Example of a minimal amount of nasal discharge.

<p>Example of a minimal amount of nasal discharge.</p

The "F" in SAFE: Reliability of assessing clean faces for trachoma control in the field

<div><p>Background</p><p>Although facial cleanliness is part of the SAFE strategy for trachoma there is controversy over the reliability of measuring a clean face. A child’s face with no ocular and nasal discharge is clean and the endpoint of interest, regardless of the number of times it must be washed to achieve that endpoint. The issue of reliability rests on the reproducibility of graders to assess a clean face. We report the reproducibility of assessing a clean face in a field trial in Kongwa, Tanzania.</p><p>Methods/Findings</p><p>Seven graders were trained to assess the presence and absence of nasal and ocular discharge on children’s faces. Sixty children ages 1–7 years were recruited from a community and evaluated independently by seven graders, once and again about 50 minutes later. Intra-and inter-observer variation was calculated using unweighted kappa statistics. The average intra-observer agreement was kappa = 0.72, and the average inter-observer agreement was kappa = 0.78.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>Intra-observer and inter-observer agreement was substantial for the assessment of clean faces using trained Tanzania staff who represent a variety of educational backgrounds. As long as training is provided, the estimate of clean faces in children should be reliable, and reflect the effort of families to keep ocular and nasal discharge off the faces. These data suggest assessment of clean faces could be added to trachoma surveys, which already measure environmental improvements, in districts.</p></div

Example image of fly on face below the child’s right eye.

<p>Example image of fly on face below the child’s right eye.</p

Example of ocular discharge and a crusty eyelid.

<p>Example of ocular discharge and a crusty eyelid.</p

Patient perceived barriers to surgical follow-up: Study of 6-month post-operative trichiasis surgery follow-up in Tanzania.

BackgroundPost-surgical follow-up is a challenge in low- and middle-income countries. Understanding barriers to trachomatous trichiasis (TT) surgical follow-up can inform program improvements. In this study, patient perceived barriers and enabling factors to follow-up after TT surgery are identified.MethodsA longitudinal study was carried out in a community-based cohort of persons who received TT surgery in Bahi district, Tanzania. Questionnaires were administered before TT surgery and again after the scheduled 6-month follow-up. Those who did not return were examined at their homes.ResultsAt baseline, 852 participants were enrolled. Of these, 633 (74%) returned at 6 months and 128 (15%) did not and were interviewed at home. Prior to surgery, attenders were more likely to report familiarity with a community health worker (CHW) (22% vs. 14%; p = 0.01) and less likely to state that time constraints are a potential reason for failure to follow-up (66% vs. 74%; p = .04). At follow-up, non-attenders were more likely to endorse barriers pertaining to knowledge about the need for follow-up, lack of transportation, and satisfaction with surgery. There was no difference in post-operative TT between attenders and non-attenders (23% vs. 18% respectively; p = 0.25).ConclusionsThe outcome of surgery was not a barrier to follow-up. However, better integration of CHWs into their communities and work at coordinating post-surgical care may improve follow-up rates. Moreover, provision of transportation and implementation of effective reminder systems may address patient-perceived barriers to improve follow-up

Inter-observer agreement (Kappa score) between grader 1 and graders 2 through 7.

<p>Inter-observer agreement (Kappa score) between grader 1 and graders 2 through 7.</p

Example of agreement for clean face.

<p>Example of agreement for clean face.</p