Browsing by Author "Hoare, Jackie"

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    Correlates of Emotional and Behavioural Problems in Children with Perinatally Acquired HIV in Cape Town South Africa
    (2015) Louw, Kerry-Ann; Hoare, Jackie
    In the antiretroviral era children perinatally infected with HIV (PHIV+) are surviving into adulthood and are at risk for emotional and behavioural problems. Few studies of these problems have been conducted in low and middle income countries (LMIC) and even fewer in sub - Saharan Africa where the burden of the HIV epidemic remains heaviest. The aims of this study were to provide a quantitative description of emotional and behavioural problems in a group of children and adolescents with perinatally acquired HIV in South Africa compared to a group of well - matched HIV - negative controls and to identify demographic, biological, cognitive and contextual correlates of emotional and behavioural problems. A cross-sectional descriptive, analytical study was conducted. Participants were recruited from community and hospital based clinics. Wi thin the HIV - infected group, children were further divided into three subgroups: PHIV+ children who had never been on antiretroviral therapy (ART naïve), PHIV+ children on ART and PHIV+ children on ART with a confirmed diagnosis of HIV - related encephalopathy (HIVE) . Emotional and behavioural problems were assessed using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL). Several measures were used to assess demographic, biological, cognitive and contextual correlates of problem behaviours: socio - demographic questionnaire, clinic records, neuropsychological test battery, Family Resource Scale, Family Support Scale and Center for Epidemiologic Studies - Depression Scale. Children were compared by HIV status on demographic, cognitive and contextual variables as well as the total and subscale scores of the CBCL. Multivariate comparisons of the influence of contextual and cognitive variables on CBCL total problems was performed using a hierarchical step - wise linear regression analytic procedure. The final sample (N=108) for data analysis included 78 PHIV+ children and 30 HIV - negative children. Groups were comparable with respect to demographic and contextual variables. Cognitive performance scores were significantly lower in the PHIV+ children when compared to HIV - negative controls (p<0.001). Rates of caregiver depression were higher in both groups than the lifetime prevalence rates reported in the South African population.
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    Open Access
    Retrospective cross sectional analysis of an acupuncture intervention for chronic pain management at Groote Schuur Hospital Pain Clinic Cape Town, South Africa
    (2019) Lagerstrom, Nada; Hoare, Jackie; Louw, Kerry-Ann
    In 2015 acupuncture was introduced as an alternative intervention in the management of chronic pain, at the Chronic Pain Management Clinic of Groote Schuur Hospital, a tertiary academic hospital in Cape Town, South Africa. This study is a retrospective, cross-sectional analysis that aimed to investigate several aspects of the acupuncture intervention over a 12 month period. The main outcome measure, the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI), is a widely used, internationally validated questionnaire, containing pain intensity, pain interference, and total score. The main objective of this study was to determine if the acupuncture treatment lowered BPI scores after 6 to 9 intervention sessions. Additional objectives were to determine if there are any correlations between demographic and clinical factors and changes in BPI scores, and to describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of the study population. The data was obtained by folder reviews of 66 patients with chronic pain who were referred for acupuncture treatment between January 1, 2015 and December 31, 2015, and attended at least one treatment session. The full treatment course (6-9 sessions) was completed by 24 patients (36,3%), with an average post treatment decrease in BPI of 3,7 points. Responders (patients who obtained 2 and more point BPI decrease) comprised 70,6% of the patients who completed treatment. Decrease in BPI scores after completion of full acupuncture treatment proved to be statistically significant (p=0.002). Factors showing strongest correlation with BPI decrease were female gender and absence of medical and psychiatric co-morbidities.