Towards Harmonized Adolescent Health Measurement: Assessing Alignment Between Current Recommendations and the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent Health-Recommended Indicators.

PURPOSE: This study identified alignment of indicators across different initiatives and data collection instruments as a foundation for future harmonization of adolescent health measurement. METHODS: Using the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent health (GAMA) recommended indicators as the basis for comparison, we conducted a desk review of 14 global-level initiatives, such as the Sustainable Development Goals and the Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health, and five multicountry survey programs, such as the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys and the Global school-based Student Health Survey. We identified initiative and survey indicators similar to a GAMA indicator, deconstructed indicators into standard elements to facilitate comparison, and assessed alignment to the corresponding GAMA indicator across each of the elements. RESULTS: A total of 144 initiative indicators and 90 survey indicators were identified. Twenty-four initiative indicators (17%) and 14 survey indicators (16%) matched the corresponding GAMA indicators across all elements. Population of interest was the most commonly discrepant element; whereas GAMA indicators mostly refer to ages 10-19, many survey and initiative indicators encompass only part of this age range, for example, 15-19-year-olds as a subset of adults ages 15-49 years. An additional 53 initiative indicators (39%) and 44 survey indicators (49%) matched on all elements except the population of interest. DISCUSSION: The current adolescent measurement landscape is inconsistent, with differing recommendations on what and how to measure. Findings from this study support efforts to promote indicator alignment and harmonization across adolescent health measurement stakeholders at the global, regional, and country levels.

Indicators to Measure Adolescent Health at the Country, Regional, and Global Levels: Results of a Five-Year Selection Process by the Global Action for the Measurement of Adolescent Health.

PURPOSE: To improve adolescent health measurement, the Global Action for the Measurement of Adolescent health (GAMA) Advisory Group was formed in 2018 and published a draft list of 52 indicators across six adolescent health domains in 2022. We describe the process and results of selecting the adolescent health indicators recommended by GAMA (hereafter, "GAMA-recommended indicators"). METHODS: Each indicator in the draft list was assessed using the following inputs: (1) availability of data and stakeholders' perceptions on their relevance, acceptability, and feasibility across selected countries; (2) alignment with current measurement recommendations and practices; and (3) data in global databases. Topic-specific working groups comprised of GAMA experts and representatives of United Nations partner agencies reviewed results and provided preliminary recommendations, which were appraised by all GAMA members and finalized. RESULTS: There are 47 GAMA-recommended indicators (36 core and 11 additional) for adolescent health measurement across six domains: policies, programs, and laws (4 indicators); systems performance and interventions (4); health determinants (7); health behaviors and risks (20); subjective well-being (2); and health outcomes and conditions (10). DISCUSSION: These indicators are the result of a robust and structured five-year process to identify a priority set of indicators with relevance to adolescent health globally. This inclusive and participatory approach incorporated inputs from a broad range of stakeholders, including adolescents and young people themselves. The GAMA-recommended indicators are now ready to be used to measure adolescent health at the country, regional, and global levels.

Exploring a Preliminary Set of Indicators to Measure Adolescent Health: Results From a 12-Country Feasibility Study.

PURPOSE: To explore data availability, perceived relevance, acceptability and feasibility of implementing 52 draft indicators for adolescent health measurement in different countries globally. METHODS: A mixed-methods, sequential explanatory study was conducted in 12 countries. An online spreadsheet was used to assess data availability and a stakeholder survey to assess perceived relevance, acceptability, and feasibility of implementing each draft indicator proposed by the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent health (GAMA). The assessments were discussed in virtual meetings with all countries and in deep dives with three countries. Findings were synthesized using descriptive statistics and qualitative thematic analysis. RESULTS: Data availability varied across the 52 draft GAMA indicators and across countries. Nine countries reported measuring over half of the indicators. Most indicators were rated relevant by stakeholders, while some were considered less acceptable and feasible. The ten lowest-ranking indicators were related to mental health, sexual health and substance use; the highest-ranking indicators centered on broader adolescent health issues, like use of health services. Indicators with higher data availability and alignment with national priorities were generally considered most relevant, acceptable and feasible. Barriers to measurement included legal, ethical and sensitivity issues, challenges with multi-sectoral coordination and data systems flexibility. DISCUSSION: Most of the draft GAMA indicators were deemed relevant and feasible, but contextual priorities and perceived acceptability influenced their implementation in countries. To increase their use for a more comprehensive understanding of adolescent health, better multi-sectoral coordination and tailored capacity building to accommodate the diverse data systems in countries will be required.

Insights into caregivers' perspectives on abuse of older persons: a qualitative exploratory study in southwest Nigeria.

OBJECTIVE: Elder abuse perpetration by caregivers is well documented, particularly from the perspectives of older persons who are victims of abuse. However, few studies in Nigeria have examined the caregivers' viewpoints. This study explored the perception about the perpetration of elder abuse perpetration among adults aged 18-59 in Nigeria. DESIGN: Using a qualitative descriptive approach, this study generated data through four in-depth interviews (IDIs) and eight focus group discussions (FGDs). All IDIs and FGDs were audiorecorded, transcribed coded and analysed thematically with Atlas ti. SETTING: Rural and urban communities in Oyo State, southwest Nigeria. PARTICIPANTS: 73 purposively selected adults who had provided care for or lived near an older person in southwestern Nigeria. RESULTS: Types of elder abuse identified were verbal (grumbling, insulting, snapping and shouting at older persons), physical (shoving and beating an older person) and neglect (refusing to render assistance, cook or carry out chores for an older person). Participants believed relatives of older persons were unlikely to perpetrate abuse compared with neighbours and paid caregivers. They, however, felt that people whose parents had maltreated them during childhood could perpetrate abuse especially neglect of their older parents. Identified possible provocation for abuse included an unkempt physical appearance, poor attitude or offensive behaviour in the older person. Participants further opined that lack of communal unity or mutual respect, loss of moral ideals and religious values and erosion of cultural values could also provide an environment where elder abuse can thrive. CONCLUSION: Interventions for community-level prevention of elder abuse can leverage on the identified moral and religious values, relationship and cultural factors for successful deployment.

Scalability of mobile technology interventions in the prevention and management of HIV among adolescents in low- and middle-income countries: protocol for a systematic review.

Introduction: The rate of new infection of HIV is still high among adolescents globally. Adolescents in low and middle-income countries (LMICs) who are least likely to have access to quality healthcare have the highest proportion of those living with HIV. Mobile technology has played an important role in providing access to information and services among adolescents within the region in recent years. This review aims to synthesise and summarise information that will be useful in planning, designing, and implementing future mHealth strategies within the region. Methods and Analysis: Interventional studies on the prevention and management of HIV among adolescents that used mobile technology in LMICs will be included. MEDLINE (via PubMed), EMBASE, Web of Science, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library are the information sources that have been identified as relevant to the area of study. These sources will be searched from inception to March 2023. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. The scalability of each study will be assessed using the Intervention Scalability Assessment Tool (ISAT). Two independent reviewers will conduct the selection of studies, data extraction, assessment of the risk of bias, and scalability. A narrative synthesis of all the included studies will be provided through a table. Ethics and dissemination: An ethical approval was not necessary for this study. This is a systematic review of publicly available information and therefore ethical approval was not deemed necessary. The results of this review will be published in a peer reviewed journal and dataset will be presented in the main manuscript. Strengths and limitations: We believe that the likelihood of missing any published article will be low because of the information sources we are considering.The scalability tool (ISAT) has not been used in any systematic review before.The evidence provided in this review will be limited to low-middle-income countries.The exclusion of studies not published in English is a limitation for this review.

Use of mobile technology to enhance the capacity of teachers to teach family life and HIV education in Nigeria: Overview of methods for a randomized controlled trial.

Background: Family Life and HIV Education (FLHE) program is a national school-based sexual education intervention program to prevent the spread of HIV among young people in Nigeria. The FLHE curriculum was first implemented nationwide in 2003. However, there have been challenges mitigating the implementation of this intervention. An important challenge is the low capacity of teachers to adequately deliver the contents of the developed curriculum. Considering the significant roles teachers play in the implementation of this important prevention program, it is important that they have the capacity to deliver it. Literature review has shown that there are no documented studies in Nigeria that have considered the use of mobile technology to improve the capacity of teachers to teach FLHE. Therefore, in this paper we have documented the methodology of a study that tested the feasibility of enhancing the self-reported capacity of teachers to deliver the FLHE curriculum through mobile technology. Methods: This study was a multiphase study. In this paper, we present an overview of the methods employed in the mobile-FLHE (m-FLHE) program for teachers. We describe study design, participant eligibility and recruitment, assessments, intervention procedures, and measures in the assessments. We also present treatment fidelity assessment, procedures utilized to enhance retention of study participants, and data analysis plans. Discussion: Although, the role of teachers and instructors in ensuring the fidelity of CSE has been shown to be critical to its success, very few programs have sought to improve the capacity of teachers to teach FLHE. This study presents the methods of an innovative and sustainable way to improve the capacity of teachers to increase the comprehensive knowledge of HIV among adolescents.

Scalability of mobile technology interventions in the prevention and management of HIV among adolescents in low-income and middle-income countries: protocol for a systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: The rate of new infections with HIV remains high among adolescents globally. Adolescents in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs), who are least likely to have access to quality healthcare, have the highest proportion of those living with HIV. Mobile technology has played an important role in providing access to information and services among adolescents in recent years. This review aims to synthesise and summarise information that will be useful in the planning, designing and implementing of future mHealth strategies. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Interventional studies, reported in English, on the prevention and management of HIV among adolescents that used mobile technology in LMICs will be included. MEDLINE (via PubMed), Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL, Clinicaltrials.gov, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP), and the Cochrane Library are the information sources that have been identified as relevant to the area of study. These sources will be searched from inception to March 2023. The risk of bias will be assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. The scalability of each study will be assessed using the Intervention Scalability Assessment Tool. Two independent reviewers will conduct the selection of studies, data extraction, and assessment of the risk of bias and scalability. A narrative synthesis of all the included studies will be done. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval was not necessary for this study. This is a systematic review of publicly available information and therefore ethical approval was not deemed necessary. The results of this review will be published in a peer reviewed journal. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This protocol has been registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO), registration number CRD42022362130.

Xylopia aethiopica suppresses markers of oxidative stress, inflammation, and cell death in the brain of Wistar rats exposed to glyphosate.

The herbicide "Roundup" is used extensively in agriculture to control weeds. However, by translocation, it can be deposited in plants, their proceeds, and the soil, thus provoking organ toxicities in exposed individuals. Neurotoxicity among others is one of the side effects of roundup which has led to an increasing global concern about the contamination of food by herbicides. Xylopia aethiopica is known to have medicinal properties due to its antioxidative and anti-inflammatory properties, and it is hypothesized to neutralize roundup-induced neurotoxicity. Thirty-six (36) Wistar rats were used for this study. The animals were shared equally into six groups with six rats each. Glyphosate administration to three of the six groups was done orally and for 1 week. Either Xylopia aethiopica or vitamin C was co-administered to two of the three groups and also administered to two other groups and the final group served as the control. Our studies demonstrated that glyphosate administration led to a significant decrease in antioxidants such as catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione, and glutathione peroxidase. We also observed a significant increase in inflammatory markers such as tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin 6, C-reactive protein, and immunohistochemical expression of caspase-3, cox-2, and p53 proteins (p < 0.05). However, Xylopia aethiopica co-administration with glyphosate was able to ameliorate the aforementioned changes when compared to the control (p < 0.05). Degenerative changes were also observed in the cerebellum, hippocampus, and cerebral cortex upon glyphosate administration. These changes were not observed in the groups treated with Xylopia aethiopica and vitamin C. Taken together, Xylopia aethiopica could possess anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties that could be used in combating glyphosate neurotoxicity.

Economic costs of cigarette smoking among adolescents in Nigeria.

Background: Cigarette smoking is an established cause of preventable death and often initiated during adolescence. We estimated the short- and long-term costs of cigarette smoking among currently smoking adolescents in Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional survey among adolescents in Oyo state, Nigeria and a review of mortality records of patients managed for lung cancer in a tertiary facility in Ibadan, Nigeria were conducted. Short-term costs estimated were: (a) average weekly costs of purchasing cigarettes by currently smoking adolescents, and (b) costs of managing at least an episode of chronic cough occurring within 12 months of the survey. Long-term costs were limited to: (a) life-time expenditure on purchasing cigarettes, and (b) direct medical and non-medical (transportation) costs of managing lung cancer. Long-term costs were first projected to the approximate year when the adolescents (mean age:16.0 ± 1.8 years) might be diagnosed with lung cancer based on the average age at presentation with symptoms of lung cancer obtained from the records (59.8 years), and then discounted to 2020 prices. This was estimated as 44 years from the base year (2020). Costs were reported in 2020 prices in Nigerian Naira (NGN) and US dollar (USD) equivalent using the Central Bank of Nigeria, June 2020 exchange rate of USD 1: NGN 360.50. Results: Approximately 3.8% of the adolescents were current cigarette smokers. Average weekly expenditure on cigarettes was NGN 306.82 ± 5.74 (USD 0.85 ± 0.02). About 26% had experienced at least an episode of chronic cough which cost them an average of NGN 1226.81 ± 6.18 (USD 3.40 ± 0.02) to manage. Total future costs of cigarette smoking in 2020 prices for the 43 adolescents who were current smokers in the event that they develop lung cancer were approximately NGN 175.7 million (USD 487.3 thousand), NGN 871.8 million (USD 2.4 million) and NGN 4.6 trillion (USD 12.7 million) at assumed annual inflation rates of 10%, 15%, and 20% respectively and discount rate of 4.25%. Conclusion: The estimated economic costs of smoking were very high. Efforts to prevent smoking initiation among adolescents in our study area should be intensified. Interventions to subsidize the medical cost of health-related consequences of cigarette smoking are also required, especially as treatment costs are currently largely borne out-of-pocket. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10389-021-01644-5.

Priority Indicators for Adolescent Health Measurement - Recommendations From the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent Health (GAMA) Advisory Group.

PURPOSE: This article describes the selection of priority indicators for adolescent (10-19 years) health measurement proposed by the Global Action for Measurement of Adolescent health advisory group and partners, building on previous work identifying 33 core measurement areas and mapping 413 indicators across these areas. METHODS: The indicator selection process considered inputs from a broad range of stakeholders through a structured four-step approach: (1) definition of selection criteria and indicator scoring; (2) development of a draft list of indicators with metadata; (3) collection of public feedback through a survey; and (4) review of the feedback and finalization of the indicator list. As a part of the process, measurement gaps were also identified. RESULTS: Fifty-two priority indicators were identified, including 36 core indicators considered to be most important for measuring the health of all adolescents, one alternative indicator for settings where measuring the core indicator is not feasible, and 15 additional indicators for settings where further detail on a topic would add value. Of these indicators, 17 (33%) measure health behaviors and risks, 16 (31%) health outcomes and conditions, eight (15%) health determinants, five (10%) systems performance and interventions, four (8%) policies, programmes, laws, and two (4%) subjective well-being. DISCUSSION: A consensus list of priority indicators with metadata covering the most important health issues for adolescents was developed with structured inputs from a broad range of stakeholders. This list will now be pilot tested to assess the feasibility of indicator data collection to inform global, regional, national, and sub-national monitoring.

Immunoinformatics analysis to design novel epitope based vaccine candidate targeting the glycoprotein and nucleoprotein of Lassa mammarenavirus (LASMV) using strains from Nigeria.

Lassa mammarenavirus (LASMV) is responsible for a specific type of acute viral hemorrhagic fever known as Lassa fever. Lack of effective treatments and counter-measures against the virus has resulted in a high mortality rate in its endemic regions. Therefore, in this study, a novel epitope-based vaccine has been designed using the methods of immunoinformatics targeting the glycoprotein and nucleoprotein of the virus. After numerous robust analyses, two CTL epitopes, eight HTL epitopes and seven B-cell epitopes were finally selected for constructing the vaccine. All these most promising epitopes were found to be antigenic, non-allergenic, nontoxic and non-human homolog, which made them suitable for designing the subunit vaccine. Furthermore, the selected T-cell epitopes which were found to be fully conserved across different isolates of the virus, were also considered for final vaccine construction. After that, numerous validation experiments, i.e. molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulation and immune simulation were conducted, which predicted that our designed vaccine should be stable within the biological environment and effective in combating the LASMV infection. In the end, codon adaptation and in silico cloning studies were performed to design a recombinant plasmid for producing the vaccine industrially. However, further in vitro and in vivo assessments should be done on the constructed vaccine to finally confirm its safety and efficacy.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.

Epidemiologic evidence linking oxidative stress and pulmonary function in healthy populations.

Respiratory health in the general population declines regardless of the presence of pulmonary diseases. Oxidative stress has been implicated as one of the mechanisms involved in respiratory dysfunction. This review was to evaluate studies that relate oxidative stress factors with pulmonary function among the general population without prior respiratory illnesses. The search yielded 54 citations. Twenty-one studies qualified for incorporation in this review. Owing to the heterogeneity of the review, studies were discussed based on identified oxidative stress factors responsible for pulmonary dysfunction. Oxidative stress biomarkers, including gene polymorphisms of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2, heme oxygenase 1, glutathione S transferase, superoxide dismutase, and lipid peroxidation products were involved in lung function decline. In addition, the antioxidant status of individuals in reference to dietary antioxidant intake and exposure to environmental pollutants affected oxidative stress and pulmonary function, as indicated by forced expired volume in one second, forced vital capacity, and forced expiratory flow at 25%-75%. This review indicated that oxidative stress is implicated in the gradual decline of lung function among the general population, and gene polymorphism along the antioxidant defense line and/or their interaction with air pollutants reduce lung function. Different polymorphic forms among individuals explain why the rate of lung function decline differs among people. Dietary antioxidants have respiratory health benefits in antioxidant gene polymorphic forms. Therefore, the genetic composition of an individual may be considered for monitoring and identifying people at risk of respiratory illnesses.

Economic costs of terminal care for selected non-communicable diseases from a healthcare perspective: a review of mortality records from a tertiary hospital in Nigeria.

INTRODUCTION: WHO revealed that morbidity and mortality from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are on the increase and NCDs accounted for approximately 29% of all deaths in Nigeria in 2016. This study was conducted to estimate the economic cost of selected NCDs-lung cancer, liver cancer and liver cirrhosis. These diseases are known to be associated with key modifiable health risk behaviours (smoking and alcohol use), which are prevalent in Nigeria and often commence during the adolescent years. METHODS: Data were obtained between 2016 and 2017, from mortality records of patients managed for the selected diseases in the University College Hospital, a major referral centre in Nigeria. Information on costs of treatment, clinic visits, admission and transportation was obtained. Average costs of terminal in-patient care and transportation costs (in 2020 prices) were computed per patient. Costs were converted to the US dollar equivalent using the current official rate of US$1: ₦360.50. RESULTS: Twenty-two (out of 90 cases recorded) could be retrieved and all the patients had been diagnosed in the terminal stages of the disease. The average direct costs were ₦510 152.62 (US$1415.13) for an average of 49.2 days of terminal care for lung cancer; ₦308 950.27 (US$857.00) and ₦238 121.83 (US$660.53) for an average of 16.6 and 21.7 days of terminal care for patients managed for liver cancer and liver cirrhosis, respectively. CONCLUSION: The economic costs of each of the diseases were very high. Findings emphasise the need for aggressive efforts to promote primary prevention, improve early diagnosis and provide affordable treatment in view of the fact that the monthly minimum wage is less than US$85.00 and treatment costs are borne out-of-pocket by the generality of the population in Nigeria.

A Scoping Review of Adolescent Health Indicators.

PURPOSE: A host of recent initiatives relating to adolescent health have been accompanied by varying indicator recommendations, with little stakeholder coordination. We assessed currently included adolescent health-related indicators for their measurement focus, identified overlap across initiatives, and determined measurement gaps. METHODS: We conducted a scoping review to map the existing indicator landscape as depicted by major measurement initiatives. We classified indicators as per 33 previously identified core adolescent health measurement areas across five domains and by age groups. We also identified indicators common across measurement initiatives even if differing in details. RESULTS: We identified 413 indicators across 16 measurement initiatives, with most measuring health outcomes and conditions (162 [39%]) and health behaviors and risks (136 [33%]); followed by policies, programs, and laws (49 [12%]); health determinants (44 [11%]); and system performance and interventions (22 [5%]). Age specification was available for 221 (54%) indicators, with 51 (23%) focusing on the full adolescent age range (10-19 years), 1 (<1%) on 10-14 years, 27 (12%) on 15-19 years, and 142 (64%) on a broader age range including adolescents. No definitional information, such as numerator and denominator, was available for 138 indicators. We identified 236 distinct indicators after accounting for overlap. CONCLUSION: The adolescent health measurement landscape is vast and includes substantial variation among indicators purportedly assessing the same concept. Gaps persist in measuring systems performance and interventions; policies, programs, and laws; and younger adolescents' health. Addressing these gaps and harmonizing measurement is fundamental to improve program implementation and accountability for adolescent health globally.

Priority Areas for Adolescent Health Measurement.

PURPOSE: We establish priority areas for adolescent health measurement and identify current gaps, aiming to focus resources on the most relevant data to improve adolescent health. METHODS: We collected four critical inputs to inform priority setting: perspectives of youth representatives, country priorities, disease burden, and existing measurement efforts. Health areas identified from the inputs were grouped, mapped, and summarized according to their frequency in the inputs. Using a Delphi-like approach, international experts then selected core, expanded, and context-specific priority areas for adolescent health measurement from all health areas identified. RESULTS: Across the four inputs, we identified 99 measurement areas relevant to adolescent health and grouped them under six domains: policies, programs, laws; systems performance and interventions; health determinants; health behaviors and risks; subjective well-being; and health outcomes and conditions. Areas most frequently occurring were mental health and weight status in youth representatives' opinions; sexual and reproductive health and HIV/AIDS in country policies and perspectives; road injury, self-harm, skin diseases, and mental disorders in the disease burden analysis; and adolescent fertility in measurement initiatives. Considering all four inputs, experts selected 33 core, 19 expanded, and 6 context-specific adolescent health measurement areas. CONCLUSION: The adolescent health measurement landscape is vast, covering a large variety of topics. The foci of the measurement initiatives we reviewed do not reflect the most important health areas according to youth representatives' or country-level perspectives, or the adolescent disease burden. Based on these inputs, we propose a set of priority areas to focus national and global adolescent health measurement.

Designing a conserved peptide-based subunit vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 using immunoinformatics approach.

The widespread of coronavirus (COVID-19) is a new global health crisis that poses a threat to the world. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) originated in bats and was discovered first in Wuhan, Hubei province, China in December 2019. Immunoinformatics and bioinformatics tools were employed for the construction of a multi-epitope subunit vaccine to prevent the diseases. The antigenicity, toxicity and allergenicity of all epitopes used in the construction of the vaccine were predicted and then conjugated with adjuvants and linkers. Vaccine Toll-Like Receptors (2, 3, 4, 8 and 9) complex was also evaluated. The vaccine construct was antigenic, non-toxic and non-allergic, which indicates the vaccines ability to induce antibodies in the host, making it an effective vaccine candidate. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s40203-020-00062-x.

A call for standardised age-disaggregated health data.

The 2030 Sustainable Development Goals agenda calls for health data to be disaggregated by age. However, age groupings used to record and report health data vary greatly, hindering the harmonisation, comparability, and usefulness of these data, within and across countries. This variability has become especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when there was an urgent need for rapid cross-country analyses of epidemiological patterns by age to direct public health action, but such analyses were limited by the lack of standard age categories. In this Personal View, we propose a recommended set of age groupings to address this issue. These groupings are informed by age-specific patterns of morbidity, mortality, and health risks, and by opportunities for prevention and disease intervention. We recommend age groupings of 5 years for all health data, except for those younger than 5 years, during which time there are rapid biological and physiological changes that justify a finer disaggregation. Although the focus of this Personal View is on the standardisation of the analysis and display of age groups, we also outline the challenges faced in collecting data on exact age, especially for health facilities and surveillance data. The proposed age disaggregation should facilitate targeted, age-specific policies and actions for health care and disease management.

From commitment to implementation: lessons learnt from the first National Strategy for the Reduction of Teenage Pregnancy in Sierra Leone.

This study provides insight into the extent to which public commitment to reduce teenage pregnancy made by the President of Sierra Leone made the issue a political priority and the factors that facilitated and hindered this. Using historical observations from government and civil society actors who were involved in the formulation and implementation of the country's National Strategy for the Reduction of Teenage Pregnancy (NSRTP), the study presents lessons learnt, with a particular focus on advocacy. It does not examine the extent to which the NSRTP was operationalised and its objectives fulfilled. Findings indicate that the availability of locally relevant data as well as advocacy from international and national NGOs were factors that led to the President's commitment and the development of a national strategy. Whilst continued verbal support from political leaders and administrative mechanisms for implementation assured that teenage pregnancy reduction stayed on the political agenda, the scarcity of resources as well as the necessary diversion of efforts and resources to the Ebola epidemic impeded implementation. Overall, the findings demonstrate that public commitments made by political leaders - starting with President Ernest Bai Koroma's public declaration in 2012 - kick-started efforts to reduce teenage pregnancy in Sierra Leone; and that despite inadequate human and financial resources for the implementation of the NSRTP, actions taken by both the government and partners over time have contributed to tangible progress.

Laboratory diagnosis of COVID-19 in Africa: availability, challenges and implications.

The COVID-19 infection has been a matter of urgency to tackle around the world today, there exist 200 countries around the world and 54 countries in Africa that the COVID-19 infection cases have been confirmed. This situation prompted us to look into the challenges African laboratories are facing in the diagnosis of novel COVID-19 infection. A limited supply of essential laboratory equipment and test kits are some of the challenges faced in combatting the novel virus in Africa. Also, there is inadequate skilled personnel, which might pose a significant danger in case there is a surge in COVID-19 infection cases. The choice of diagnostic method in Africa is limited as there are only two available diagnostic methods being used out of the six methods used globally, thereby reducing the opportunity of supplementary diagnosis, which will further lead to inappropriate diagnosis and affect the accuracy of diagnostic reports. Furthermore, challenges like inadequate power supply, the method used in sample collection, storage and transportation of specimens are also significant as they also pose their respective implication. From the observations, there is an urgent need for more investment into the laboratories for proper, timely, and accurate diagnosis of COVID-19.

Exploration of surface glycoprotein to design multi-epitope vaccine for the prevention of Covid-19.

Stimulation and generation of T and B cell-mediated long-term immune response are essential for the curbing of a deadly virus such as SAR-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Corona Virus 2). Immunoinformatics approach in vaccine design takes advantage of antigenic and non-allergenic epitopes present on the spike glycoprotein of SARS-CoV-2 to elicit immune responses. T cells and B cells epitopes were predicted, and the selected residues were subjected to allergenicity, antigenicity and toxicity screening which were linked by appropriate linkers to form a multi-epitope subunit vaccine. The physiochemical properties of the vaccine construct were analyzed, and the molecular weight, molecular formula, theoretical isoelectric point value, half-life, solubility score, instability index, aliphatic index and GRAVY were predicted. The vaccine structure was constructed, refined, validated, and disulfide engineered to get the best model. Molecular binding simulation and molecular dynamics simulation were carried out to predict the stability and binding affinity of the vaccine construct with TLRs. Codon acclimatization and in silico cloning were performed to confirm the vaccine expression and potency. Results obtained indicated that this novel vaccine candidate is non-toxic, capable of initiating the immunogenic response and will not induce an allergic reaction. The highest binding energy was observed in TLR4 (Toll-like Receptor 4) (-1398.1), and the least is TLR 2 (-1479.6). The steady rise in Th (T-helper) cell population with memory development was noticed, and IFN-g (Interferon gamma) was provoked after simulation. At this point, the vaccine candidate awaits animal trial to validate its efficacy and safety for use in the prevention of the novel COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) infections.