ABSTRACT Febrile zoonotic diseases from animals such as brucellosis are common and share many clinical manifestations with other fever causing diseases like malaria. The febrile zoonotic diseases are rarely routinely diagnosed or misdiagnosed in patients presenting with feverish conditions in many of the health facilities. Brucellosis in Morogoro region may be exacerbated by a number of factors including the presence of human-livestock-wildlife interface in the Mikumi Selous Ecosystem. The in...
ABSTRACT The devastating effect of cancer is a worldwide concern. In Kenya, cancer is ranked third cause of death after infectious and cardiovascular diseases. Unfortunately current therapeutic modalities have been found to possess side effects coupled with the emergence of anticancer drug resistance. This has necessitated the search for novel therapeutic products with better efficacy, safety and affordability through identification of anti-tumor agents from natural products. In this study th...
ABSTRACT Current global efforts as embodied in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) state the need to reduce Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) to less than 70 per 100,000 live births by 2030. In 2015, MMR in Kenya was 510 per 100,000 live births. Increased utilization of antenatal care (ANC) service is an essential strategy in reducing risks associated with pregnancy and child bearing while post-natal period is particularly important for women, since during this period they may develop life-...
ABSTRACT The goal of service delivery of any government is to provide quality essential priority health packages that are acceptable, affordable and accessible to all its citizens. The declaration of free maternal Health Care services by the National Government of Kenya is a positive step to fulfilling the affordability and to some extent accessibility aspects of Maternal and Child health service delivery. Kisumu County still has the highest proportion of mothers dying in the post-partum peri...
ABSTRACT Ascariasis is the most common human helminthic infection; globally an estimated 1.5 billion people are infested with approximately 60,000 deaths annually. Infestation is most prevalent in Southeast Asia and Africa and in children aged 2-10 years. Heavy Ascaris lumbricoides worm load in children can lead to intestinal and pancreatic duct obstruction that requires surgical interventions. Although preventable, Ascariasis contributed to 84 (5%) pediatric admissions while, 27(90%) of acut...
ABSTRACT Malaria remains one of the most prevalent vector borne diseases especially in Sub Saharan Africa contributing to morbidity and mortality of both adults and children. Knowledge in malaria control and prevention methods especially environmental management can reduce the population density of the vectors thus lessen malaria prevalence. The objectives of this study were to: determine knowledge on environmental management for malaria control, identify the most effective environmental mana...
ABSTRACT Globally, dental caries is one of the most prevalent dental health problem that affects children. It is number four main cause of morbidity among under five year old children in Bureti Sub County and accounts for up to 20% of morbidity cases. Its prevalence and associated risks factors in Bureti Sub county is not known hence the purpose of this study. The main purpose of the study was to determine dental caries prevalence, caries experience, and their associated risk factors among pr...
ABSTRACT The World Health Organization report indicates that in 2013, about 35 million people worldwide lived with HIV and AIDS.HIV can be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy, at childbirth and during breastfeeding. High rates of mother-to-child HIV transmission (MTCT) in developing countries continue to happen despite availability of efficacious interventions. Numerous studies have shown that socio-demographic, clinical and biological correlates and TAT are known to influence M...
ABSTRACT Health service delivery across Africa is characterised by widespread inefficiency and low service quality. In Kenya, factors that closely influence performance and the critical quality measure items of medical male circumcision services remain unexplored. Specifically, technical efficiency, productivity and service quality and the factor structure of the service quality monitoring tool in Nyanza region remain unclear. Consequently, the current study aimed to evaluate performance in t...
ABSTRACT Access to medicines is a multidimensional concept said to exist when patients have continuous availability of essential medicines at affordable prices and within a physical location that is accessible. With devolution of health services, access to essential medicines, including those for non-communicable disease is meant to improve. The study sought to determine the accessibility to essential medicines for the four major non communicable diseases in Trans-Nzoia County. The study was ...
ABSTRACT In the urban areas of the world, cockroaches constitute a public health threat in the ready-to-eat food premises because they spread diseases and contaminate food. Globally, food borne diseases transmitted by pests affect 600 million people annually with 48million in the USA. Developing countries have more cases but are underreported due to poor diagnostic facilities. In Botswana, more than 40% of cockroach population is in urban areas due to inadequate waste disposal and poor housin...
ABSTRACT It is estimated that about 10 million pregnant women could be infected with schistosomiasis in Africa. In Kisumu, schistosomiasis, soil transmitted helminths and malaria are endemic and studies done on school children and occupationally exposed adults had reported high prevalence levels of these infections. However, little was known about the prevalence of S. mansoni, geohelminths and malaria co-infections among pregnant women in Kisumu, Kenya. In order to determine the importance of...
ABSTRACT Despite a large body of knowledge on the causes, control measures, and availability of preventive chemotherapy (PCT), more that 650 million people throughout the world remain at risk of schistosomiasis. In Kenya, for example, 6 million people particularly in communities such as Migori that live close to the shores of Lake Victoria are at-risk of the disease. What is missing from previous research is the extent to which at-risk communities are knowledgeable about the disease including...
ABSTRACT Global estimate shows that Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) comprise at least 15 percent of all children less than 15 years. In Kenya, approximately 2.6 million (12 percent), of children below 18 years of age are OVC, with majority being in western Kenya. A rapid assessment, analysis and action planning process (RAAAP) revealed that out of an estimated 10.6 million OVC in seventeen (17) countries in sub-Saharan Africa, only 8.6% were receiving one essential service as health car...
ABSTRACT The health system in Mombasa County, Kenya, has been experiencing challenges in meeting its primary health care facilities annual targets in service delivery. This could be partly explained by continued skewing of health budget allocation in favour of tertiary and secondary care facilities, which absorb 70% of health expenditures, than the primary care units that provide the bulk of health services. However, there are limited studies that have examined financing factors influencing p...