9 research outputs found

    Street children in Mafikeng, North-West Province: A qualitative study of social experiences

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    The general perception, on the part of South African society, is that street children are a major social menace. Yet the reality is that, street children are a vulnerable group that suffer both psychological and physical violence including sexual abuse. This qualitative study investigated the social experiences of street children in Mafikeng, North-West Province in South Africa. Data were collected using focus group discussions made up of a total of 20 participants aged 10-19 years, and selected using convenience sampling. Three themes were extracted using the consensual qualitative method and constant comparison to establish credibility and  trustworthiness. The results of the study revealed three major themes (i.e. reasons for abandoning home; life in the streets, and the desire to go  back home), and three sub-themes (risks and challenges encountered, regrets, and the desire for rehabilitation and schooling). Recommendations included the need for psychological interventions among this group, the need further for research, and the need to use probability sampling techniques in future studies, as this might provide a more comprehensive picture of the situation.Keywords: Street children, social experiences, Mafikeng, Africa, vulnerable, psychological interventio

    Parainfluenza Virus Infection Among Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)-Infected and HIV-Uninfected Children and Adults Hospitalized for Severe Acute Respiratory Illness in South Africa, 2009-2014

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    Background. Parainfluenza virus (PIV) is a common cause of acute respiratory tract infections, but little is known about PIV infection in children and adults in Africa, especially in settings where human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevalence is high. Methods. We conducted active, prospective sentinel surveillance for children and adults hospitalized with severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) from 2009 to 2014 in South Africa. We enrolled controls (outpatients without febrile or respiratory illness) to calculate the attributable fraction for PIV infection. Respiratory specimens were tested by multiplex real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction assay for parainfluenza types 1, 2, and 3. Results. Of 18 282 SARI cases enrolled, 1188 (6.5%) tested positive for any PIV type: 230 (19.4%) were type 1; 168 (14.1%) were type 2; 762 (64.1%) were type 3; and 28 (2.4%) had coinfection with 2 PIV types. After adjusting for age, HIV serostatus, and respiratory viral coinfection, the attributable fraction for PIV was 65.6% (95% CI [ confidence interval], 47.1-77.7); PIV contributed to SARI among HIV-infected and -uninfected children < 5 years of age and among individuals infected with PIV types 1 and 3. The observed overall incidence of PIV-associated SARI was 38 (95% CI, 36-39) cases per 100 000 population and was highest in children < 1 year of age (925 [ 95% CI, 864-989] cases per 100 000 population). Compared with persons without HIV, persons with HIV had an increased relative risk of PIV hospitalization (9.4; 95% CI, 8.5-10.3). Conclusions. Parainfluenza virus causes substantial severe respiratory disease in South Africa among children < 5 years of age, especially those that are infected with HIV

    Fruitful Decade for Antileishmanial Compounds from 2002 to Late 2011

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