Browsing by Author "Cassidy, Laura"

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    Association of prepregnancy diabetes and average birth-weight infant mortality by pregnancy body mass index: Findings from CDC's national vital statistics system, 2011
    (APHA, 2019) Shour, Abdul; Muehlbauer, Alice; Anguzu, Ronald; Walker, Rebekah; Carter, Catherine; Cassidy, Laura; Egede, Leonard
    Prepregnancy diabetes is associated with neonatal mortality of low birthweight newborns,however, little is known about the association of prepregnancy diabetes and mortality among babies with average birthweight (≥7lbs). We examined Average Birth-Weight Infant Mortality (ABIM), by pregnancy Body Mass Index for women diagnosed with diabetes prior to pregnancy. Data from CDC's NVSS-Linked Birth-Infant Death dataset, 3,638,143 newborns in 2011 were analyzed. The outcome was ABIM, defined as annual deaths per 1,000 live births with birthweight of ≥7pounds. The independent variable was self-reported diabetes (of any type) prior to pregnancy. Covariates were maternal co-morbidities, hospital and infant characteristics. Underlying causes of death (ICD codes 10th Revision) was included. Chi-square tests, stratified models and adjusted logistic regression analysis were conducted using STATA/SE v.15.1. P-values < 0.05 were considered statistically significant. Results: 7,419 average birthweight newborns died before their first birthday. ABIM was prevalent among diabetic mothers (0.3%), women who smoked (0.5%), infants born ≥37 weeks (0.4%) and African Americans (0.3%), with 65% of deaths occurring during post-neonatal period. The leading causes were congenital malformations (25.35%) and SIDS (20.0%). The odds of ABIM were 2 times higher for obese diabetic mothers (95%CI:1.6-2.8) compared to non-diabetic obese mothers. Among infants born ≥37 weeks, the odds of ABIM were 2 times higher for all BMI categories compared to infants born <37 weeks. Obese-diabetic mothers, smokers and full-term infants were at increased risk of ABIM, and particularly congenital malformations and SIDS. Interventions should focus on reducing maternal obesity, smoking and promoting safe sleep.
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    Building capacity for geospatial cancer research in Uganda: a feasibility study
    (The Lancet Global Health, 2019) Beyer, Kirsten; Lukande, Robert; Kasasa, Simon; Kavanya, Gray; Nambooze, Sarah; Amulen, Phoebe; Cassidy, Laura; Tumwesigye, Nazarius; Babikako, Harriet; Anguzu, Ronald; Oyana, Tonny; Wabinga, Henry
    There is a growing epidemic of cancer and other non-communicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa. Targeted, specific, cost-effective strategies are needed to manage the growing burden of cancer. In high-resource settings, geospatial analysis has transformed cancer control through geographic targeting of interventions and policies. A similar approach could improve cancer control in sub-Saharan Africa; however, georeferenced cancer data and increased geospatial research capacity are needed. Here, we aimed to assess the feasibility of geocoding and mapping small-area cancer data from a cancer registry in Uganda. We established a partnership including the Makerere University Department of Pathology, School of Public Health and College of Computing and Information Sciences, the Kampala Cancer Registry, Uganda, and the Medical College of Wisconsin, USA. The overarching goal of our multidisciplinary and multi-institutional partnership is to increase geospatial cancer research capacity at Makerere University to enhance the prioritisation and targeting of limited cancer prevention and control resources in Uganda. Two medical students from the Medical College of Wisconsin, mentored by faculty at their own institution and Makerere University, worked in Kampala with registry staff to identify, enter, and quality-check geographic codes of residence for approximately 1522 cervical cancer records from 2005 to 2014. Information about district (n=1520, 99·9%) and subcounty (n=1486, 97·6%) was available for the vast majority of cases, and the parish was identifiable for a large proportion of cases (n=1242, n=81·6%), with increasing availability in more recent years. A seed grant is supporting ongoing capacity building at the Kampala Cancer Registry, including the purchase of new computing hardware and software and the implementation of a revised geographic data collection protocol to support future geospatial analysis of Kampala Cancer Registry data.
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    Geographic variation and risk factors for teenage pregnancy in Uganda.
    (African Health Sciences, 2020-12) Byonanebye, Joseph; Brazauskas, Ruta; Tumwesigye, Nazarius; Young, Staci; May, Thomas; Cassidy, Laura
    Background: Teenage pregnancy is a global health issue with high rates in sub-Saharan Africa. In Uganda, teenage pregnan- cy is a public and community health issue. Objectives: This study hypothesized that there would be regional variations in rates, risk factors and trends of teenage pregnancy in Uganda. Methods: Data were analyzed from the Uganda Demographic and Health Surveys (UDHS) in 2006 and 2011. The outcome of interest was current pregnancy for females 15 to 19 years of age at the time of the survey. Bivariate analysis was per- formed for each year to examine the rate and trends of pregnancy by various demographic characteristics. Logistic regres- sion was conducted to assess the association between teenage pregnancy and sociodemographic variables. Results: Uganda’s rate of teenage pregnancy increased from 7.3/1000 in 2006 to 8.1/1000 in 2011. The East Central region consistently had the highest rates than other regions. In 2006, teenage pregnancy was significantly associated with being mar- ried, living with a partner or separated, as compared to those who were single. Marital and wealth status were also significant predictors of teenage pregnancy based on the 2011 survey. Conclusion: The rate of teenage pregnancy in Uganda is high and the trend demonstrated regional variation. Future inter- ventions could focus on regions with high poverty and low education.