Emergency Ultrasound Predicting the Need for Therapeutic Laparotomy among Blunt Abdominal Trauma Patients in a Sub-Saharan African Hospital

Background. The trauma burden globally accounts for high levels of mortality and morbidity. Blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) contributes significantly to this burden. Patient's evaluation for BAT remains a diagnostic challenge for emergency physicians. SSORTT gives a score that can predict the need for laparotomy. The objective of this study was to assess the accuracy of SSORTT score in predicting the need for a therapeutic laparotomy after BAT. Method. A prospective observational study. Eligible patients were evaluated for shock and the presence of haemoperitoneum using a portable ultrasound machine. Further evaluation of patients following the standard of care (SOC) protocol was done. The accuracy of SSORTT score in predicting therapeutic laparotomy was compared to SOC. Results. In total, 195 patients were evaluated; M : F ratio was 6 : 1. The commonest injuries were to the head 80 (42%) and the abdomen 54 (28%). A SSORTT score of >2 appropriately identified patients that needed a therapeutic laparotomy (with sensitivity 90%, specificity 90%, PPV 53%, and NPV 98%). The overall mortality rate was 17%. Conclusion. Patients with a SSORTT score of 2 and above had a high likelihood of requiring a therapeutic laparotomy. SSORTT scoring should be adopted for routine practice in low technology settings

Health system readiness and the implementation of rectal artesunate for severe malaria in sub-Saharan Africa: an analysis of real-world costs and constraints

BACKGROUND: Rectal artesunate, an efficacious pre-referral treatment for severe malaria in children, was deployed at scale in Uganda, Nigeria, and DR Congo. In addition to distributing rectal artesunate, implementation required additional investments in crucial but neglected components in the care for severe malaria. We examined the real-world costs and constraints to rectal artesunate implementation. METHODS: We collected primary data on baseline health system constraints and subsequent rectal artesunate implementation expenditures. We calculated the equivalent annual cost of rectal artesunate implementation per child younger than 5 years at risk of severe malaria, from a health system perspective, separating neglected routine health system components from incremental costs of rectal artesunate introduction. FINDINGS: The largest baseline constraints were irregular health worker supervisions, inadequate referral facility worker training, and inadequate malaria commodity supplies. Health worker training and behaviour change campaigns were the largest startup costs, while supervision and supply chain management accounted for most annual routine costs. The equivalent annual costs of preparing the health system for managing severe malaria with rectal artesunate were US$2.63,$2.20, and $4.19 per child at risk and$322, $219, and$464 per child treated in Uganda, Nigeria, and DR Congo, respectively. Strengthening the neglected, routine health system components accounted for the majority of these costs at 71.5%, 65.4%, and 76.4% of per-child costs, respectively. Incremental rectal artesunate costs accounted for the minority remainder. INTERPRETATION: Although rectal artesunate has been touted as a cost-effective pre-referral treatment for severe malaria in children, its real-world potential is limited by weak and under-financed health system components. Scaling up rectal artesunate or other interventions relying on community health-care providers only makes sense alongside additional, essential health system investments sustained over the long term. FUNDING: Unitaid. TRANSLATION: For the French translation of the abstract see Supplementary Materials section