Harnessing the potential of African youth for transforming health research in Africa.

Africa faces a significant burden of infectious diseases, including Malaria and HIV/AIDS, along with an increasing prevalence of non-infectious diseases such as diabetes and cancer. This dual health challenge is amplified by socioeconomic difficulties, restricted access to healthcare, and lifestyle changes, thus present unique scientific needs. Effectively addressing these issues requires a skilled scientific workforce adept in comprehensive healthcare strategies. This analysis explores the critical landscape of health research in Africa, emphasizing the unique opportunity presented by the continent's youthful population, projected to reach almost 1 billion by 2050. The youth's innovative potential and fresh perspectives offer a chance to overcome development barriers in health research. Nevertheless, challenges such as under-resourced education, limited research training, inadequate mentorship, and funding difficulties persist. This paper urgently calls upon African leaders, international partners, and stakeholders to prioritize health research, mobilize funding, forge strategic partnerships, and empower the youth as essential steps to capitalize on the continent's dynamic youth for breakthrough health outcomes. Such investments are vital not just for health but for the overall economic, social, and strategic growth of the continent. Through shared responsibility and a united effort, the potential of African youth can be harnessed, leading to transformative research, improved health outcomes, and a prosperous future. This perspective represents the collective voice of passionate young researchers and advocates across Africa, calling for a new era of health research on the continent.

Exploring electronic cigarette portrayals: a content and thematic analysis of African online news coverage.

BACKGROUND: Electronic cigarette use has surged internationally in recent years, with numerous countries noting an uptick in users. Despite this, the portrayal of e-cigarette usage in African news remains unclear. METHODS: This research investigates the subject, employing a mixed-methodology approach. The study units were news articles on electronic cigarette use retrieved from AllAfrica, an online African news archive. A total of 38 online news and opinion articles published between June 2017 and June 2022 qualified the exclusion and inclusion criteria. A content analysis revealed prevalent codes and themes, while a thematic analysis explored the association between news sources and framing. RESULTS: The results indicate that articles and arguments presenting e-cigarettes positively outnumber those with a negative slant. The health impacts of electronic cigarettes emerged as the most discussed topic, with health authorities frequently cited as news sources. However, these health authorities often lacked a unified stance on e-cigarette safety. CONCLUSION: The lack of consensus among health officials could have public health consequences, possibly resulting in the formulation of uninformed policies.

Bibliometric analysis of contributions to COVID-19 research in Malaysia.

Introduction: The advent of COVID-19 has led to an exponential rise in related publications to provide a knowledge driven approach to tame the tide of infection and impact in all spheres. This study gives an insight into COVID-19 research publication pattern in Malaysia using bibliometric analysis. Method: COVID-19 publications on Scopus database between January 1, 2020, and August 26, 2022, were extracted using predetermined search strings. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were set, and data was extracted from the database. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize our findings. Results: A total of 3,553 COVID-19 related papers were retrieved out of global count of 392,613 and 16,466 for Southeast Asia (SEA). This implies that 0.9% and 21.6% is contributed globally and SEA respectively. Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore are the three top countries with highest research outputs in the region. This may be correlated to high GDP per capita, research and development, and research and development expenditure. Most of the publications are article/original research (n = 2832, 67%). Ministry of Higher education is the top funding sponsor and Universiti Malaya is the highest contributor and the most cited (n = 466, 4920 citations). The majority of publications are from physical sciences (30.3%), but medicine subcategory produced the highest number of papers (1,586). The top journal was International Journal of Environmental and Public Health (n = 96 publications). Most active collaborating country was the United Kingdom and most active author was from Monash University. Conclusion: Malaysian institutions have made profound contributions to COVID-19 research globally and in SEA. However, there is a need for continuous efforts to improve research outputs on the topic.

Increasing challenges of malaria control in sub-Saharan Africa: Priorities for public health research and policymakers.

The ever-increasing cases and mortality due to malaria remains one of the most important public health threats, especially in sub-Saharan Africa-where this burden is considerably high. In 2020, sub-Saharan Africa accounted for about 95% of all cases and 96% of all malaria deaths with about 80% of these deaths reported in children under the age of 5. This review, adopting a public health focus, aimed to understand the challenges of malaria control in sub-Saharan Africa despite ongoing public health interventions. Our review highlights two important findings. First, the increasing resistance of malaria parasites to artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) and its partner drugs coupled with increased vector resistance to pyrethroids and insecticides is reversing the progress of public health interventions in keeping malaria under control. Second, the wanning for the efficacy of the WHO-approved vaccine i.e. RTS,S from 60 to 70% following 18 months of observation, and its short-term availability remains an impediment to achieving the WHO target of producing malaria vaccines with more than 75% efficacy by 2030. Our findings underline the need to reassess research priorities with a focus on vaccine production in sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, African governments and policymakers must be committed to invest both the political and financial capital in vaccine production and distribution.

Socioeconomic inequalities in prostate cancer screening in low- and middle-income countries: An analysis of the demographic and health surveys between 2010 and 2019.

INTRODUCTION: Prostate cancer screening is a valuable public health tool in the early detection of prostate cancer. In this study, we aimed to determine the socioeconomic inequalities in the coverage of prostate cancer screening in Low and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). METHODS: This was a retrospective analysis of men's recode data files that were collected by the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) in LMICs (Armenia, Colombia, Honduras, Kenya, Namibia, Dominican Republic, and the Philippines). We included surveys that were conducted from 2010 to 2020 and measured the coverage of prostate cancer screening and the study population was men aged 40 years or older. Socioeconomic inequality was measured using the Concertation Index (CIX) and the Slope Index of Inequality (SII). RESULTS: Eight surveys from seven countries were included in the study with a total of 47,863 men. The coverage of prostate cancer screening was below 50% in all the countries with lower rates in the rural areas compared to the urban areas. The pooled estimate for the coverage of screening was 10.4% [95% CI, 7.9-12.9%). Inequalities in the coverage of prostate cancer screening between the wealth quintiles were observed in the Democratic Republic, Honduras, and Namibia. Great variation in inequalities in the coverage of prostate cancer screening between rural and urban residents was observed in Colombia and Namibia. CONCLUSION: The coverage of prostate cancer screening was low in LMICs with variations in the coverage by the quintile of wealth (pro-rich) and type of place of residence (pro-urban). POLICY SUMMARY: To achieve the desired impact of prostate cancer screening services in LMICs, it is important that the coverage of screening programs targets men living in rural areas and those in low wealth quintiles.

Nigeria End Malaria Council: What to expect.

Following the World Health Organization 2021 report of Nigeria being the leading country among the four African countries responsible for half of the malaria mortality all over the world, the President of Nigeria, on August 16, 2022, inaugurated the Nigeria End Malaria Council to reduce the malaria burden in the country, serves as a platform to solicit funds for promoting malaria elimination in the country and to ensure the good life and wellbeing of the people. National End Malaria Council is an intervention that has been tested with proven track records of progressive success in malaria control and reduction in the countries where it has been established. With the establishment of the Nigeria End Malaria Council, we can be expectant of a malaria-free country in no time if the aims and objectives of the council are sustained and effectively carried out.

Why are missed opportunities for immunisation and immunisation defaulting among children indistinguishable?

The two major global immunization agenda framings (Missed Opportunity for Immunisation (MOI) vs. Immunisation Defaulting) are interchangeably and inappropriately used in public health research and practice, with flawed or misleading strategies recommended and adopted in various settings around the world. This is demonstrated by the fact that many opportunities to incorporate findings from immunization coverage research into policy are squandered. The ineffectiveness of inappropriate interventions based on biased evidence can discourage and mislead policymakers to make radical decisions by discretion. This may explain why low- and middle-income countries are unable to vaccinate 80% of their children; it also poses a global health risk to capable countries. The current guidelines and information on MOI and immunization defaulting appear insufficient, and a little clarification would help immunisation forerunners achieve measurable progress in ensuring good coverage, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. The purpose of this paper is to provide appropriate recommendations to address this issue in immunization practice. Optimistically, this will stimulate further discussions, streamline differences, and gear global immunization governance on the subject to achieve the target coverage in low- and middle-income countries by 2030.

Undergraduate students' involvement in research: Values, benefits, barriers and recommendations.

Developing, maintaining, and sustaining undergraduate research initiatives can benefit academic institutions, faculty mentors, and students. As the world evolves, more research is required to advance knowledge and innovation in all fields. This implies that students must be prepared for today's knowledge-driven world. Research in the medical and health sciences has stalled in many developing countries, where a dual burden of communicable and noncommunicable diseases is prevalent. In this article, I discuss the values and benefits of undergraduate healthcare students participating in research and scientific publishing, as well as the challenges they face. I also make recommendations to encourage undergraduates to get involved in research. The potential of undergraduate research has not yet been fully realized. Undergraduate research's main objectives are to teach students how to do research and to help them acquire skills that they can use beyond the academic environment. Undergraduate research will complement rather than conflict with university education and should go beyond the mandatory terminal year thesis and must cover the entire course of their studies. The key to successful undergraduate research participation is for students to see and understand the importance of rigor, academic integrity, and responsible research conduct. This means academic institutions should carefully plan research programs, activities, and courses for students. Building capacity in research has a long-term impact on valuable learning outcomes as undergraduate students prepare for professional service. Stakeholders and educational authorities must invest in strengthening undergraduate involvement in research.

Addressing the social issues around vaccination could be the pivotal strategy to achieve the 2022 COVID-19 vaccination coverage target.

The COVID-19 pandemic is a public health emergency on a global scale, and vaccination has been shown to be effective in containing the pandemic. Social issues surrounding COVID-19 vaccination contribute to the level of skepticism and opposition expressed by a sizable proportion of the global population. The need to address socio-cultural and religious standpoints on COVID-19 immunization and related discussions is becoming more pressing as the pandemic's socioeconomic implications become more concerning. Without a doubt, failing to address social issues jeopardizes countries' ability to achieve the WHO-recommended 70 percent coverage target for all countries, which would halt the pandemic by creating a global herd immunity. In this article, we discussed some of these social issues as well as emerging strategies for addressing these challenges and driving a rapid increase in COVID-19 vaccine uptake.

Nigeria's scientific contributions to COVID-19: A bibliometric analysis.

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted a historic global research effort to create a knowledge base that can guide mitigation strategies. This study uses the Scopus database to examine the literature published by Nigerian institutions since the outbreak of COVID-19, with a focus on bibliometric items, global collaboration, Scopus subject area classification, document types, active authors and institutions, journals, highly cited papers, and funding agencies. Method: We searched for articles indexed in the Scopus database between January 1st, 2020 and July 20th, 2022 using predetermined search terms. All article types and study designs were included. Results: During the period under consideration, researchers affiliated with Nigerian institutions published a total of 2,217 COVID-19 papers out of a total of 281,589 global outputs, implying that Nigerian institutions contributed 0.8% of total global COVID-19 scientific output. The majority of the documents published were articles/original research (n = 1,455, 68.4%). The National Institute of Health was the top funder, and the University of Ibadan was the most active institution. The vast majority of publications (38.3%) were in the field of health sciences, with 1197 papers in the medicine sub-category. The top journal was Pan African Medical Journal, which published 114 COVID-19 papers with at least one Nigerian institution affiliation. The most active collaborator with Nigerian institutions was the United States. With 745 citations, the most cited paper with at least one Nigerian institution affiliation was from the Nigeria Center for Disease Control. Conclusion: Nigerian institutions have contributed to the scientific output of COVID-19. There is, however, a need to improve research capacity across all subject areas.