Anemia among HIV infected individuals taking art with and without zidovudine at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Background: Hematological complications such as Zidovudine(ZDV) associated anemia are among the commonly reported adverse drug reactions of Antiretroviral Therapy(ART). Little is known about ZDV associated anemia in developing countries like Ethiopia.Methods: Comparative retrospective cohort study was conducted at the ART Clinic of St. Paul Hospital Millennium Medical College from February 2011 to December 2012 to characterize anemia among HIV/AIDS patients initiated with ZDV and non-ZDV containing ART regimens. In each group, 197 HIV infected adults who had complete medical records were included. Medical records of participants were reviewed using pre-tested data collection format. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 19 for windows. For all statistical significance tests, the cut-off value was P<0.05.Results: Among ZDV group, anemia prevalence was 20.8 % (41/197), 33.5%(66 /197) and 13%(19/146) at baseline, six and twelve months of ART follow-up, respectively.On the other hand in non-ZDV group, anemia was present among 44.2% (87/197), 18.3% (36/197) and 12.4% (25 /202) of participants at baseline, six and twelve months of ART follow-up, respectively. After six months of follow-up, ZDV associated anemia was present among 32.7% (51/156) of the participants, and 43.1% of them were severe while about 45.2% were macrocytic type. Zidovudine group participants were 3.34 times more likely to develop severe anemia than non-ZDV group, P< 0.001.Conclusion: The prevalence, severity and characteristics of anemia were different between ZDV and non-ZDV group participants at different follow-up periods of ART. Zidovudine had significant contribution to severe anemia incidence after six months of ART; thus, hemoglobin level monitoring with red cell indices is suggested for improved detection of zidovudine associated anemia.Keywords: Anemia, Zidovudine, HIV/AIDS, ART, Ethiopi

Global, regional, and national sex differences in the global burden of tuberculosis by HIV status, 1990–2019: results from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019

Background Tuberculosis is a major contributor to the global burden of disease, causing more than a million deaths annually. Given an emphasis on equity in access to diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis in global health targets, evaluations of differences in tuberculosis burden by sex are crucial. We aimed to assess the levels and trends of the global burden of tuberculosis, with an emphasis on investigating differences in sex by HIV status for 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2019. Methods We used a Bayesian hierarchical Cause of Death Ensemble model (CODEm) platform to analyse 21 505 site-years of vital registration data, 705 site-years of verbal autopsy data, 825 site-years of sample-based vital registration data, and 680 site-years of mortality surveillance data to estimate mortality due to tuberculosis among HIV-negative individuals. We used a population attributable fraction approach to estimate mortality related to HIV and tuberculosis coinfection. A compartmental meta-regression tool (DisMod-MR 2.1) was then used to synthesise all available data sources, including prevalence surveys, annual case notifications, population-based tuberculin surveys, and tuberculosis cause-specific mortality, to produce estimates of incidence, prevalence, and mortality that were internally consistent. We further estimated the fraction of tuberculosis mortality that is attributable to independent effects of risk factors, including smoking, alcohol use, and diabetes, for HIV-negative individuals. For individuals with HIV and tuberculosis coinfection, we assessed mortality attributable to HIV risk factors including unsafe sex, intimate partner violence (only estimated among females), and injection drug use. We present 95% uncertainty intervals for all estimates. Findings Globally, in 2019, among HIV-negative individuals, there were 1.18 million (95% uncertainty interval 1.08-1.29) deaths due to tuberculosis and 8.50 million (7.45-9.73) incident cases of tuberculosis. Among HIV-positive individuals, there were 217 000 (153 000-279 000) deaths due to tuberculosis and 1.15 million (1.01-1.32) incident cases in 2019. More deaths and incident cases occurred in males than in females among HIV-negative individuals globally in 2019, with 342 000 (234 000-425 000) more deaths and 1.01 million (0.82-1.23) more incident cases in males than in females. Among HIV-positive individuals, 6250 (1820-11 400) more deaths and 81 100 (63 300-100 000) more incident cases occurred among females than among males in 2019. Age-standardised mortality rates among HIV-negative males were more than two times greater in 105 countries and age-standardised incidence rates were more than 1.5 times greater in 74 countries than among HIV-negative females in 2019. The fraction of global tuberculosis deaths among HIV-negative individuals attributable to alcohol use, smoking, and diabetes was 4.27 (3.69-5.02), 6.17 (5.48-7.02), and 1.17 (1.07-1.28) times higher, respectively, among males than among females in 2019. Among individuals with HIV and tuberculosis coinfection, the fraction of mortality attributable to injection drug use was 2.23 (2.03-2.44) times greater among males than females, whereas the fraction due to unsafe sex was 1.06 (1.05-1.08) times greater among females than males. Interpretation As countries refine national tuberculosis programmes and strategies to end the tuberculosis epidemic, the excess burden experienced by males is important. Interventions are needed to actively communicate, especially to men, the importance of early diagnosis and treatment. These interventions should occur in parallel with efforts to minimise excess HIV burden among women in the highest HIV burden countries that are contributing to excess HIV and tuberculosis coinfection burden for females. Placing a focus on tuberculosis burden among HIV-negative males and HIV and tuberculosis coinfection among females might help to diminish the overall burden of tuberculosis. This strategy will be crucial in reaching both equity and burden targets outlined by global health milestone

Urinary Markers of Tubular Injury in Early Diabetic Nephropathy

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is a common and serious complication of diabetes associated with adverse outcomes of renal failure, cardiovascular disease, and premature mortality. Early and accurate identification of DN is therefore of critical importance to improve patient outcomes. Albuminuria, a marker of glomerular involvement in early renal damage, cannot always detect early DN. Thus, more sensitive and specific markers in addition to albuminuria are needed to predict the early onset and progression of DN. Tubular injury, as shown by the detection of tubular injury markers in the urine, is a critical component of the early course of DN. These urinary tubular markers may increase in diabetic patients, even before diagnosis of microalbuminuria representing early markers of normoalbuminuric DN. In this review we summarized some new and important urinary markers of tubular injury, such as neutrophil gelatinase associated lipocalin (NGAL), kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1), liver-type fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP), N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase (NAG), alpha-1 microglobulin (A1M), beta 2-microglobulin (B2-M), and retinol binding protein (RBP) associated with early DN

Magnitude and associated factors of cytopenias among antiretroviral therapy naïve Human Immunodeficiency Virus infected adults in Dessie, Northeast Ethiopia.

BackgroundHematologic abnormalities involving peripheral blood cell cytopenias are strong predictors of morbidity, mortality and poor antiretroviral therapy (ART) outcomes of HIV infected individuals. However, limited studies are conducted in resource-limited settings of sub-Saharan Africa that have addressed the magnitude and associated factors of cytopenias. This study aimed to investigate the magnitude and associated factors of cytopenias among ART naïve HIV infected adult Ethiopians.Materials and methodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among ART naïve HIV infected individuals attending at ART unit of Dessie Referral Hospital between November 01, 2015 and April 30, 2016. A total of 402 adults were included using consecutive sampling. Socio-demographic, clinical and laboratory data of patients were collected. The data were entered to Epi Info version 3.4.3 and analyzed using SPSS version 20 software (SPSS INC, Chicago, IL, USA). Factors associated with cytopenias were analyzed first using bivariate and then multivariate logistic regression models. An odds ratio with 95% confidence interval was used to measure the strength of association. For all statistical significant tests, the cut-off value was set at PResultsIn this study, the overall magnitude of any cytopenia, anemia, leucopenia and thrombocytopenia were 63.4%, 43.5%, 24.4% and 18.7%, respectively. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, severe immunosuppression and WHO clinical stage IV HIV disease were significantly associated with increased prevalence of cytopenias. In addition, older age and younger age showed significant association with increased prevalence of anemia and leucopenia, respectively.ConclusionFrequent occurrence of cytopenias was independently associated with severe immunosuppression and WHO clinical stage IV HIV disease. Further longitudinal multicenter studies are recommended to bolster the findings of this study in order to suggest the need of routine assessment and management of hematological abnormalities for optimal choice of initial antiretroviral agents and prevention of further morbidities

Medical laboratory waste generation rate, management practices and associated factors in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

BackgroundBiomedical wastes (BMWs) generated from medical laboratories are hazardous and can endanger both humans and the environment. Highly infectious biomedical wastes are produced at an unacceptably high rate from health laboratories in developing countries with poor management systems, such as Ethiopia. The purpose of this study was to assess the rate of biomedical waste generation, management practices, and associated factors in public healthcare medical laboratories in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Materials and methodsFrom July 13 to September 25, 2020, a health institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted in 6 hospital laboratories and 20 health centres laboratories in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Data on socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge and practice of biomedical waste management and generation rate were collected d in health facilities using pre tested data collection tools. SPSS version 20 was used to manage the data. To identify independent predictors of the dependent variable, descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, linear, and logistic regression analysis were used. The strength of the association was determined using an odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval.ResultsIn this study, the mean ± SD daily generation rate of biomedical wastes was 4.9 ± 3.13 kg/day per medical laboratory. Nineteen medical laboratories (74.3%) had proper biomedical waste management practice, which is significantly associated with professionals' knowledge of biomedical waste management policies and guidelines, the availability of separate financial sources for biomedical waste management, and the level of training of professionals.ConclusionThe study found that medical laboratories in Addis Ababa's public healthcare facilities generate a significant amount of biomedical waste. Nearly two-thirds of hospitals performed proper waste segregation, collection, storage, and treatment procedures for biomedical waste generated in their laboratories. However, there was a poor transportation and disposal method. As a result, paying special attention and implementing the current national guidelines for biomedical waste management is recommended

Uninvestigated dyspepsia and associated factors of patients with gastrointestinal disorders in Dessie Referral Hospital, Northeast Ethiopia

Abstract Background Dyspepsia is a common problem in the community and clinical practice with symptom(s) considered arising from the gastroduodenal region. Dyspepsia burden and associated factors vary from country to country. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of uninvestigated dyspepsia (UD) using Rome III criteria, associated risk factors and self-reported dyspepsia symptoms’ correlation with H. pylori infection. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 318 out patients with gastrointestinal complaints during the period from September 1 to December 30, 2015. All patients completed a questionnaire for collecting data regarding sociodemographic, lifestyle and functional gastrointestinal disorders. Diagnosis of dyspepsia was made according to the Rome III criteria. H. pylori infection was assessed using stool antigen test. SPSS version 20.0 statistical software package was used for data analysis. Results From a total of 318 patients, 48.4% had UD according to Rome III criteria; with 42.1% symptoms of epigastric pain/burning, 26.1% postprandial fullness and 22.6% early satiation. Epigastric pain/burning (AOR = 1.92, 95% CI 1.07–3.43), early satiation (AOR = 2.68, 95% CI 1.38–5.20) and belching (AOR = 4.7, 95% CI 1.54–14.40) were significantly correlated with H. pylori infection. H. pylori infection (AOR = 4.33, 95% CI 2.41–7.76) and aspirin/NSAIDs consumption (AOR = 5.29, 95% CI 2.82–9.93) were independent risk factors for UD. However, consumption of raw fruits/ vegetables at least once a week (AOR = 0.48, 95% CI 0.24–0.98) and taking two or more cups of tea a day (AOR = 0.339, 95% CI 0.17–0.70) were inversely associated with UD. Conclusions UD is highly prevalent among adults with gastrointestinal complaints. H. pylori infection is significantly associated with UD and correlates with its symptoms. Individuals with epigastric pain/burning, early satiation and belching should be primary focus of H. pylori infection diagnosis and treatment. The role of consumption of tea, raw fruits and vegetables on dyspepsia needs further large scale study

Co-infection of intestinal parasites and Helicobacter pylori among upper gastrointestinal symptomatic adult patients attending Mekanesalem Hospital, northeast Ethiopia

Abstract Objective Intestinal parasites and H. pylori are well-known for their high prevalence worldwide. Thus, the objective of this study waste assess risk factors and co-infection of intestinal parasites and H. pylori among adult patients with upper gastrointestinal complaints. A hospital-based cross sectional study was conducted among 363 consecutive adult patients from December 10, 2015 to February 30,2016. Stool and venous blood were collected for analysis of Intestinal parasites and H. pylori infection, respectively. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 16 and logistic regression analysis was carried out to assess predictors of co-infection. A p ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Results Helicobacter pylori IgG and intestinal parasites were detected in 70.25–38.3% of participants, respectively while G. lamblia accounted 22.3%. G. lamblia prevalence was significantly higher among H. pylori infected participants (COR: 2.76; 95% CI: 1.46–5.23), but E. hystolytica/dispar infection didn’t show significant variation (p = 0.15). H. pylori and intestinal parasites concomitant co-infection was associated with male sex (AOR: 1.61; 95% CI: 1.01–2.56), consumption of river water (AOR: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.11–3.07) and ground/spring water (AOR: 4.10; 95% CI: 1.97–8.52). Thus, besides H. pylori investigation, upper gastrointestinal symptomatic patients should be screened for G. lamblia infection and other intestinal parasites

Common hematological parameters reference intervals for apparently healthy pregnant and non-pregnant women of South Wollo Zone, Amhara Regional State, Northeast Ethiopia.

BackgroundHematological reference intervals (RIs) are affected by inherent variables like age, sex, genetic background, environment, diet and certain circumstances such as pregnancy signifying the need for population specific values. This study was designed to establish RIs for common hematological parameters of apparently healthy pregnant and non-pregnant women from Northeast Ethiopia.MethodThis community based cross-sectional study recruited 600 pregnant and non-pregnant women in South Wollo Zone, Northeast Ethiopia from June to August 2019. Complete blood count was performed for eligible participants using Mindary BC-3000 plus hematology analyzer. The mean, median, and 2.5th and 97.5th percentile reference limits with 90% CI were determined using SPSS version 23.ResultThe established selected 2.5th-97.5th percentiles RIs for pregnant women were: WBC: 4.0-13.2x109/L; RBC: 3.45-4.67x1012/L; Hgb: 10.1-13.7g/dL; HCT: 33.5-46.5%; MCV: 85-104fL; MCH: 27.5-33.0pg; MCHC: 30.3-33.7g/dL and Platelet count: 132-373x109/L. The respective values for non-pregnant women were 3.6-10.3; 4.44-5.01; 12.4-14.3; 38.4-50.1; 86-102; 27.1-32.4, 30.4-34.1, 173-456. A statistically significant difference between pregnant and non-pregnant women was noted in all hematological parameters except MCHC. The mean and median value of WBC count, MCV, MPV and PDW increased, whereas mean values of HCT and Platelet count decreased as gestational period advances.ConclusionThe observed difference from other studies signify the necessity for using trimester specific RIs and separate RI for pregnant and non-pregnant women. Thus, we recommend the health facilities in the study area to utilize the currently established RIs for pregnant and non-pregnant women for better care