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Objectives: Postgraduate courses can contribute to better-qualified personnel in resource-limited settings. We aimed to identify how entry characteristics of applicants predict performance in order to provide support measures early.Methods: We describe demographic data and end-of-module examination marks of medical doctors who enrolled in a first semester module of two one-year MSc programmes between 2010 and 2014. We used t-tests and one-way anova to compare, and post hoc tests to locate differences of mean marks between categories of entry characteristics in univariate analysis. After exclusion of collinear variables, multiple regression examined the effect of several characteristics in multivariable analysis.Results: Eighty-nine students (47% male) with a mean age of 32 (SD 6.4) years who received their medical degree in the UK (19%), other European (22%), African (35%) or other countries (24%) attended the 3-months module. Their mean mark was 69.1% (SD 10.9). Medical graduates from UK universities achieved significantly higher mean marks than graduates from other countries. Students' age was significantly negatively correlated with the module mark. In multiple linear regression, place of medical degree (β = -0.44, P < 0.001) and time since graduation (β = -0.28, P = 0.007) were strongest predictors of performance, explaining 32% of the variation of mean marks.Conclusion: Students' performance substantially differs based on their entry criteria in this 1st semester module. Non-UK graduates and mature students might benefit from early support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective To determine the performance of rapid diagnostic tests for dengue and leptospirosis that rely on detecting antibodies that may not be produced when patients present for medical treatment. Methods We prospectively enrolled 723 patients with undifferentiated febrile illness presenting to rural hospitals in northern and northeastern Thailand over a 1-year period. We evaluated rapid antibody detection diagnostic tests for dengue and leptospirosis on these patients. Results Sensitivity of the tests was low at the acute visit (7.6–21.5%). Sensitivity at the convalescent visit ranged from 25.8% to 81.5% and was significantly higher than at the acute visit for all tests ( χ2, P < 0.001). Conclusions Low sensitivity of the rapid tests at presentation suggests that their utility in the acute phase of dengue and leptospirosis is limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]