Detection and characterization of neonatal cytomegalovirus through nanopore sequencing using flongle flow cells: Pilot study in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV) remains a significant infection in neonates and its early detection can aid with further treatment (antiviral, audiology). However, current diagnostics do not provide genetic information.

Objective: We explored the use of the portable and comprehensive sequencing method from Oxford Nanopore Technologies, utilizing low-cost Flongle flow cells to detect and perform sequence-level characterization of neonatal urine samples that tested positive for CMV by PCR.

Telemedicine and Pediatric Care in Rural and Remote Areas of Middle-and-Low-Income Countries: Narrative Review.

Objectives: Caring for children in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC) can be challenging. This review article aims to explore role of telemedicine in supporting pediatric care in LMIC.

Methodology: A narrative review of existing English and Spanish literature was conducted to assess role of telemedicine to support pediatric care in LMIC.

Effect of preterm birth on growth and blood pressure in adulthood in the Pelotas 1993 cohort.

Background: Preterm birth has been associated with increased risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease later in adulthood, attributed to cardiovascular and metabolic alterations in early life. However, there is paucity of evidence from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

Methods: We investigated the differences between preterm (<37 weeks gestational age) and term-born individuals in birth length and weight as well as adult (18 and 20 years) height, weight and blood pressure in the Brazilian 1993 Pelotas birth cohort using linear regressions.

Chagas Disease Diagnostic Testing in Two Academic Hospitals in New Orleans, Louisiana: A Call to Action.

Chagas disease, caused by the protozoa parasite , is an anthropozoonosis that represents a major public health problem in the Americas, affecting 7 million people with at least 65 million at risk. We sought to assess the intensity of disease surveillance based on diagnostic test requests from hospitals in New Orleans, Louisiana. We extracted information from send-out labs at two major tertiary academic hospitals in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, from 1 January 2018 to 1 December 2020.

Addressing bias and knowledge gaps regarding race and ethnicity in neonatology manuscript review.

A recent shift in public attention to racism, racial disparities, and health equity have resulted in an abundance of calls for relevant papers and publications in academic journals. Peer-review for such articles may be susceptible to bias, as subject matter expertise in the evaluation of social constructs, like race, is variable. From the perspective of researchers focused on neonatal health equity, we share our positive and negative experiences in peer-review, provide relevant publicly available data regarding addressing bias in peer-review from 12 neonatology-focused journals, and give recommendations to address bias and knowledge gaps in the peer review process of health equity research.

Risk factors for vertical transmission of Chagas disease: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Vertical transmission of Trypanosoma cruzi infection from mother to infant accounts for a growing proportion of new Chagas disease cases. However, no systematic reviews of risk factors for T. cruzi vertical transmission have been performed.

Cough Frequency During Treatment Associated With Baseline Cavitary Volume and Proximity to the Airway in Pulmonary TB.

Background: Cough frequency, and its duration, is a biomarker that can be used in low-resource settings without the need of laboratory culture and has been associated with transmission and treatment response. Radiologic characteristics associated with increased cough frequency may be important in understanding transmission. The relationship between cough frequency and cavitary lung disease has not been studied.

Linking Individual Natural History to Population Outcomes in Tuberculosis.

Background: Substantial individual heterogeneity exists in the clinical manifestations and duration of active tuberculosis. We sought to link the individual-level characteristics of tuberculosis disease to observed population-level outcomes.

Methods: We developed an individual-based, stochastic model of tuberculosis disease in a hypothetical cohort of patients with smear-positive tuberculosis.

The Latin America and the Caribbean search strategy proposal.

Latin America and the Caribbean's public health literature is not widely recognized. Science in this region has even been compared to a night sky with just a few specks of light. To make those lights as reachable as possible, we developed the Latin America and the Caribbean Search Strategy (LACSS).

A quantitative adaptation of the Wayne test for pyrazinamide resistance.

Background: Pyrazinamide (PZA) is the most important drug against the latent stage of tuberculosis (TB) and is used in both first and second line treatment regimens. The continued increase in multi-drug resistant TB and the prevalence of PZA resistance makes the development of alternative assays for prompt identification of PZA resistance all the more important.

Methods: We standardized and evaluated a quantitative variant of the Wayne assay (QW) for determining PZA resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis strains.

Protocol for studying cough frequency in people with pulmonary tuberculosis.

Introduction: Cough is a key symptom of tuberculosis (TB) as well as the main cause of transmission. However, a recent literature review found that cough frequency (number of coughs per hour) in patients with TB has only been studied once, in 1969. The main aim of this study is to describe cough frequency patterns before and after the start of TB treatment and to determine baseline factors that affect cough frequency in these patients.

The dream of health information for all.

In 2004, an influential report in The Lancet suggested that open health information for all could be achieved by 2015. Unfortunately, this goal has not yet been accomplished. Despite progress in obtaining quality scientific articles in Latin America, it remains difficult to reliably access new and cutting-edge research.

Nutritional intake and weight z-scores in very low birth weight infants in Peru.

Objectives: To determine the actual nutritional intake of very low birth weight infants and their growth outcome during the first month of life. Additionally, we identified factors that account for a negative neonatal outcome in this population.

Methods: A case-series study was conducted in a tertiary hospital in Lima, Peru between 2011 and 2012 and the data was obtained from medical records.

[Mobile health for public health in Peru: lessons learned].

Mobile communication technologies have become more prevalent in developed and developing countries. These coun- tries -including Peru- are becoming an ideal setting where mobile health (mHealth) projects can provide better health services. The reviewed literature shows that the mHealth interventions have enormous potential to improve access and the quality of health services, increasing the effectiveness of public health programs and reducing healthcare costs.