Articles

Roadbook for the implementation of next-generation sequencing in clinical practice in oncology and hemato-oncology in Belgium

In the field of oncology research, next-generation sequencing has contributed significantly to the discovery of DNA mutations associated with diagnosis and prognosis. It also aids in the development of targete...

Authors: Els Van Valckenborgh, Aline Hébrant, Aline Antoniou, Wannes Van Hoof, Johan Van Bussel, Patrick Pauwels, Roberto Salgado, Waltruda Van Doren, Anouk Waeytens and Marc Van den Bulcke

Primary health care seeking behaviour of people with physical disabilities in Bangladesh: a cross-sectional study

People with disabilities constitute about 10% of the total population of Bangladesh. They are more likely to experience poor health than those without disabilities. However, there is a lack of evidence on thei...

Authors: Jhalok Ronjan Talukdar, Ilias Mahmud and Sabina Faiz Rashid

Fidelity monitoring in complex interventions: a case study of the WISE intervention

Researchers face many decisions in developing a measurement tool and protocol for monitoring fidelity to complex interventions. The current study uses data evaluating a nutrition education intervention, Togeth...

Authors: Taren Swindle, James P. Selig, Julie M. Rutledge, Leanne Whiteside-Mansell and Geoff Curran

Equitable health: let’s stick together as we address global discrimination, prejudice and stigma

Tackling discrimination permanently in healthcare is not insurmountable. It is achievable. Discrimination is costly in lives, in healthcare delivery and waste, in human capital, in financial resource and even ...

Authors: Julie Babyar

Mid-Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) shows strong geographical variations in children with edema: results from 2277 surveys in 55 countries

Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is defined by a mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) less than 115 mm or a weight-for-height z-score (WHZ) less than − 3 but also by the presence of bilateral pitting edema, also ...

Authors: Jose Luis Alvarez, Nicky Dent, L. Browne, Mark Myatt and André Briend

Haemolytic uremic syndrome surveillance in children less than 15 years in Belgium, 2009–2015

The Haemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS) is the most severe manifestation of infection with Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC). In Belgium, the surveillance of paediatric HUS cases is conducted by a sentin...

Authors: S. Jacquinet, K. De Rauw, D. Pierard, N. Godefroid, L. Collard, K. Van Hoeck and M. Sabbe

European Core Health Indicators - status and perspectives

The European Core Health Indicators (ECHI) are a key source of comparable health information for the European Union (EU) and its Member States (MS). The ECHI shortlist contains 88 indicators which were develop...

Authors: Angela Fehr, Mariken J. Tijhuis, Sabrina Hense, Dominika Urbanski, Peter Achterberg and Thomas Ziese

Individual and household risk factors of severe acute malnutrition among under-five children in Mao, Chad: a matched case-control study

Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Chad. The reasons behind persistently high prevalence of SAM in the Kanem region are still poorly understood, leaving ...

Authors: Jovana Dodos, Chiara Altare, Mahamat Bechir, Mark Myatt, Brigitte Pedro, Francois Bellet, Jean Lapegue, Joachim Peeters and Mathias Altmann

Health-related costs in a sample of premenopausal non-diabetic overweight or obese females in Antwerp region: a cost-of-illness analysis

People with overweight or obesity are at increased risk for disease later in life which cause important health costs.

Authors: W. Hens, D. Vissers, L. Annemans, J. Gielen, L. Van Gaal, J. Taeymans and N. Verhaeghe

Utility of passive malaria surveillance in hospitals as a surrogate to community infection transmission dynamics in western Kenya

Malaria continued to be the major public health concern in sub-Sahara Africa, thus for better planning of control activities, periodic surveillance of both clinical and asymptomatic cases remains important. Ho...

Authors: Anthony Kapesa, Eliningaya J. Kweka, Guofa Zhou, Harrysone Etemesi Atieli, Erasmus Kamugisha, Humphrey D. Mazigo, Sospatro E. Ngallaba, Andrew K. Githeko and Guiyun Yan

Lessons learned of emerging Chikungunya virus in two populations of social vulnerability of the Colombian tropics: epidemiological analysis

Notwithstanding the strong epidemiological impact of the Chikungunya in the Colombian Caribbean, in 2014, not the entire population were affected in the same way. This study describe the demographic, socio-eco...

Authors: Misael Oviedo-Pastrana, Nelson Méndez, Salim Mattar, Germán Arrieta and Luty Gomezcaceres

Socio – economic determinants of abortion among women in Mozambique and Ghana: evidence from demographic and health survey

Despite the variances in abortion laws accounting for differences in incidence of abortion among African countries, it appears there is absence of literature on other factors that may also account for the diff...

Authors: Kwamena Sekyi Dickson, Kenneth Setorwu Adde and Bright Opoku Ahinkorah

Factors affecting long acting and permanent contraceptive methods utilization among HIV positive married women attending care at ART clinics in Northwest Ethiopia

Globally, unintended pregnancy has been very high accounting for 27% of maternal deaths. Different studies noted that nearly half of HIV positive women who gave unintended birth were using contraceptive method...

Authors: Abebaw Addis Gelagay, Digsu Negese Koye and Hedija Yenus Yeshita

Children who are both wasted and stunted are also underweight and have a high risk of death: a descriptive epidemiology of multiple anthropometric deficits using data from 51 countries

Wasting and stunting are common. They are implicated in the deaths of almost two million children each year and account for over 12% of disability-adjusted life years lost in young children. Wasting and stunti...

Authors: Mark Myatt, Tanya Khara, Simon Schoenbuchner, Silke Pietzsch, Carmel Dolan, Natasha Lelijveld and André Briend

Impact of alcohol disorder and the use of illicit drugs on tuberculosis treatment outcomes: a retrospective cohort study

Alcohol and illicit drugs are associated with the discontinuation of tuberculosis (TB) treatment and can compromise the immune system. We estimated the impact of alcohol disorder and the use of illicit drug on...

Authors: Daniele M. Pelissari and Fredi A. Diaz-Quijano

Do adolescents understand the items of the European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q47) – German version? Findings from cognitive interviews of the project “Measurement of Health Literacy Among Adolescents” (MOHLAA) in Germany

In Germany, there are no measurement tools to assess the general health literacy of adolescents. The aim of the study “Measurement of Health Literacy Among Adolescents” (MOHLAA) is to develop such a tool for u...

Authors: Olga Maria Domanska, Christiane Firnges, Torsten Michael Bollweg, Kristine Sørensen, Christine Holmberg and Susanne Jordan

Patterns and epidemiology of acute poisoning in Ethiopia: systematic review of observational studies

Acute poisoning is a common reason for emergency department visit and hospitalization worldwide with major morbidity and mortality. The burden of poisoning exposures in Africa is a significant public health co...

Authors: Legese Chelkeba, Abera Mulatu, Dessalegn Feyissa, Firomsa Bekele and Behailu Terefe Tesfaye

Correction to: Mid-upper-arm circumference based case-detection, admission, and discharging of under five children in a large-scale community-based management of acute malnutrition program in Nigeria

The author requests to correct errors in the original article [1]. Area where it needs amendment are as follows.

Authors: Stanley Chitekwe, Sibhatu Biadgilign, Assaye Tolla and Mark Myatt

European health examination surveys – a tool for collecting objective information about the health of the population

Representative and reliable data on health and health determinants of the population and population sub-groups are needed for evidence-informed policy making; planning and evaluation of prevention programmes; ...

Authors: Hanna Tolonen, Päivikki Koponen, Ala’a Al-kerwi, Nada Capkova, Simona Giampaoli, Jennifer Mindell, Laura Paalanen, Maria Ruiz-Castell, Antonia Trichopoulou and Kari Kuulasmaa

Small steps towards an EU health information system

Authors: Hans van Oers and Herman van Oyen

Headline indicators for monitoring the performance of health systems: findings from the european Health Systems_Indicator (euHS_I) survey

Cross-country comparisons of health system performance have become increasingly important. Clear evidence is needed on the prioritization of health system performance assessment (HSPA) indicators. Selected “le...

Authors: Nataša Perić, Maria M. Hofmarcher and Judit Simon

Cardiovascular diseases monitoring: lessons from population-based registries to address future opportunities and challenges in Europe

Population-based registries implement the comprehensive collection of all disease events that occur in a well-characterized population within a certain time period and represent the preferred tools for disease...

Authors: Luigi Palmieri, Giovanni Veronesi, Giovanni Corrao, Giuseppe Traversa, Marco M. Ferrario, Giovanni Nicoletti, Anna Di Lonardo, Chiara Donfrancesco, Flavia Carle and Simona Giampaoli

The use of the global activity limitation Indicator and healthy life years by member states and the European Commission

In 2005, the European Union (EU) started to use a disability-free life expectancy, known as Healthy Life Years (HLY), to monitor progress in the strategic European policies such as the 2000 Lisbon strategy. HL...

Authors: Petronille Bogaert, Herman Van Oyen, Isabelle Beluche, Emmanuelle Cambois and Jean-Marie Robine

Environmental health surveillance in a future European health information system

To date Health information (HI) in the European Union does not comprise indicators or other information related to impacts of hazardous chemicals in consumer products, food, drinking water or air on the health...

Authors: Anke Joas, Miriam Schöpel, Madlen David, Maribel Casas, Gudrun Koppen, Marta Esteban, Lisbeth E. Knudsen, Martine Vrijheid, Greet Schoeters, Argelia Castaño Calvo, Gerda Schwedler, Marike Kolossa-Gehring and Reinhard Joas

Sensitivity and specificity of point-of-care circulating Cathodic antigen test before and after praziquantel treatment in diagnosing Schistosoma mansoni infection in adult population co-infected with human immunodeficiency virus-1, North-Western Tanzania

The effect of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-1 (HIV-1) on CD4⁺ Th₂ cells is hypothesized to affect parasitological diagnosis of Schistosoma mansoni using Kato Katz technique. Thus, the use of more sensitive techniq...

Authors: Humphrey D. Mazigo, Stella Kepha and Safari M. Kinung’hi

Use of health promotion manga to encourage physical activity and healthy eating in Japanese patients with metabolic syndrome: a case study

The present case study investigated the feasibility of using manga (Japanese-style comic books) to promote physical activity and healthy eating behavior in Japanese patients with metabolic syndrome.

Authors: Takashi Shimazaki, Munehiro Matsushita, Misa Iio and Koji Takenaka

Measuring disability: a systematic review of the validity and reliability of the Global Activity Limitations Indicator (GALI)

GALI or Global Activity Limitation Indicator is a global survey instrument measuring participation restriction. GALI is the measure underlying the European indicator Healthy Life Years (HLY). Gali has a substa...

Authors: Herman Van Oyen, Petronille Bogaert, Renata T. C. Yokota and Nicolas Berger

Exercise stereotypes and fatigue in people living with HIV: does self-efficacy play a mediating or a moderating role?

Recent research suggests that exercise stereotypes may influence physical activity through ego depletion and internalization mechanisms. The objective of this study was to better understand exercise stereotype...

Authors: Laura Gray, Aïna Chalabaev, Jacques Durant, Eric Rosenthal, Christian Pradier, Martin Duracinsky, Isabelle Rouanet, Laura Schuft, Serge S. Colson and Fabienne d’Arripe-Longueville

HIV-related knowledge in Nigeria: a 2003-2013 trend analysis

Given Nigeria’s status as the country with the second highest number of people living with HIV globally, and 9% of the total global burden of HIV being attributable to Nigeria alone in 2013, improving our unde...

Authors: Lena Faust, Michael Ekholuenetale and Sanni Yaya

Nutritional status of children ages 0–5 and 5–10 years old in households headed by fisherfolks in the Philippines

The study aimed to analyze the nutritional status of Filipino children ages 0–60 months (0–5.0 years old) and 61–120 months (5.08–10.0 years old) in households headed by fisherfolks.

Authors: Mario V. Capanzana, Divorah V. Aguila, Glen Melvin P. Gironella and Kristine V. Montecillo

Mid-upper-arm circumference based case-detection, admission, and discharging of under five children in a large-scale community-based management of acute malnutrition program in Nigeria

Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) threatens the lives of millions of children worldwide particularly in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Community-based management of acute malnutrition (CMAM) is an appr...

Authors: Stanley Chitekwe, Sibhatu Biadgilign, Assaye Tolla and Mark Myatt

The burden and high prevalence of hypertension in Pakistani adolescents: a meta-analysis of the published studies

Hypertension has been recognized as a global health concern for developing countries and is scarcely described in many of these countries. In Pakistan, few population-based surveys evaluated the prevalence of ...

Authors: Nabi Shah, Qasim Shah and Abdul Jabbar Shah

Bayesian Gaussian regression analysis of malnutrition for children under five years of age in Ethiopia, EMDHS 2014

The term malnutrition generally refers to both under-nutrition and over-nutrition, but this study uses the term to refer solely to a deficiency of nutrition. In Ethiopia, child malnutrition is one of the most ...

Authors: Seid Mohammed and Zeytu G. Asfaw

Utilization of gabapentin by people in treatment for substance use disorders in Belgium (2011–2014): a cross-sectional study

Although gabapentin has been licensed in the European Union only for neuropathic pain and epilepsy for patients who have partial seizures, it has also been prescribed in treatment for substance use disorders. ...

Authors: Luk Van Baelen, Karin De Ridder, Jérôme Antoine and Lies Gremeaux

Insights on dying, dementia and death certificates

For our master thesis in medicine, we aimed to determine how many deaths were caused by and with dementia in 2014 and we compared our results with figures from abroad. The mortality rates of 2014 in Flanders w...

Authors: Sofie Vandormael, Alexander Meirschaert, Jan Steyaert and Jan De Lepeleire

Overweight/obesity among adults in North-Western Ethiopia: a community-based cross sectional study

Nowadays adulthood overweight/obesity is an emerging public health problem in developing countries. There is no information on magnitude and contributing factors of adulthood overweight/obesity in Ethiopia, pa...

Authors: Teferi Mekonnen, Worku Animaw and Yeshaneh Seyum

Mothers’ health service utilization and attitude were the main predictors of incomplete childhood vaccination in east-central Ethiopia: a case-control study

Vaccination is an effective public health intervention for reducing childhood morbidity and mortality. It becomes more effective if the child receives the full course of the recommended doses. In Ethiopia, man...

Authors: Melaku Kindie Yenit, Yalemzewod Assefa Gelaw and Atsede Mazengia Shiferaw

Comparing performance of mothers using simplified mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) classification devices with an improved MUAC insertion tape in Isiolo County, Kenya

A novel approach for improving community case-detection of acute malnutrition involves mothers/caregivers screening their children for acute malnutrition using a mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) insertion ta...

Authors: Angeline Grant, James Njiru, Edgar Okoth, Imelda Awino, André Briend, Samuel Murage, Saida Abdirahman and Mark Myatt

Effect of health education on severe thalassemia prevention and control in communities in Cambodia

Severe thalassemia diseases are a major health problem in Southeast Asia. In Cambodia, there has never been a significant program for prevention or control of severe thalassemia. We, therefore, studied the eff...

Authors: Kimhaung Cheng, Supan Fucharoen, Kanokwan Sanchaisuriya, Goonnapa Fucharoen, Pattara Sanchaisuriya and Arunee Jetsrisuparb

Analysis of selected policies towards universal health coverage in Uganda: the policy implementation barometer protocol

Policy implementation remains an under researched area in most low and middle income countries and it is not surprising that several policies are implemented without a systematic follow up of why and how they ...

Authors: Charles Hongoro, Elizeus Rutebemberwa, Thembinkosi Twalo, Chikondi Mwendera, Mbuyiselo Douglas, Moses Mukuru, Simon Kasasa and Freddie Ssengooba

Cardiovascular risk factor burden in Africa and the Middle East across country income categories: a post hoc analysis of the cross-sectional Africa Middle East Cardiovascular Epidemiological (ACE) study

A significant number of cardiovascular disease (CVD)-related deaths occur in developing countries. An increasing prevalence of CVD is associated with a change in the macro-economy of these countries. In this p...

Authors: Frederick J. Raal, Alawi A. Alsheikh-Ali, Mohamed I. Omar, Wafa Rashed, Omar Hamoui, Abdoul Kane, Mohamed Alami, Paula Abreu and Walid M. Mashhoud

Postnatal care utilization and associated factors among women of reproductive age Group in Halaba Kulito Town, Southern Ethiopia

Despite postnatal care services significant role in improving maternal and new-born health, services are underutilized in most developing countries including Ethiopia. Hence, it is important to identify factor...

Authors: Teshome Abuka Abebo and Dawit Jember Tesfaye

Correction of self-reported BMI based on objective measurements: a Belgian experience

Based on successive Health Interview Surveys (HIS), it has been demonstrated that also in Belgium obesity, measured by means of a self-reported body mass index (BMI in kg/m²), is a growing public health problem t...

Authors: S. Drieskens, S. Demarest, S. Bel, K. De Ridder and J. Tafforeau

Women decision-making capacity and intimate partner violence among women in sub-Saharan Africa

Violence against women is a common form of human rights violation, and intimate partner violence (IPV) appears to be the most significant component of violence. The aim of this study was to examine the associa...

Authors: Bright Opoku Ahinkorah, Kwamena Sekyi Dickson and Abdul-Aziz Seidu

A data infrastructure for the assessment of health care performance: lessons from the BRIDGE-health project

The integration of different administrative data sources from a number of European countries has been shown useful in the assessment of unwarranted variations in health care performance. This essay describes t...

Authors: Enrique Bernal-Delgado and Francisco Estupiñán-Romero

The effect of protein supplementation on body muscle mass and fat mass in post-bariatric surgery: a randomized controlled trial (RCT) study protocol

Severe weight loss through means of bariatric surgery has been associated with loss of muscle mass due to lack of absorption of protein. The aim of this RCT is to investigate the effectiveness of protein suppl...

Authors: Sahar D. Al-Shamari, Mohamed Aly ElSherif, Wahiba Hamid and Fahad Hanna

HIV positive sero-status disclosure and its determinants among people living with HIV /AIDS following ART clinic in Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia: a facility- based cross-sectional study

Even though, the disclosure of HIV sero- status to sexual partners, friends or relatives is the main tool for prevention and care strategies, most of the HIV/AIDS patients do not inform their close friends. Th...

Authors: Tamiru Tesfaye, Jiregna Darega, Tefera Belachew and Abebe Abera

A study on the implementation fidelity of the performance-based financing policy in Burkina Faso after 12 months

Performance-based financing (PBF) in the health sector has recently gained momentum in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) as one of the ways forward for achieving Universal Health Coverage. The major pri...

Authors: Oriane Bodson, Ahmed Barro, Anne-Marie Turcotte-Tremblay, Nestor Zanté, Paul-André Somé and Valéry Ridde

Longitudinal pharmacoepidemiological and health services research for substance users in treatment: protocol of the Belgian TDI-IMA linkage

Not much is known about the health seeking behavior of people with substance use disorders before they enter specialized treatment and afterwards. This paper explains in detail the protocol that has been follo...

Authors: Luk Van Baelen, Karin De Ridder, Jérôme Antoine and Lies Gremeaux

Farming, Q fever and public health: agricultural practices and beyond

Since the Neolithic period, humans have domesticated herbivores to have food readily at hand. The cohabitation with animals brought various advantages that drastically changed the human lifestyle but simultane...

Authors: Marcella Mori and Hendrik-Jan Roest