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Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) remain drastically underrepresented in health research, with African countries producing less than 1% of the global output. This work investigates authorship patterns of publications on burns in LMICs. Original research studies addressing burn injuries in LMICs and published between 1st January 2015 and 31st December 2020 were included in the review. Descriptive statistics were performed for country affiliations of authors, World Bank Country Income Groups, WHO group, study-focus and country studied. Of the 458 results, 426 studies met the inclusion criteria. Nearly a quarter of papers on burns in LMICs had both first and senior authors from high-income countries (HICs, n = 95, 24.4%), more than half of the papers had both first and senior authors from upper middle- income countries (upper MICs, n = 222, 57.2%), while less than 1% (n = 3) had first and senior authors exclusively from lower-income countries (LICs). Eleven percent (n = 41/388) of all papers were written without either first nor senior author being from the country studied, and 17 of them (41%) had both first and senior authors from the USA. Twenty-five (6%) of the papers had the first author and not the senior author from the country of focus, while six (2%) had the senior and not the first author from the country of interest. To overcome global health challenges such as burns, locally led research is imperative. The maximum benefit of HIC-LMIC collaborations is achieved when LMICs play an active role in leading the research. When LMICs direct the research being conducted in their country, the harm of inherently inequitable relationships is minimized.

INTRODUCTION: Surgical, anaesthesia and obstetric (SAO) care are essential, life-saving components of universal healthcare. In Chiapas, Mexico's southernmost state, the capacity of SAO care is unknown. This study aims to assess the surgical capacity in Chiapas, Mexico, as it relates to access, infrastructure, service delivery, surgical volume, quality, workforce and financial risk protection. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of Ministry of Health public hospitals and private hospitals in Chiapas was performed. The translated Surgical Assessment Tool (SAT) was implemented in sampled hospitals. Surgical volume was collected retrospectively from hospital logbooks. Fisher's exact test and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare public and private hospitals. Catastrophic expenditure from surgical care was calculated. RESULTS: Data were collected from 17 public hospitals and 20 private hospitals in Chiapas. Private hospitals were smaller than public hospitals and public hospitals performed more surgeries per operating room. Not all hospitals reported consistent electricity, running water or oxygen, but private hospitals were more likely to have these basic infrastructure components compared with public hospitals (84% vs 95%; 60% vs 100%; 94.1% vs 100%, respectively). Bellwether surgical procedures performed in private hospitals cost significantly more, and posed a higher risk of catastrophic expenditure, than those performed in public hospitals. CONCLUSION: Capacity limitations are greater in public hospitals compared with private hospitals. However, the cost of care in the private sector is significantly higher than the public sector and may result in catastrophic expenditures. Targeted interventions to improve the infrastructure, workforce availability and data collection are needed.

BACKGROUND: Plastic surgery varies in scope, especially in different settings. This study aimed to quantify the plastic surgery workforce in low-income countries (LICs), understand commonly treated conditions by plastic surgeons working in these settings, and assess the impact on reducing global disease burden. METHODS: We queried national and international surgery societies, plastic surgery societies, and non-governmental organizations to identify surgeons living and working in LICs who provide plastic surgical care using a cross-sectional survey. Respondents reported practice setting, training experience, income sources, and perceived barriers to care. Surgeons ranked commonly treated conditions and reported which of the Disease Control Priorities-3 essential surgery procedures they perform. RESULTS: An estimated 63 surgeons who consider themselves plastic surgeons were identified from 15 LICs, with no surgeons identified in the remaining 16 LICs. Responses were obtained from 43 surgeons (70.5%). The 3 most commonly reported conditions treated were burns, trauma, and cleft deformities. Of the 44 "Essential Surgical Package'' procedures, 37 were performed by respondents, with the most common being skin graft (73% of surgeons performing), cleft lip/palate repair (66%), and amputations/escharotomy (61%). The most commonly cited barrier to care was insufficient equipment. Only 9% and 5% of surgeons believed that there are enough plastic surgeons to handle the burden in their local region and country, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Plastic surgery plays a significant role in the coverage of essential surgical conditions in LICs. Continued expansion of the plastic surgical workforce and accompanying infrastructure is critical to meet unmet surgical burden in low- and middle-income countries.

BACKGROUND: Diagnostic services are an essential component of high-quality surgical, anesthesia and obstetric (SAO) care. Efforts to scale up SAO care in Latin America have often overlooked diagnostics capacity. This study aims to analyze the capacity of diagnostic services, including radiology, pathology, and laboratory medicine, in hospitals providing SAO care in the states of Chiapas, Mexico and Amazonas, Brazil. METHODS: A stratified cross-sectional evaluation of diagnostic capacity in hospitals performing surgery in Chiapas and Amazonas was performed using the Surgical Assessment Tool (SAT). National data sources were queried for indicators of diagnostics capacity in terms of workforce, infrastructure and diagnosis utilization. Fisher's exact tests and chi-square tests were used to compare categorical variables between the private and public sector in Chiapas while descriptive statistics are used to compare Amazonas and Chiapas. FINDINGS: In Chiapas, 53% (n = 17) of public and 34% (n = 20) of private hospitals providing SAO care were assessed. More private hospitals than public hospitals could always provide x-rays (35% vs 23.5%) and ultrasound (85% vs 47.1%). However neither sector could consistently perform basic laboratory testing such as complete blood counts (70.6% public, 65% private). In Amazonas, 30% (n = 18) of rural hospitals were surveyed. Most had functioning x-ray machine (77.8%) and ultrasound (55.6%). The majority of hospitals could provide complete blood count (66.7%) but only one hospital (5.6%) could always perform an infectious panel. Both Chiapas and Amazonas had dramatically fewer diagnostic practitioners per capita in each state compared to the national average capacity. INTERPRETATION: Facilities providing SAO care in low-resource states in Mexico and Brazil often lack functioning diagnostics services and workforce. Scale-up of diagnostic services is essential to improve SAO care and should occur with emphasis on equitable and adequate re

Evidence-based models may assist Mexican government officials and health authorities in determining the safest plans to respond to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in the most-affected region of the country, the Mexico City Metropolitan Area. This study aims to present the potential impacts of COVID-19 in this region and to model possible benefits of mitigation efforts. The COVID-19 Hospital Impact Model for Epidemics was used to estimate the probable evolution of COVID-19 in three scenarios: (i) no social distancing, (ii) social distancing in place at 50% effectiveness, and (iii) social distancing in place at 60% effectiveness. Projections of the number of inpatient hospitalizations, intensive care unit admissions, and patients requiring ventilators were made for each scenario. Using the model described, it was predicted that peak case volume at 0% mitigation was to occur on April 30, 2020 at 11,553,566 infected individuals. Peak case volume at 50% mitigation was predicted to occur on June 1, 2020 with 5,970,093 infected individuals and on June 21, 2020 for 60% mitigation with 4,128,574 infected individuals. Occupancy rates in hospitals during peak periods at 0%, 50%, and 60% mitigation would be 875.9%, 322.8%, and 203.5%, respectively, when all inpatient beds are included. Under these scenarios, peak daily hospital admissions would be 40,438, 13,820, and 8,650. Additionally, 60% mitigation would result in a decrease in peak intensive care beds from 94,706 to 23,116 beds and a decrease in peak ventilator need from 67,889 to 17,087 units. Mitigating the spread of COVID-19 through social distancing could have a dramatic impact on reducing the number of infected people and minimize hospital overcrowding. These evidence-based models may enable careful resource utilization and encourage targeted public health responses.

BACKGROUND: A 9-valent human papillomavirus-6/11/16/18/31/33/45/52/58 (9vHPV) vaccine extends coverage to 5 next most common oncogenic types (31/33/45/52/58) in cervical cancer versus quadrivalent HPV (qHPV) vaccine. We describe efficacy, immunogenicity, and safety in Asian participants (India, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and Thailand) from 2 international studies: a randomized, double-blinded, qHPV vaccine-controlled efficacy study (young women aged 16-26 years; NCT00543543; Study 001); and an immunogenicity study (girls and boys aged 9-15 years; NCT00943722; Study 002). METHODS: Participants (N = 2519) were vaccinated at day 1 and months 2 and 6. Gynecological samples (Study 001 only) and serum were collected for HPV DNA and antibody assessments, respectively. Injection-site and systemic adverse events (AEs) were monitored. Data were analyzed by country and vaccination group. RESULTS: 9vHPV vaccine prevented HPV-31/33/45/52/58-related persistent infection with 90.4%-100% efficacy across included countries. At month 7, ≥97.9% of participants seroconverted for each HPV type. Injection-site AEs occurred in 77.7%-83.1% and 81.9%-87.5% of qHPV and 9vHPV vaccine recipients in Study 001, respectively, and 62.4%-85.7% of girls/boys in Study 002; most were mild to moderate. CONCLUSIONS: The 9vHPV vaccine is efficacious, immunogenic, and well tolerated in Asian participants. Data support 9vHPV vaccination programs in Asia. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: NCT00543543; NCT00943722.

BACKGROUND: The immunogenicity profile of the 9-valent HPV (9vHPV) vaccine was evaluated across five phase III clinical studies conducted in girls and boys 9-15 years of age and young women 16-26 years of age. The effect of baseline characteristics of subjects on vaccine-induced HPV antibody responses was assessed. METHODS: Immunogenicity data from 11,304 subjects who received ≥1 dose of 9vHPV vaccine in five Phase III studies were analyzed. Vaccine was administered as a 3-dose regimen. HPV antibody titers were assessed 1 month after dose 3 using a competitive Luminex immunoassay and summarized as geometric mean titers (GMTs). Covariates examined were age, gender, race, region of residence, and HPV serostatus and PCR status at day 1. RESULTS: GMTs to all 9 vaccine HPV types decreased with age at vaccination initiation, and were otherwise generally similar among the demographic subgroups defined by gender, race and region of residence. For all subgroups defined by race or region of residence, GMTs were higher in girls and boys than in young women. Vaccination of subjects who were seropositive at day 1 to a vaccine HPV type resulted in higher GMTs to that type, compared with those in subjects who were seronegative for that type at day 1. CONCLUSIONS: 9vHPV vaccine immunogenicity was robust among subjects with differing baseline characteristics. It was generally comparable across subjects of different races and from different regions. Greater immunogenicity in girls and boys versus young women (the population used to establish 9vHPV vaccine efficacy in clinical studies) indicates that the anti-HPV responses generated by the vaccine in adolescents from all races or regions were sufficient to induce high-level protective efficacy. This immunogenicity profile supports a widespread 9vHPV vaccination program and early vaccination.

WikiProteins enables community annotation in a Wiki-based system. Extracts of major data sources have been fused into an editable environment that links out to the original sources. Data from community edits create automatic copies of the original data. Semantic technology captures concepts co-occurring in one sentence and thus potential factual statements. In addition, indirect associations between concepts have been calculated. We call on a 'million minds' to annotate a 'million concepts' and to collect facts from the literature with the reward of collaborative knowledge discovery. The system is available for beta testing at http://www.wikiprofessional.org. A preview of the version highlighted by WikiProfessional is available at: http://conceptweblinker.wikiprofessional.org/default.py?url= nph-proxy.cgi/010000A/http/genomebiology.com/2008/9/5/R89

From a formulation perspective proteins are complex and therefore challenging molecules to develop drug delivery systems for. The success of a formulation depends on the ability of the protein to maintain the native structure and activity during preparation and delivery as well as during shipping and long-term storage of the formulation. Therefore, the development and evaluation of successful and promising drug delivery systems is essential. In the present review, some of the particulate drug delivery systems for parenteral delivery of protein are presented and discussed. The challenge for incorporation of protein in particulate delivery systems is exemplified by water-in-oil emulsions.