Background and Aims: Preeclampsia poses a heightened risk for women, particularly in the development of hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, and low platelets (HELLP) syndrome, leading to adverse outcomes for both mothers and newborns. The incidence of HELLP syndrome tends to be notably higher among women with preeclampsia compared with those with normotensive pregnancies. However, there is a dearth of research on the frequency of HELLP syndrome within the context of preeclampsia specifically...
From a pathophysiological standpoint, type 2 diabetes can result from insulin resistance or insulin insufficiency alone. It is unclear which of the two is linked to adverse health outcomes. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between insulin resistance (IR) and obesity, dyslipidaemia, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and sexual dysfunction (SD) in men with type 2 diabetes mellitus as well as the interaction between IR and obesity on adverse cardio...
Highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is known to cause lipid abnormalities such as dyslipidaemia in HIV-infected individuals. Yet, dyslipidaemia may not independently occur as it may be worsened by single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) and lipoprotein lipase (LPL). This case–control study was conducted in three-selected hospitals in the Northern part of Ghana. The study constituted a total of 118 HIV-infected participants aged 19–71 ...
Abstract Alcohol has particularly harmful health effects in HIV-infected patients; therefore, HIV clinics are an important setting for integration of routine alcohol screening as an integral component of HIV care.In sub-Sahara Africa, little is known about AUDs among people attending HIV services. Objective: To estimate the prevalence of alcohol use disorder in patients attending CCC at KNH Design: A descriptive cross-sectional study Setting: Comprehensive Care Center, Kenyatta National Hosp...
Abstract/Overview Antiretroviral treatment (ART) assists patients in controlling their HIV infection and ensuring long-term survival. Despite this advantage, a significant number of HIV-positive individuals do not attain full virologic suppression. The purpose of this research was to determine the prevalence of low-level viraemia, its impact on outcome, and related factors in HIV-1 infected patients receiving ART at Nyakach County Hospital in Kisumu, Kenya. This observational cohort resea...
Abstract Ethnopharmacological relevance Medicinal plants play a major role in many communities across the world, in the treatment and prevention of disease and the promotion of general health. The aim of the study was to escalate documentation from an earlier study of medicinal plants, traditionally used to combat malaria by the Ameru community of Imenti Forest area and Gatunga in Eastern Region of Kenya, and validate their ethnopharmacological claims by evaluating their antiplasmodial effic...
Abstract Background Although injection drug use drives antiretroviral drug resistance, the prevalence of protease inhibitor (PI) resistance among Kenyan IDUs remains undetermined. We, therefore, explored PI resistance mutations and their association with viral load and CD4+ T cell counts in HIV-1 infected IDUs (ART-naive, n = 32; and -experienced, n = 47) and non-drug users (ART-naive, n = 21; and -experienced, n = 32) naive for PI treatment from coastal Kenya. Results Only IDUs harboured ma...
Abstract Introduction: the interaction between Mycobacterium tuberculosis and HIV leads to rapid progression of tuberculosis (TB) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-induced immunosuppression. Diagnosis of TB in these patients is more difficult due to its atypical presentations giving contradicting results. The overall aim of this study was to evaluate the ability of pro-inflammatory cytokine (Th1) and anti-inflammatory cytokine (Th2) to discriminate between culture-positive and -negative...
Abstract Background Improved understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in pediatric severe malarial anemia (SMA) pathogenesis is a crucial step in the design of novel therapeutics. Identification of host genetic susceptibility factors in immune regulatory genes offers an important tool for deciphering malaria pathogenesis. The IL-23/IL-17 immune pathway is important for both immunity and erythropoiesis via its effects through IL-23 receptors (IL-23R). However, the impact of IL-23R v...
Abstract An understanding of the immunogenetic basis of naturally acquired immunity to Plasmodium falciparum infection would aid in the designing of a rationally based malaria vaccine. Variants within the Fc gamma receptors (FcγRs) mediate immunity through engagement of immunoglobulin G and other immune mediators, such as gamma interferon (IFN-γ), resulting in erythrophagocytosis and production of inflammatory cytokines in severe malarial anemia (SMA). The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) trigge...
Abstract Background: Improved understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in pediatric severe malarial anemia(SMA) pathogenesis is a crucial step in the design of novel therapeutics. Identification of host genetic susceptibility factors in immune regulatory genes offers an important tool for deciphering malaria pathogenesis. The IL-23/IL-17immune pathway is important for both immunity and erythropoiesis via its effects through IL-23 receptors (IL-23R). However, the impact of IL-23R va...
Abstract In holoendemic Plasmodium falciparum transmission areas such as western Kenya, severe malarial anemia [SMA,hemoglobin (Hb) < 6.0 g/dL, with any density parasitemia] is the most common clinical manifestation of severe malariaresulting in high rates of pediatric morbidity and mortality in these regions. Previous studies associated interleukin (IL)-13with pathogenesis of different infectious diseases, including P. falciparum malaria. However, the functional roles ofpolymorphic variants...
Abstract Mycobacterium tuberculosis, a Gram-positive bacterium of great clinical relevance, is a lethal pathogen owing to its complex physiological characteristics and development of drug resistance. Several molecular genetic tools have been developed in the past few decades to study this microorganism. These tools have been instrumental in understanding how M. tuberculosis became a successful pathogen. Advanced molecular genetic tools have played a significant role in exploring the complex ...
Abstract: Birth weight is one of the major factors that determine the overall future health outcomes. Predicting birth weight can enable medical practitioners to make early obstetric interventions, thus minimising complications associated with low birth weight. Data-mining models are receiving a great deal of attention for making predictions based on a vast amount of low birth data. Low birth weight research has especially focused on identifying the risk factors of low birth weight However, ...
Aims: The involvement of maternal sociodemographic, obstetric, clinical, anthropometric and biochemical variables in preeclampsia has been demonstrated in previous studies. However, there are intra- and inter-population variabilities in study findings due to differences in genetic and environmental factors. This requires population-specific studies to aid the formulation of local protocols for the early detection and management of preeclampsia. Study Design: This was a case-control study Pl...