Hospital-based sentinel surveillance for bacterial meningitis in under-five children prior to the introduction of the PCV13 in India.

INTRODUCTION: A hospital-based sentinel surveillance network for bacterial meningitis was established in India to estimate the burden of bacterial meningitis, and the proportion of major vaccine-preventable causative organisms. This report summarises the findings of the surveillance conducted between March 2012, and September 2016 in eleven hospitals. METHODS: We enrolled eligible children with bacterial meningitis in the age group of one to 59 months. CSF samples were collected and processed for biochemistry, culture, latex agglutination, and real-time PCR. Pneumococcal isolates were serotyped and tested for antimicrobial susceptibility. RESULTS: Among 12 941 enrolled suspected meningitis cases, 586 (4.5%) were laboratory confirmed. S. pneumoniae (74.2%) was the most commonly detected pathogen, followed by H. influenzae (22.2%), and N. meningitidis (3.6%). Overall 58.1% of confirmed bacterial meningitis cases were children aged between one, and 11 months. H. influenzae meningitis cases had a high (12.3%) case fatality rate. The serotypes covered in PCV13 caused 72% pneumococcal infections, and the most common serotypes were 14 (18.3%), 6B (12.7%) and 19F (9.9%). Non-susceptibility to penicillin was 57%. Forty-five (43.7%) isolates exhibited multidrug resistance, of which 37 were PCV13 serotype isolates. CONCLUSIONS: The results are representative of the burden of bacterial meningitis among under-five children in India. The findings were useful in rolling out PCV in the National Immunization Program. The non-susceptibility to penicillin and multidrug resistance was an important observation. Timely expansion of PCV across India will significantly reduce the burden of antimicrobial resistance. Continued surveillance is needed to understand the trend after PCV expansion in India.

Adverse health impacts of cooking with kerosene: A multi-country analysis within the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology Study.

BACKGROUND: Kerosene, which was until recently considered a relatively clean household fuel, is still widely used in low- and middle-income countries for cooking and lighting. However, there is little data on its health effects. We examined cardiorespiratory effects and mortality in households using kerosene as their primary cooking fuel within the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study. METHODS: We analyzed baseline and follow-up data on 31,490 individuals from 154 communities in China, India, South Africa, and Tanzania where there was at least 10% kerosene use for cooking at baseline. Baseline comorbidities and health outcomes during follow-up (median 9.4 years) were compared between households with kerosene versus clean (gas or electricity) or solid fuel (biomass and coal) use for cooking. Multi-level marginal regression models adjusted for individual, household, and community level covariates. RESULTS: Higher rates of prevalent respiratory symptoms (e.g. 34% [95% CI:15-57%] more dyspnea with usual activity, 44% [95% CI: 21-72%] more chronic cough or sputum) and lower lung function (differences in FEV1: -46.3 ml (95% CI: -80.5; -12.1) and FVC: -54.7 ml (95% CI: -93.6; -15.8)) were observed at baseline for kerosene compared to clean fuel users. The odds of hypertension was slightly elevated but no associations were observed for blood pressure. Prospectively, kerosene was associated with elevated risks of all-cause (HR: 1.32 (95% CI: 1.14-1.53)) and cardiovascular (HR: 1.34 (95% CI: 1.00-1.80)) mortality, as well as major fatal and incident non-fatal cardiovascular (HR: 1.34 (95% CI: 1.08-1.66)) and respiratory (HR: 1.55 (95% CI: 0.98-2.43)) diseases, compared to clean fuel use. Further, compared to solid fuel users, those using kerosene had 20-47% higher risks for the above outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Kerosene use for cooking was associated with higher rates of baseline respiratory morbidity and increased risk of mortality and cardiorespiratory outcomes during follow-up when compared to either clean or solid fuels. Replacing kerosene with cleaner-burning fuels for cooking is recommended.

Immunochromatography in CSF improves data on surveillance of S. pneumoniae meningitis in India.

INTRODUCTION: Streptococcus pneumoniae is a significant cause of childhood bacterial meningitis in India. The United States Food and Drug Administration has licensed an immunochromatographic (ICT) test, Binax®NOW™, to detect the C polysaccharide antigen of S. pneumoniae in cerebrospinal fluids (CSF). Accurate etiological diagnosis of bacterial meningitis in India is essential for effective treatment strategies and preventive interventions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: CSF samples from 2081 children admitted, with clinically suspected bacterial meningitis at 11 sentinel sites of hospital based sentinel surveillance network for bacterial meningitis in India between September 2009 and December 2016 were tested with ICT. Concurrent CSF cultures were processed using standard procedures. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: S. pneumoniae was detected thrice the number of times by ICT than by CSF culture, with a sensitivity and specificity of 100% and 95.3% respectively. This rapid ICT test proves to be of immense use as a diagnostic test for meningitis patients with/without prior antibiotic treatment, especially in facilities with limited laboratory infrastructure in resource limited settings.

Pediatric Appropriate Evaluation Protocol for India (PAEP-India): Tool for Assessing Appropriateness of Pediatric Hospitalization.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and assess Pediatric Appropriateness Evaluation Protocol for India (PAEP-India) for inter-rater reliability and appropriateness of hospitalization. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: The available PAEP tools were reviewed and adapted for Indian context by ten experienced pediatricians following semi-Delphi process. Two PAEP-India tools; newborn (≤28 days) and children (>28 days-18 years) were developed. These PAEP-India tools were applied to cases to assess appropriateness of admission and inter-rater reliability between assessors. PARTICIPANTS: Two sets of case records were used: (i) 274 cases from five medical colleges in Delhi-NCR [≤28 days (n=51); >28 days to 18 years (n=223)]; (ii) 622 infants who were hospitalized in 146 health facilities and were part of a cohort (n= 30688) from two southern Indian states. INTERVENTIONS: Each case-record was evaluated by two pediatricians in a blinded manner using the appropriate PAEP-India tools, and 'admission criteria' were categorized as appropriate, inappropriate or indeterminate. OUTCOME MEASURES: The proportion of appropriate hospitalizations and inter-rater reliability between assessors (using kappa statistic) were estimated for the cases. RESULTS: 97.8% hospitalized cases from medical colleges were labelled as appropriate by both reviewers with inter-rater agreement of 98.9% (k=0.66). In the southerm Indian set of infants, both reviewers labelled 80.5% admissions as appropriate with inter-rater agreement of 96.1% (k= 0.89). CONCLUSIONS: PAEP-India (newborn and child) tools are simple, objective and applicable in diverse settings and highly reliable. These tools can potentially be used for deciding admission appropriateness and hospital stay and may be evaluated later for usefulness for cost reimbursements for insurance proposes.

Does greater individual social capital improve the management of hypertension? Cross-national analysis of 61 229 individuals in 21 countries.

INTRODUCTION: Social capital, characterised by trust, reciprocity and cooperation, is positively associated with a number of health outcomes. We test the hypothesis that among hypertensive individuals, those with greater social capital are more likely to have their hypertension detected, treated and controlled. METHODS: Cross-sectional data from 21 countries in the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology study were collected covering 61 229 hypertensive individuals aged 35-70 years, their households and the 656 communities in which they live. Outcomes include whether hypertensive participants have their condition detected, treated and/or controlled. Multivariate statistical models adjusting for community fixed effects were used to assess the associations of three social capital measures: (1) membership of any social organisation, (2) trust in other people and (3) trust in organisations, stratified into high-income and low-income country samples. RESULTS: In low-income countries, membership of any social organisation was associated with a 3% greater likelihood of having one's hypertension detected and controlled, while greater trust in organisations significantly increased the likelihood of detection by 4%. These associations were not observed among participants in high-income countries. CONCLUSION: Although the observed associations are modest, some aspects of social capital are associated with better management of hypertension in low-income countries where health systems are often weak. Given that hypertension affects millions in these countries, even modest gains at all points along the treatment pathway could improve management for many, and translate into the prevention of thousands of cardiovascular events each year.

Does greater individual social capital improve the management of hypertension? Cross-national analysis of 61 229 individuals in 21 countries

INTRODUCTION:Social capital, characterised by trust, reciprocity and cooperation, is positively associated with a number of health outcomes. We test the hypothesis that among hypertensive individuals, those with greater social capital are more likely to have their hypertension detected, treated and controlled.METHODS:Cross-sectional data from 21 countries in the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology study were collected covering 61 229 hypertensive individuals aged 35-70 years, their households and the 656 communities in which they live. Outcomes include whether hypertensive participants have their condition detected, treated and/or controlled. Multivariate statistical models adjusting for community fixed effects were used to assess the associations of three social capital measures: (1) membership of any social organisation, (2) trust in other people and (3) trust in organisations, stratified into high-income and low-income country samples.

Factors affecting decisions to seek treatment for sick children in Kerala, India.

The purpose of this study was to measure the effects of social and economic variables, disease-related variables, and child gender on the decisions of parents in Kerala, India, to seek care for their children and on their choice of providers in the allopathic vs. the alternative system. A case-control analysis was done using data from the Kerala section of the 1996 Indian National Family Health Survey, a cross-sectional survey of a probability sample of households conducted by trained interviewers with a close-ended questionnaire. Of the 469 children who were eligible for this study because they had at least one common symptom suggestive of acute respiratory illness or diarrhea during the 2 weeks before the interview, 78 (17%) did not receive medical care, while the remaining 391 (83%) received medical care. Of the 391 children who received medical care, 342 (88%) received allopathic medical care, and 48 (12%) received alternative medical care. In multivariable analyses, parents chose not to seek medical care for their children significantly more often when the illness was mild, the child had a specific diagnosis, the mother had previously made fewer antenatal visits, and the family had a higher economic status. When parents sought medical care for their children, care was sought significantly more often in the alternative provider system when the child was a boy, the family lived in a rural area, and the family had a lower social class. We conclude that, in Kerala, disease severity and economic status predict whether children with acute respiratory infection or diarrhea are taken to medical providers. In contrast, most studies of this issue carried out in other populations have identified economic status as the primary predictor of medical system utilization. Also in Kerala, the gender of the child did not influence whether or not the child was taken for treatment but did influence whether care was sought in the alternative or the allopathic system.