Browsing by Author "Najjemba, Robinah"

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    Blood Culture Testing Outcomes among Non-Malarial Febrile Children at Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Sites in Uganda, 2017–2018
    (Tropical medicine & infectious disease, 2018) Kisame, Rogers; Najjemba, Robinah; Griensven, Johan van; Kitutu, Freddy Eric; Takarinda, Kudakwashe; Thekkur, Pruthu; Delamou, Alexandre; Walwema, Richard; Kakooza, Francis; Mugerwa, Ibrahim; Sekamatte, Musa; Robert, Kimera; Katairo, Thomas; Opollo, Marc Sam; Otita, Morgan; Lamorde, Mohammed
    Blood culture (BC) processes are critical to the utility of diagnostic testing, bloodstream infection (BSI) management, and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) surveillance. While Uganda has established BC guidelines, often laboratory practice does not meet the desired standards. This compromises pathogen recovery, reliability of antimicrobial susceptibility testing, and diagnostic test utility. This study assessed laboratory BC process outcomes among non-malarial febrile children below five years of age at five AMR surveillance sites in Uganda between 2017 and 2018. Secondary BC testing data was reviewed against established standards. Overall, 959 BC specimens were processed. Of these, 91% were from female patients, neonates, infants, and young children (1–48 months). A total of 37 AMR priority pathogens were identified; Staphylococcus aureus was predominant (54%), followed by Escherichia coli (19%). The diagnostic yield was low (4.9%). Only 6.3% of isolates were identified. AST was performed on 70% (18/26) of identified AMR priority isolates, and only 40% of these tests adhered to recommended standards. Interventions are needed to improve laboratory BC practices for effective patient management through targeted antimicrobial therapy and AMR surveillance in Uganda. Further research on process documentation, diagnostic yield, and a review of patient outcomes for all hospitalized febrile patients is needed.
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    O’Nyong-Nyong Fever in South-Central Uganda, 1996–1997: Clinical Features and Validation of a Clinical Case Definition for Surveillance Purposes
    (Clinical infectious diseases, 1999) Kiwanuka, Noah; Sanders, Eduard J.; Rwaguma, Elly B.; Kawamata, Jun; Ssengooba, Freddie P.; Najjemba, Robinah; Were, Willy A.; Lamunu, Margaret; Bagambisa, George; Burkot, Thomas R.; Dunster, Lee; Lutwama, J. Julius; Martin, Denise A.; Tsai, Theodore F.; Campbell, Grant L.
    O’nyong-nyong (ONN) fever, caused by infection with a mosquito-borne central African alphavirus, is an acute, nonfatal illness characterized by polyarthralgia. During 1996–1997, south-central Uganda experienced the second ONN fever epidemic ever recognized. Among 391 persons interviewed and sampled, 40 cases of confirmed and 21 of presumptive, wellcharacterized acute, recent, or previous ONN fever were identified through active case-finding efforts or during a household serosurvey and by the application of clinical and laboratory criteria. Among confirmed cases, the knees and ankles were the joints most commonly affected. The median duration of arthralgia was 6 days (range, 2–21 days) and of immobilization was 4 days (range, 1–14 days). In the majority, generalized skin rash was reported, and nearly half had lymphadenopathy, mainly of the cervical region. Viremia was documented in 16 cases, primarily during the first 3 days of illness, and in some of these, body temperature was normal. During this epidemic, the combination of fever, arthralgia, and lymphadenopathy had a specificity of 83% and a sensitivity of 61% in the identification of cases of ONN fever and thus could be useful for surveillance purposes.