, 20 public medical facilities that use clinical summary sheets generated from an electronic medical records system will participate as clusters. All HIV-positive adult patients who complete an initial encounter at a study cluster and at least one return encounter during the study period will be included in the study cohort. The primary endpoint will be IPT prescription at 3 months post the initial encounter. We will conduct both individual-level and cluster-level analyses. Due to the nature of the intervention, the trial will not be blinded. This study will contribute to the growing evidence base for the use of electronic health interventions in low-resource settings to promote high-quality clinical care, health system optimization and positive patient outcomes. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01934309, registered 29 August 2013

Clinic-based SAMBA-II vs centralized laboratory viral load assays among HIV-1 infected children, adolescents and young adults in rural Zimbabwe: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND In Zimbabwe, children, adolescents and young adults living with HIV (CALWH) who are on public health antiretroviral therapy (ART) have inadequate viral load (VL) suppression. We assessed whether a clinic-based VL monitoring could decrease 12-month virologic failure rates among these CALWH. METHODS The study was registered on ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03986099. CALWH in care at Chidamoyo Christian Hospital (CCH) and 8 rural outreach sites (ROS) on long-term community-based ART were randomized (1:1) to 6 monthly VL monitoring by COBAS®Ampliprep®/Taqman48® HIV-1 at the provincial referral laboratory (PRL) as per standard of care (SOC) or by the clinic-based SAMBA II assay, Diagnostics for the Real World, at CCH. VL suppression, turn-around-time (TAT) for VL results, drug switching and drug resistance in second-line failure were assessed at 12 months. RESULTS Of 390 CALWH enrolled 347 (89%) completed 12 months follow-up. Median (IQR) age and ART duration were 14.1 (9.7-18.2) and 6.4 (3.7-7.9) years, respectively. Over half (57%) of the participants were female. At enrolment, 78 (20%) had VL ≥1,000 copies/ml and VL suppression of 80% was unchanged after 12 months, with no significant difference between the SOC (81%) and the clinic-based (80%) arms (p = 0.528). Median (IQR) months to confirmatory VL result at CCH vs PRL was 4.0 (2.1-4.4) vs 4.5 (3.5-6.3) respectively; p = 0.027 at 12 months. Drug switching was documented among 26/347 (7%) participants with no difference between the median (IQR) time to switch in SOC vs clinic-based arms (5.1 (3.9-10.0) months vs 4.4 (2.5-8.4) respectively; p = 0.569). Out of 24 confirmed second-line failures, only 4/19 (21%) had protease inhibitor resistance. CONCLUSION In rural Zimbabwe, the clinic-based SAMBA II assay was able to provide confirmatory VL results faster than the SOC VL assay at the PRL. However, this rapid TAT did not allow for a more efficient drug switch among these CALWH

Screening and management of viral hepatitis and hepatocellular carcinoma in Mongolia: results from a survey of Mongolian physicians from all major provinces of Mongolia

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No association between cumulative traumatic experiences and sex in risk for posttraumatic stress disorder among human immunodeficiency virus-positive adults

This study examined the association between the type and number of traumatic experiences and the conditional risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), stratified by sex, in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). We evaluated 465 (114 male and 350 female) HIV-positive adults attending HIV clinics in Cape Town, South Africa. Demographic and clinical data were collected, and the participants were screened for current PTSD and traumatic event exposure using the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview and the Life Events Checklist, respectively. The highest attributable risk for PTSD was derived from sexual assault (17.4%) and transport accidents (16.9%). Only sexual assault was significantly (p = 0.002) associated with current PTSD. Although sex had no effect on the prediction of current PTSD, HIVinfected men tended to experience more lifetime traumas than HIV-infected women, with the men having significantly higher rates of exposure than women to physical assault (p = 0.018) and assault with a weapon (p = 0.001). These data highlight the importance of considering trauma type in contributing to the burden of PTSD in HIV-infected adults.Web of Scienc

Do clinical decision-support reminders for medical providers improve isoniazid prescription rates among HIV-positive adults?

People living with HIV (PLHIV) are at increased risk of developing active tuberculosis (TB) and dying from TB. Isoniazid preventive therapy (IPT) can prevent this, but only a small fraction of HIV-positive individuals are on IPT. Previous research suggests that clinical decision support systems (CDSS)—electronic systems that use existing patient data and established algorithms to generate alerts, reminders, or recommendations intended to aid clinical decision-making—have the potential to improve provider adherence to diagnostic and treatment guidelines. Researchers conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial of a new CDSS intervention for TB screening, prevention, and treatment in a high HIV and TB prevalence setting to evaluate the effects of implementing a reminder system for medical providers to increase IPT for PLHIV. Specifically, the research objective was to determine if the intervention increases IPT prescription rates and decreases time from initial encounter to IPT initiation. The study was conducted as part of the HIVCore project, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and led by the Population Council

Haitian State Hospital Orthopedic Grand Rounds Series: A Virtual Curriculum to Address Global Surgery Needs

Background: Orthopedic Relief Services International (ORSI), in partnership with the Foundation for Orthopedic Trauma and the department of Orthopedic Surgery of La Paix University Hospital in Haiti, has developed a year-round Orthopedic Grand Round series. This series is moderated by Haitian faculty, features presentations by American orthopedic surgeons, and is broadcast to major state hospitals in Haiti for residents and attendings. Objective: To introduce clinical concepts and increase knowledge in an area that is medically underserved, especially in the field of orthopedics, through lectures that tailor to the educational needs of Haiti. Methods: Topics for lecture series are requested by Haitian attending orthopedic surgeons and residents in collaboration with American orthopedic surgeons to meet the educational needs of the residents in Haiti. These lectures reflect the case mix typically seen at state hospitals in Haiti and consider the infrastructural capacity of participating centers. Grand rounds are held an average of twice per month for an hour each, encompassing an educational lesson followed by an open forum for questions and case discussion. Feedback is taken from Haitian residents to ensure the sessions are beneficial to their learning. Findings and Conclusions: To date 95 sessions hosted by 32 lecturers have been completed over Zoom between the US and Haiti. The fourth year of the lecture series is currently ongoing with an expansion of topics. In an underserved medical area such as Haiti, programs that educate local surgeons are crucial to continuing the growth and development of the medical community. Programs like this have the potential to contribute to the educational infrastructure of countries in need, regardless of the specialty. The model of this program can be used to produce similar curricula in various specialties and areas around the world