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Basic Biostatistics Workshop Materials

The Nigerian Regional Faculty ran a workshop about Biostatistics on May 20th-21st, 2017. The workshop was well attended with 61 participants, and covered a useful range of topics. You can download the presentations from the day here.

The Range of Neurological Complications in Chikungunya Fever

Abstract Background Chikungunya fever is a globally spreading mosquito-borne disease that shows an unexpected neu- rovirulence. Even though the neurological complications have been a major cause of intensive care unit admission and death, to date, there is no systematic analysis of their spectrum available.  Objective To review evidence of neurological manifesta- tions in Chikungunya fever and map their epidemiology, clinical spectrum, pathomechanisms, diagnostics, therapies and outcomes.  Methods Case report and systematic review of the litera- ture followed established guidelines. All cases found were assessed using a 5-step clinical diagnostic algorithm assigning categories A–C, category A representing the highest level of quality. Only A and B cases were con- sidered for further analysis. After general analysis, cases were clustered according to geospatial criteria for subgroup analysis. Results Thirty-six of 1196 studies were included, yielding 130 cases. Nine were ranked as category A (diagnosis of Neuro-Chikungunya probable), 55 as B (plausible), and 51 as C (disputable). In 15 cases, alternative diagnoses were more likely. Patient age distribution was bimodal with a mean of 49 years and a second peak in infants. Fifty per- cent of the cases occurred in patients <45 years with no reported comorbidity. Frequent diagnoses were encephali- tis, optic neuropathy, neuroretinitis, and Guillain–Barre ́ syndrome. Neurologic conditions showing characteristics of a direct viral pathomechanism showed a peak in infants and a second one in elder patients, and complications and neurologic sequelae were more frequent in these groups. Autoimmune-mediated conditions appeared mainly in patients over 20 years and tended to show longer latencies and better outcomes. Geospatial subgrouping of case reports from either India or Re ́union revealed diverging phenotypic trends (Re ́union: 88% direct viral vs. India: 81% autoimmune). ConclusionsDirect viral forms of Neuro-Chikungunya seem to occur particularly in infants and elderly patients, while autoimmune forms have to be also considered in middle-aged, previously healthy patients, especially after an asymptomatic interval. This knowledge will help to identify future Neuro-Chikungunya cases and to improve outcome especially in autoimmune-mediated conditions. The genetics of Chikungunya virus might play a key role in determining the course of neuropathogenesis. With further research, this could prove diagnostically significant. 

The MedLitBlitz: a week-long birthday party with more than 300 friends

Announcement & Call for Submissions: Big Data for Gender Challenge

Do you have research ideas for using big data to fill gender data gaps? Announcing the Big Data for Gender Challenge! Research proposals are due on July 7, 2017

The Global Autism Network's Autism Rising Survey

The Global Austism Network has launched the Autism Rising intiative, with a mission "to provide a global forum for support of autism... enriching the lives of people with autism, their families and their communities worldwide".  They are inviting all those who are involved with ASD* to participate in a survey "to evaluate different approaches to the diagnosis of ASD, treatment options and the resources available in different communities".  To learn more and participate, please click HERE.  *Autism Spectrum Disorder

Scoping available resources and tools - WWARN survey

Scoping available resources and tools used by investigators to set up and conduct malaria clinical trials in low and middle income countries within malaria endemic settings. Participate in the survey.

Join the MedLit Blitz online May 9th-12th

Strategies for developing sustainable health research capacity in Low and Middle Income Countries

A prospective, qualitative, multi-site study investigating the barriers and enablers to locally-led clinical trial conduct in Ethiopia, Cameroon, and Sri Lanka; here the protocol, methods and instroduction are available for readers. 

Health Research Saving Lives - The CHAPAS Trial

This short film shows the impact of the CHAPAS trial on patient health and future possibilities of a small boy from Malawi.

"Africa’s health in transition" with Prof Kevin Marsh

This is a great video of a talk given at the Oxford Martin School by Professor Kevin Marsh.

Neonatal nursing in Kenya

In this podcast Dr Jacob McKnight talks about his experiences in neonatal nursing delivery and research in Kenya.

Workshop Report: Capacity building for clinical research in the face of disaster and conflict situations in middle and low income countries

The Global Health Trials Nigerian Regional Faculty held a workshop entitled Capacity building for clinical research in the face of disaster and conflict situation in middle and low income countries at the National Hospital, Abuja, on the 28th January 2017. Here we provide the presentations and links discussed during the workshop.

Health research capacity development in low and middle income countries: reality or rhetoric?

There has been steady progress in LMIC health research capacity, but major barriers to research persist and more empirical evidence on development strategies is required.

How to create and interpret epidemic curves

Epidemic curves are an important component of the public health and global health toolbox. Learn more about creating and interpretting them.

Cochrane Crowd

Become a Cochrane citizen scientist. Anyone can join their collaborative volunteer effort.

Understanding and Addressing the Global Need for Orthopaedic Trauma Care.

This article addresses the global burden of musculoskeletal trauma in particular in low and middle income countries.

Global Health Research in an Unequal World: Ethics Case Studies from Africa

This book is a collection of fictionalised case studies of everyday ethical dilemmas and challenges, encountered in the process of conducting global health research in places where the effects of global, political and economic inequality are particularly evident. 

It is time to revise the international Good Clinical Practices guidelines: recommendations from non-commercial North–South collaborative trials

The Good Clinical Practices (GCP) codes of the WHO and the International Conference of Harmonization set international standards for clinical research. But critics argue that they were written without consideration for the challenges faced in low and middle income countries (LMICs).

Wellcome and Open Research

The TDR Global Competency Framework for Clinical Research: a set of tools to help develop clinical researchers

The TDR Global Competency Framework for Clinical Research is a flexible framework which lists all the competencies that should be demonstrated by a research team to carry out a successful clinical study. It can be used for any research study, regardless of the size of the team and of the study itself. It can help to plan the staffing requirements for a study, to help carry out appraisals of staff, to help individuals plan their career development, and to help to develop educational curricula for research staff.