The National Research Repository of Uganda - NRU

Welcome to the National Research Repository of Uganda, abbreviated as "NRU". NRU was established in 2021. NRU is a collection of scholarly output by researchers from the UNCST Community, including scholarly articles and books, electronic theses and dissertations, conference proceedings, journals, technical reports and digitised library collections. It is the official Institutional Archive (IA) of UNCST.

Copyright Information:

For information about the publishers' copyright policy on archiving your articles online or in an institutional archive, visit the Sherpa Site at http://www.sherpa.ac.uk/romeo.php The site gives a summary of the permissions normally given as part of each publisher's copyright transfer agreement. If you wish to publish your research findings in the NRU, please contact NRU administrator at admin@uncst.go.ug for details. NRU operates both open access and closed access models. Access to fulltext has been restricted in adherence to the UNCST Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and Copyrights policies.

Other Useful Resources:

Africa Portal is an online repository of open access library collection with over 3,000 books, journals, and digital documents on African policy issues. This is an initiative by the Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI), Makerere University (MAK), and the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA). Please visit the Africa Portal at http://www.africaportal.org/library.

~
 

Communities in NRU

Select a community to browse its collections.

Now showing 1 - 5 of 12

Recent Submissions

Thumbnail Image
Item
Enhanced yield of active case finding for leprosy in Uganda, using an integrated ‘Community door to door Awareness raising, Screening, Testing, Treatment and Prevention’ (CAST) campaign in Uganda
(British Leprosy Relief Association, 2025-04-04) Turyahabwe, Stavia;; Kengonzi, Rose;; Kawuma, Joseph ;; Gerwing, Lisa;; Muzamiru, Bamuloba;; Geofrey, Amanya
Summary Background Uganda undertook a six-month national-level campaign to improve access to TB and leprosy services following the negative impacts of COVID-19 on health care services. This paper aims to present the results of a detailed case analysis of all patients with leprosy from 2022 to 2023 and to illustrate the benefit of integrating leprosy active case finding in the tuberculosis awareness, screening, testing, treatment, and prevention (CAST) campaign. Methods The activities implemented during the campaign included community awareness raising and screening and management of suspected TB and Leprosy patients. Data collected at the community level was aggregated at the facility level and entered in an online system. Data analysis from a custom database created for the CAST campaign was conducted. Results Three episodes of the CAST campaign were carried out in March 2022, September 2022, and March 2023. Of the 6,715,810 individuals screened for TB and leprosy, 55% were female. 14,560 were diagnosed with TB. In addition, 4302 individuals had skin lesions suspicious of leprosy, and 5% (196) were diagnosed with leprosy and started on treatment. The overall proportion of leprosy patients contributed by the campaign was 49% (196/399), 60% being from the West Nile region. Conclusions The CAST campaign is an innovative strategy to improve TB and Leprosy control in Uganda. It is crucial to continuously monitor and evaluate the campaign progress, making adjustments as needed to ensure its success. The results also justify the integration of TB and Leprosy programmes particularly in remote settings with high disease burdens. Keywords: Leprosy, CAST campaign, COVID 19, integration
Thumbnail Image
Item
Prevalence, aetiology, and service mapping of dementia in rural Uganda. Part of DEPEND Uganda (Dementia Epidemiology, unmet Need and co-Developing Solutions in Uganda).
(Wellcome, 2025-01-24) Prynn, Josephine;; Alinaitwe, Racheal;; Kimono, Beatrice ;; Peto, Tunde;; Ashton, Nicholas J;; Steves, Claire J;; Mugisha, Joseph;; Prince, Martin
Background Dementia prevalence in low- and middle-income countries is increasing, yet epidemiological data from African populations remain scarce. Crucial risk factors differ in Africa from more intensively studied global areas, including a higher burden of cerebrovascular disease and HIV, but lower rates of other risk factors like physical inactivity. Understanding dementia aetiology in African settings has been limited by the expensive and invasive nature of biomarker testing. This study leverages developments in blood-based and retinal imaging biomarker technology to examine the drivers of dementia in older Ugandans. People with dementia have complex needs benefiting from multi-dimensional support. Understanding current services will allow identification of barriers and opportunities to strengthen support available to people with dementia and their families. Methods The study is nested within the General Population Cohort run by the Medical Research Council/Uganda Virus Research Institute & London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Research Unit. All adults aged 60+ (around 1400) are undergoing brief cognitive screening. In Part 1, cohort participants are selected based on screening scores to undergo detailed cognitive assessment, using methods developed by the 10/66 Dementia Research Group. Part 2 is a case control study of people with and without dementia using antecedent data, questionnaires, physical assessment, retinal imaging, and Alzheimer’s blood-based biomarkers. We will also compare disability, frailty, quality of life, and social engagement in people with and without dementia. Part 3 assesses current formal support structures for people with dementia through review of publicly available literature and expert interviews. Conclusions This is the first study in Africa using blood-based and retinal imaging biomarkers to examine pathological processes underlying dementia, and systematically map services available for people with dementia. This paves the way for effective policy strategies and further focused research regarding both dementia prevention and support for affected people and their families. CrossRef
Thumbnail Image
Item
ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction heart of Charlotte one-year (STEMI HOC-1) study: a prospective study protocol
(BMC Cardiovascular Disorders, 2023-08-11) Badianyama, Marheb; Mutyaba, Arthur; Nel, Samantha; Tsabedze, Nqoba
ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a clinically distinguishable yet lethal sequela of ischaemic heart disease (IHD). In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), death due to acute STEMI is increasing. In South Africa, there is a paucity of data available on the clinical outcomes of acute STEMI within one year for individuals treated in the public healthcare sector. This study primarily seeks to determine the one-year all-cause mortality rate of acute STEMI. The study also assesses the value of serum cardiac biomarkers of myocardial damage and serum uric acid in predicting all-cause mortality in STEMI. This is a single-centre observational prospective cohort of all consecutive individuals presenting with an acute STEMI to the Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital (CMJAH) in Johannesburg, South Africa. Research data will be sourced on admission through electronic medical records, blood laboratory results and coronary angiography reports, and at follow-up through periodic telephonic interviews and standardised echocardiograms. At least 355 eligible participants will be continuously followed over one year, and clinical outcomes will be measured 30 days, three months, six months and one year after the index hospitalisation. This study provides insights into the demographic, risk factors and clinical profiles of individuals with STEMI in South Africa. Its findings may improve the risk stratification, prognostication, and therapeutic management of STEMI patients in our setting. By comparing the clinical outcomes between the different coronary reperfusion strategies, our results may guide clinicians in providing better patient treatment, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, where access to percutaneous coronary intervention may be limited. Furthermore, the study offers insights into the routine use of baseline serum uric acid as a potential low-cost prognostic biomarker of all-cause mortality in STEMI. Finally, this study’s findings may be of public health significance to local policymakers to aid in reinforcing primary prevention strategies and developing structured referral networks for timely coronary reperfusion of acute STEMI.
Thumbnail Image
Item
Moving from Data Collection to Application: A Systematic Literature Review of Surgical Capacity Assessments and their Applications
(World journal of surgery, 2015-01-08) Carlson, Lucas C.; Mulwafu, Wakisa; Mutyaba, Frederick A.; Labib , Mohamed
Over the past decade, assessments of surgical capacity in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) have contributed to our understanding of barriers to the delivery of surgical services in a number of countries. It is yet unclear, however, how the findings of these assessments have been applied and built upon within the published literature. A systematic literature review of surgical capacity assessments in LMICs was performed to evaluate current levels of understanding of global surgical capacity and to identify areas for future study. A reverse snowballing method was then used to follow-up citations of the identified studies to assess how this research has been applied and built upon in the literature. Twenty-one papers reporting the findings of surgical capacity assessments conducted in 17 different LMICs in South Asia, East Asia and Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa were identified. These studies documented substantial deficits in human resources, infrastructure, equipment, and supplies. Only seven additional papers were identified which applied or built upon the studies. Among these, capacity assessment findings were most commonly used to develop novel tools and intervention strategies, but they were also used as baseline measurements against which updated capacity assessments were compared. While the global surgery community has made tremendous progress in establishing baseline values of surgical capacity in LMICs around the world, further work is necessary to build upon and apply the foundational knowledge established through these efforts. Capacity assessment data should be coordinated and used in ongoing research efforts to monitor and evaluate progress in global surgery and to develop targeted intervention strategies. Intervention strategy development may also be further incorporated into the evaluation process itself.
Thumbnail Image
Item
Predictors of insecticide-treated nets utilization among children under five years in refugee settlements in Uganda: analysis of the 2018–2019 Uganda Malaria Indicator Survey Henry Musoke Semakula & Frank Mugagga
(BioMed Central Ltd, 2025-01-21) Semakula, Henry Musoke;; Mugagga, Frank
Despite significant distribution of insecticide-treated net (ITNs) by the Government of Uganda to refugees, malaria is major cause of mortality and morbidity among children under five years in refugee settlements. This highlights the persistent challenges and complexities surrounding malaria control and prevention efforts in these settings. Studies that focus on the determinants of ITN utilization among children under five years in refugee settlements in Uganda are not available. Using the 2018-2019 Uganda's Malaria Indicator Survey (UMIS) data, analysis of the individual and household factors associated with utilization of ITN among children under five in refugee settlements of Uganda was conducted. This study focused on 589 children under five staying in refugee settlements located in Uganda. The extracted variables from the UMIS included social-economic factors associated with ITN utilization. Descriptive analysis was performed to generate summarized statistics, while inferential statistics by way of bivariate analysis were performed to assess the association between the outcome and the independent variables using the chi-square test, and multivariable logistic regression modelling to assess the magnitude of the associations after controlling for other covariates. All analyses considered the survey sampling design and sampling weights, and are conducted in Stata version 18. The odds of children sleeping under ITN were higher if their mothers had secondary and higher education (8.1 times) as well as primary education (1.5 times). The odds of children sleeping under ITN reduced by 50% if their mothers were pregnant. Interestingly, the odds of children sleeping under ITN were 70% lower if their mothers knew that 'not sleeping in nets' caused malaria. Mothers who were exposed to malaria messages had lower odds of their children sleeping under ITNs. The results highlight areas of intervention that can increase ITN use in refugee settlements of Uganda. Improving access to education for mothers, providing targeted health education on the importance of ITN, dispelling misconceptions about malaria transmission, facilitating the proper installation of ITNs among others, can all contribute to increased ITN utilization among children under five. MEDLINE