GeneXpert rollout in three high-burden tuberculosis countries in Africa: A review of pulmonary tuberculosis diagnosis and outcomes from 2001 to 2019.

Background: The rollout of GeneXpert aimed at increasing early diagnosis of tuberculosis to improve treatment outcomes and global tuberculosis targets. Objective: This study evaluated trends in tuberculosis diagnosis and outcomes pre- and post-introduction of GeneXpert in three African countries - the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Nigeria and South Africa. Methods: Data from 2001 to 2019 were extracted from the World Health Organization's data repository. Descriptive analysis, paired t-tests and interrupted time series models were used. Results: Estimated tuberculosis incidence decreased from 327/100 000 to 324/100 000 in the DRC, and from 1220/100 000 to 988/100 000 in South Africa. Incidence remained at 219/100 000 in Nigeria. The tuberculosis case notification rate did not change significantly. Increases in the new case treatment success rates were statistically significant (DRC: p = 0.0201; Nigeria: p = 0.0001; South Africa: p = 0.0017); decreases in mortality were also statistically significant (DRC: p = 0.0264; Nigeria: p = 0.0001; South Africa: p < 0.0001). Time series models showed insignificant increases in new tuberculosis cases in DRC (n = 1856, p = 0.085) and Nigeria (n = 785, p = 0.555) from 2011 to 2019; and a statistically significant decrease in South Africa (n = 15 269, p = 0.006). Conclusion: Improvements in tuberculosis treatment outcomes were achieved, but little progress has been made in new case notification due to varied implementation and scale-up of GeneXpert across the three countries. Implementation barriers need to be addressed to achieve the required tuberculosis targets.

Responsive and Equitable Health Systems-Partnership on Non-Communicable Diseases (RESPOND) study: a mixed-methods, longitudinal, observational study on treatment seeking for hypertension in Malaysia and the Philippines.

INTRODUCTION: Hypertension is a leading contributor to the global burden of disease. While safe and effective treatment exists, blood pressure control is poor in many countries, often reflecting barriers at the levels of health systems and services as well as at the broader level of patients' sociocultural contexts. This study examines how these interact to facilitate or hinder hypertension control, taking into account characteristics of service provision components and social contexts. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The study, set in Malaysia and the Philippines, builds on two systematic reviews of barriers to effective hypertension management. People with hypertension (pre-existing and newly diagnosed) will be identified in poor households in 24-30 communities per country. Quantitative and qualitative methods will be used to examine their experiences of and pathways into seeking and obtaining care. These include two waves of household surveys of 20-25 participants per community 12-18 months apart, microcosting exercises to assess the cost of illness (including costs due to health seeking activities and inability to work (5 per community)), preliminary and follow-up in-depth interviews and digital diaries with hypertensive adults over the course of a year (40 per country, employing an innovative mobile phone technology), focus group discussions with study participants and structured assessments of health facilities (including formal and informal providers). ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval has been granted by the Observational Research Ethics Committee at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and the Research Ethics Boards at the Universiti Putra Malaysia and the University of the Philippines Manila. The project team will disseminate findings and engage with a wide range of stakeholders to promote uptake and impact. Alongside publications in high-impact journals, dissemination activities include a comprehensive stakeholder analysis, engagement with traditional and social media and 'digital stories' coproduced with research participants.

Оценка экономических потерь от нездорового питания и низкой физической активности: Обзор фактических данных и предлагаемая общая схема оценки

Нездоровый рацион питания и недостаточная физическая активность способствуют развитию многих хронических болезней и инвалидности. В глобальном масштабе на них приходится около 40% смертей и около 30% бремени болезней. Вместе с тем, мы на удивление мало знаем об экономических потерях, обусловленных этими факторами риска, с точки зрения как медико-санитарной помощи, так и общества в целом. В настоящем исследовании анализируются фактические данные об экономическом бремени, которое можно отнести на счет нездорового питания и недостаточной физической активности. Его авторы попытались дать ответы на следующие вопросы: как варьируются определения и к чему это приводит; насколько сложно оценить экономическое бремя; как найти лучшие способы оценки издержек, обусловленных нездоровым рационом питания и недостаточной физической активностью, на примере диабета. В обзоре делается вывод о том, что нездоровый рацион питания и недостаточная физическая активность влекут за собой значительные расходы на медико-санитарную помощь, но при этом их оценки широко варьируются. Существующие исследования недооценивают истинное экономическое бремя, рассматривая лишь расходы систем здравоохранения. В то же время, косвенные издержки, обусловленные снижением производительности труда, могут быть примерно вдвое выше прямых расходов на медико-санитарную помощь. В сумме такие затраты составляют примерно 0,5% национального дохода. Также авторы исследования изучили возможность для оценки издержек от нездорового питания и недостаточной физической активности в Регионе, на основании одной болезни: они утверждают, что в 2020 г. общее экономическое бремя от новых случаев диабета 2 типа, вызванных этими двумя факторами риска, составит 883 млн евро только лишь в Германии, Испании, Италии, Соединенном Королевстве и Франции. "Истинные" издержки могут быть еще выше, поскольку нездоровое питание и недостаточная физическая активность ассоциируют и с целым рядом других болезней. Результаты исследования позволяют лучше понять экономическое бремя, которое может быть обусловлено двумя основными факторами риска потери здоровья. На их основании лица, формирующие политику, смогут устанавливать свои приоритеты и более эффективно поддерживать здоровое питание и физическую активность.

Assessing the economic costs of unhealthy diets and low physical acitivity: an evidence review and proposed framework

Unhealthy diets and low physical activity contribute to many chronic diseases and disability; they are responsible for some 2 in 5 deaths worldwide and for about 30% of the global disease burden. Yet surprisingly little is known about the economic costs that these risk factors cause, both for health care and society more widely. This study pulls together the evidence about the economic burden that can be linked to unhealthy diets and low physical activity and explores: how definitions vary and why this matters; the complexity of estimating the economic burden and; how we can arrive at a better way to estimate the costs of an unhealthy diet and low physical activity, using diabetes as an example. The review finds that unhealthy diets and low physical activity predict higher health care expenditure, but estimates vary greatly. Existing studies underestimate the true economic burden because most only look at the costs to the health system. Indirect costs caused by lost productivity may be about twice as high as direct health care costs, together accounting for about 0.5% of national income. The study also tests the feasibility of using a disease-based approach to estimate the costs of unhealthy diets and low physical activity in Europe, projecting the total economic burden associated with these two risk factors as manifested in new type 2 diabetes cases at €883 million in 2020 for France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom alone. The ‘true’ costs will be higher, as unhealthy diets and low physical activity are linked to many more diseases. The study’s findings are a step towards a better understanding of the economic burden that can be associated with two key risk factors for ill health and they will help policy-makers in setting priorities and to more effectively promoting healthy diets and physical activity.

Determinants of malaria program expenditures during elimination: case study evidence from select provinces in the Philippines.

...Even though eliminating malaria from the endemic margins is a part of the Global Malaria Action Plan, little guidance exists on what resources are needed to transition from controlling malaria to eliminating it. Using Philippines as an example, this study aimed to (1) estimate the financial resources used by sub-national malaria programs in different phases during elimination and (2) understand how different environmental and organizational factors may influence expenditure levels and spending proportions. The Philippines provides an opportunity to study variations in sub-national programs because its epidemiological and ecological diversity, devolved health system, and progressive elimination strategy all allow greater flexibility for lower-level governments to direct activities, but also create challenges for coordination and resource mobilization. Through key informant interviews and archival record retrieval in four selected provinces chosen based on eco-epidemiological variation, expenditures associated with provincial malaria programs were collected for selected years (mid-1990s to 2010). Results show that expenditures per person at risk per year decrease as programs progress from a state of controlled low-endemic malaria to elimination to prevention of reintroduction regardless of whether elimination was deliberately planned. However, wide variation across provinces were found: expenditures were generally higher if mainly financed with donor grants, but were moderated by the level of economic development, the level of malaria transmission and receptivity, and the capacity of program staff. Across all provinces, strong leadership appears to be a necessary condition for maintaining progress and is vital in controlling outbreaks. While sampled provinces and years may not be representative of other sub-national malaria programs, these findings suggest that the marginal yearly cost declines with each phase during elimination.