Browsing by Author "Kriel, Ebrahim"

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    Desperate times call for desperate measures: Adapting antiretroviral service delivery in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic
    (SAMA, 2020) Mukumbang, Ferdinand C.; Kriel, Ebrahim; Wyk, Brian Van
    On 23 March 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a nation-wide lockdown to help curb the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic in South Africa (SA). While these containment measures are considered to have limited the spread of COVID-19 in SA, the economic and social consequences, including the impact on healthcare service delivery, are prominent. Regarding healthcare service delivery, there are concerns about people who could be at risk of experiencing severe COVID-19 infection, and about meeting the needs of people with chronic diseases such as people living with HIV (PLHIV). In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, PLHIV with an unsuppressed viral load may be at increased risk of developing severe COVID-19-related conditions and potentially dying, especially those who are co-infected with tuberculosis (TB).
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    Retention in care for adolescents who were newly initiated on antiretroviral therapy in the Cape Metropole in South Africa
    (OpenJournals Publishing AOSIS (Pty) Ltd, 2020) Wyk, Brian Van; Kriel, Ebrahim; Mukumbang, Ferdinand C.
    Long-term retention of adolescents aged 10-19 years on antiretroviral therapy (ART) is crucial to achieve viral load suppression. However, it is reported globally that adolescents have lower retention in care (RiC) on ART, compared with children and adults. Objectives: To determine the prevalence and predictors of RiC of adolescents over 2 years following initiation onto ART in public health facilities in the Metropole District Health Services of the Western Cape province in 2013. Methods: Data of 220 adolescent patients who were newly initiated on ART in 2013 were extracted from the provincial electronic database, and subjected to univariate and bivariate analyses using SPSS. Results: The rate of RiC post-initiation was low throughout the study period, that is, 68.6%, 50.5% and 36.4% at 4, 12 and 24 months, respectively.
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    Two-year viral load suppression among adolescents receiving antiretroviral therapy in the Cape Metropole, South Africa, 2013 - 2015: A retrospective cohort analysis
    (South African Medical Association, 2020) van Wyk, Brian Eduard; Kriel, Ebrahim; Mukumbang, Ferdinand C.
    Background. In 2018, 4% of all people living with HIV globally were adolescents aged 10 - 19 years. It is reported that adolescents on antiretroviral therapy (ART) are at increased risk of poor viral load suppression (VLS) compared with children and adults. Objectives. To determine the 24-month prevalence of VLS among adolescents initiated on ART in 2013 in public health facilities in the Metro District Health Services of Western Cape Province, South Africa. Methods. A retrospective cohort analysis was done on 220 adolescents initiated on ART in 2013; they were followed up for 24 months. Data were extracted from the provincial Tier.Net electronic database and patients' clinical records, and captured in Excel. SPSS statistical software was used for descriptive and inferential analysis; bivariate analysis was used to determine significance and strength of associations between VLS and various sociodemographic and clinical characteristics at 4, 12 and 24 months (with significance set at p<0.05). Results.