The profile of patients presenting with postpartum depression seen in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital

Introduction: Postpartum depression is one of the most common psychiatric complications of childbearing women. Most studies report that it has a high prevalence, but women at risk are rarely recognised during pregnancy and post-delivery. It is therefore often missed and, as a result, it has negative effects not only on the mother but also on the newborn infant. The aim of this study was to determine the profile of patients presenting with postpartum depression seen in the wards and outpatients section of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital (DGMAH). Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted where 150 consenting mothers at 6 weeks postpartum at the postnatal clinic were recruited from DGMAH using set inclusion and exclusion criteria. The participants were individually interviewed for socio-demographic characteristics. The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression scale, a self-screening scale for depression, was used to evaluate for the prevalence of depression. Results: A total of 150 postnatal mothers were interviewed. The prevalence of postpartum depression at 6 weeks postpartum at DGMAH was found to be 8.9%. The age range of participants was between 18 and 44 years, with a mean age of 28.70 years. The majority of participants (149, 99.3%) were black people, 112 (74.7%) were single and 119 (79.3%) were unemployed. The most common mode of delivery was caesarean section (92.0%, 138), 74 (49.3%) had unplanned pregnancies and 76 (50.7%) were unsatisfied with the infant gender. Psychosocial stressors (p = 0.003) and infant’s birth weight of 2.5 kg (p = 0.005) were statistically associated with postpartum depression. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of postpartum depression in South Africa. A routine screening of mothers at the peri-partum period and early intervention is recommend to avoid its consequences on the mother, family and developing children

The Profession of Biokinetics in South Africa: The Need for Access to the Public Healthcare System

This chapter reviews the efficacy of the only South African exercise therapy profession (Biokinetics) in the rehabilitation of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Biokinetics is a South African exercise therapy profession established in 1983 and which operates in both the pathogenic and fortogenic healthcare paradigms. Unfortunately, the profession of Biokinetics is restricted to the South African private healthcare sector. This chapter describes the scope of the profession of Biokinetics, empirical studies illustrating the efficacy of the profession in addressing society’s non-communicable disease epidemic, and the challenges inhibiting the profession from gaining access to the South African public healthcare sector. It is hoped that the presentation and critical appraisal of the empirical evidence which illustrates the contribution of the profession of Biokinetics to the rehabilitation of NCDs justifies the authors’ claims for the inclusion of the aforementioned profession in the South African public healthcare sector

IMPROVING THE STRENGTH PROPERTIES OF SUBGRADE SOILS WITH FLY ASH

Subgrade soils encountered during road construction are not always good materials to respond to the imposed stresses which has become a dominating factor for the failure of pavements in Nigeria. The subgrade materials were sourced from three locations within South Africa namely, Heanertsburg Village (A), Laudium, South West of Pretoria (B), and Eskia Mphahele drive to Francis Baard Street, Pretoria (C). Fly Ash (FA) was added to samples A, B, and C at 3-12%, 5-15%, and 9-12% respectively. Sieve analysis, compaction, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) and Indirect Tensile Strength (ITS) tests were conducted on the virgin and stabilized soil samples for a curing time of 1, 7 and 28 days. The soils were classified as A-7-6, A-6 and A-2-6 according to AASHTO for samples A, B and C respectively. UCS and ITS was improved with the addition of FA to all the soil samples. The UCS results for sample A (406 kN/m2) and B (625 kN/m2) falls short of 1710 kN/m2 specified for cement stabilized base materials but 12% and 10% FA treated soils may be used as improved subgrade for flexible pavement construction. However, sample C result meets the requirement of 687-1373 kN/m2 for sub-base at 100% relative compaction. All the stabilized samples increase in ITS with respect to increasing curing days and FA. Only sample C attained to the specified ITS value. Therefore, FA can be used to improve the subgrade in order to withstand the imposed stress

The impact of guidance and counselling on learning outcomes: A comparative of two high schools in Vhembe District

MEd (Educational Psychology)Department of Foundations of EducationThis study examined the impact of guidance and counselling on learning outcomes. The study was comparative study of two high schools in Vhembe district located in the Northern part of Limpopo Province, South Africa. A mixed method design was employed, consisting of qualitative and quantitative approaches. For the quantitative part an experimental design and a questionnaire were used. Independent samples entailed t-tests to compare the performance of the experimental and control group, a chi-square of association was used to determine the presence/absence of alignment between career and subject choices after counselling, while paired samples t-tests were used to ascertain if there was any improvement in the performance of the two groups. In addition, written mark schedules of pre-test, post-test and a short questionnaire for learners were analysed quantitatively. For the qualitative component face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were used while the purposive sampling technique was used to select 8 Life Orientation teachers, of which 4 were from school A and the other 4 were from school B. In addition, 2 Life Orientation heads of department were interviewed on challenges in implementing Guidance and Counselling in the school curriculum. For the quantitative data analysis, the chi-square and t- test of association was used to determine if there was any difference in career and subject choices alignment and performance between learners exposed to counselling and those not exposed to the program. The overall mean scores were calculated, and the chi-square test was used to indicate if there was any significant difference in career choices and subject alignment and performance between the group that received guidance and counselling and the group which did not receive such support. Fifty learners from the two selected schools were randomly selected, whereby 25 were used for the experiment and the other 25 as a control group. The experimental results indicated that learners who were exposed to guidance and counselling showed improvement in their learning outcomes while those who were not exposed to counselling showed no improvement in their learning outcomes. The fact that group that received guidance and counselling improved suggest that guidance and counselling services should be strengthened in all schools through departmental policy review meetings.NR

Comparative Evaluation of Health-Promoting Compounds, Physicochemical and Microbiological Properties of Sorghum [<i>Sorghum bicolor</i> (L.) Moench] Based <i>Mahewu</i> Produced by Different Traditional Brewers in Thohoyandou, South Africa

Sorghum (Sorghum bicolour (L.) Moench) is an emerging reliable alternative for mahewu production. The aim of this study was to evaluate the health-promoting compounds, physicochemical and microbiological properties of sorghum-based mahewu produced by different traditional brewers in Thohoyandou, South Africa. A total of 18 mahewu samples produced by six traditional brewers (TB1–TB6) were collected and compared for antioxidant, physicochemical, and microbiological properties. Commercial sorghum mahewu was used as a control sample. The total phenolic content of the mahewu samples varied from 27.37 to 65.89 GAE /g, with commercial mahewu having a lower value. The flavonoid content ranged from 0.18 to 0.30 GAE/g, and commercial mahewu had a higher value. The DPPH scavenging activity and FRAP of mahewu samples ranged from 44.62% to 49% and 1.47 to 2.36 mg GAE/g, respectively. Commercial mahewu had a higher DPPH value but a lower FRAP value. The pH of mahewu varied significantly, ranging from 3.38 to 3.66, but was within the acceptable range. The °Brix values varied from 9.68 to 17.49, with traditional mahewu samples having higher values than commercial mahewu. Total titratable acidity ranged from 0.63 to 1.17%. The viscosity ranged from 444.33 to 1297.00 cP, with commercial mahewu having a higher value. There was a significant variation in the color of the mahewu samples with respect to L*, a*, b*, C, Hue, and ΔΕ. The growth of yeasts and molds varied from 7.95 log10 to 8.99 log10 (cfu/mL) in traditional mahewu samples, and coliforms ranged from 3.68 to 5.96 log10 (cfu/mL) and were not isolated in commercial mahewu. The total plate count ranged from 7.914 to 8.978 log10 (cfu/mL). The microbiological results show that traditional brewers are meeting the legal limit and can increase their products for commercialization

Screening for total and abdominal obesity among University of Venda students

The importance of total body fat and distribution has been stressed as a major risk factor for both adults and children. There is paucity of information concerning total and abdominal obesity among university students in South Africa. The purpose of this study was to screen for total and abdominal obesity among university of Venda health sciences students, using the proxy measures of body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). A stratified random sample of 389 (199 males and 199 females) university students aged 19-24 years, participated in the study. Height, weight, waist and hip circumferences were measured using standard techniques. Body mass index was calculated by dividing body mass by stature in meters squared. The WHO criteria were used to determine BMI categories, while WHtR was calculated by dividing waist circumference (in cm) by stature (in cm). A WHtR ≤ 0.50 was used to determine abdominal obesity. The mean age, BMI and WHtR of the participants were 20.8±2.1, 23.8±4.6 and 0.54±0.1, respectively. Overall, 7.5%, 21.4% and 11.1% of the students were underweight, overweight and obese, respectively. The percentage of students who were overweight was higher in females (11.7%) than males (9.7%), whereas obesity occurred more among the males (6.2%) compared with the females (4.9%). Underweight was 4.4% and 3.1% for females and males, respectively. A total of 102 students (19.2%) had central obesity as determined by WHtR. The proportion of males with a WHtR ≥ 0.5 was 59 (11.1%), while females were 43 (8.1%), with the males having statistically significant (p=0.001) WHtR compared to females. The prevalence of total and abdominal obesity is high among the University of Venda students; which is worrisome, given the health consequences of excessive body fat. Intervention measures should be instituted to address the rising trend of overweight and obesity in the students.Keywords: Total and abdominal obesity, body mass index, waist-to-height ratio, university students