There are about 249 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Ghana. The country of the clinical trial is determined by the location of where the clinical research is being studied. Most studies are often held in multiple locations & countries.
We will examine whether a combination of Ivermectim (IVM) plus Albendazole (ALB) compared to IVM alone given annually, which is the current standard for mass drug administration (MDA), is more effective in sterilizing adult worms. We will also address whether IVM plus ALB given twice per year is superior to IVM given once per year or twice per year.
The purpose of the Study on Mhealth and Reproductive Health in Teens (SMART) is to evaluate the effectiveness of using text messages to improve the knowledge, communication, and attitudes about reproductive health among female adolescents in Greater Accra senior high schools. Previous research as well as qualitative work conducted by the Investigators shows that there are significant gaps in knowledge about reproductive health including on topics of pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and contraception among secondary school students in Greater Accra. These gaps contribute to unwanted pregnancy and spread of sexually transmitted diseases. At the same time, phone ownership and use among young people has spread rapidly, especially in urban areas such as Accra. The Study on Mhealth and Reproductive Health (SMART) will seek to use mobile phone messages to increase awareness of these reproductive health issues among female adolescents in Accra. The objectives of SMART are to evaluate whether the messages can increase knowledge, increase communication, and improve attitudes towards reproductive health among adolescents in Greater Accra. By conducting a randomized controlled trial, we will be able to statistically evaluate if the messages have had any effect on improving outcomes for adolescents in the areas of knowledge, communication, and attitudes. This work can help guide future programs that can scale up this intervention and ultimately improve the health and wellbeing of adolescents across Ghana.
Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are with 50.000 deaths every year one of the major causes of maternal mortality worldwide, especially in low and middle income countries. This trial aims to determine whether a daily dose of combined low-dose aspirin, calcium, vitamin D3, folic acid and vitamin B12 in pregnancy reduces the incidence of pregnancy-induced hypertension in women at risk. Secondary and tertiary objectives include other maternal and neonatal outcomes.
Significant progress has been made in the treatment of Wilms tumor in high income countries, where survival is now around 85% - 90%. Survival in low income countries is much lower; specific challenges include late presentation, malnutrition, less intense supportive care facilities and failure to complete treatment. A comprehensive treatment guideline was introduced in Malawi in 2006 which included nutritional support and social support to enable parents to complete treatment. Survival has increased to around 50%; 95% of children completed their treatment. A multi-disciplinary group of African clinicians and 'state of the art' experts produced a consensus treatment guideline for children with Wilms tumor in sub-Saharan Africa. This guideline will be implemented as a multi-center prospective clinical trial in 2014 in six - eight institutes, expecting about 200 new patients per year. The hypothesis is that 2 year event free survival will be 50%, with <10% failure to complete treatment and <10% treatment related mortality. Other research questions include efficacy and toxicity of preoperative chemotherapy and the comparison of surgical staging, local pathology and central review pathology in stratifying postoperative chemotherapy.
Despite recent economic growth in Ghana, the prevalence of childhood malnutrition remains high. Wasting prevalence affected 29% among 6- to 8-months-old infants in 2008. Poor nutrition contributes to about one-third of child mortality, diminishes cognitive development, and is a major determinant of maternal mortality. The specific objectives of the 5-year project are to: (1) enhance human capacity of government, civil, and private institutions through improvement of knowledge and skills of personnel in agriculture, nutrition and health, entrepreneurship, and pedagogy; (2) identify information needs of local institutions that are not presently met and develop a representative and sustainable longitudinal data system to support evidence-based decision-making in programs; (3) increase vulnerable households' access to quality services in agriculture/fisheries, nutrition and health, and finance; (4) implement integrated intervention activities to improve infant and young child and adolescent nutrition outcomes; and (5) examine differential benefits of the interventions for diverse vulnerable populations. The project comprises two major activities: part I - the creation of a longitudinal data system to support evidence-based decision-making in programs, and part II - the implementation of intervention activities to improve nutrition outcomes. The survey will include demographic, socioeconomic, health, diet, and nutritional status information collected annually from a representative same of 1500 households with infants (0-12 mo) and 1500 households with adolescents (9-12 y). The data will be analyzed and presented rapidly each year to district program and policy leaders to assist them in developing their activity plans for the following year.
This study aims to test directly by means of a cluster randomized controlled trial, the impact of the introduction of RDTs for malaria on dispensing behaviour of chemical sellers, the main non-formal outlet for drugs locally, at community level.
The main objective of the study is to investigate the impact of H. pylori infection on immune activation and clinical outcome in HIV patients. Other specific study objectives are: 1. To investigate the effects of H. pylori infection on immune activation and the T-cell profile in HIV positive patients and compare those with HIV negative controls. 2. To assess the influence of H. pylori infection on virological and immune parameters, and on clinical progression of HIV infection (WHO stage, opportunistic infections). 3. To assess the prevalence of H. pylori infection among HIV patients in the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital. 4. To assess the prevalence of gastrointestinal symptoms in HIV patients in Kumasi. 5. To assess the association of H. pylori infection with gastrointestinal symptoms and pathology in HIV patients. 6. To compare the clinical and immunological response to antiretroviral therapy and in HIV-patients with and without concomitant H. pylori infection.
The main objective is to access efficacy of first and second line antiretroviral therapy (ART) and its determinants in patients treated at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi (KATH), Ghana, and to compare the clinical, virological and immunological efficacy of second line ART in patients who were switched after virological failure compared to patients who were switched after clinical or immunological failure. Other specific study objectives are: 1. To establish an HIV Cohort Study at the study site. 2. To assess the rate of virological failure among patients on first line therapy 3. To compare the clinical, immunological and virological efficacy of second line antiretroviral therapy amongst patients randomised to virological monitoring whilst on first line compared with those monitored routinely using clinical and immunological monitoring. 4. To assess the incidence and outcome of tuberculosis (TB) and other opportunistic infections in patients treated at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital HIV services 5. To obtain parameters for quality of care, e. g. performance of TB screening procedures 6. To develop strategies to minimise treatment failures, on the basis of the results of the study 7. To generate a large prospective second-line ART cohort, to serve as basis for further research projects 8. To implement point-of-care viral load analysis at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital 9. Capacity building: epidemiology, medical documentation and data base management. Enrollment of one PhD and one Master student
The purpose of this study is to determine if the use of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine (a device that blows air into the lungs) decreases the chance of a child dying from difficulty breathing.
The goal of this study is to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of the World Health Organization Package targeted at Cardiovascular (CV) risk assessment and hypertension control, delivered by Community Health Nurses as part of Ghana's Community based Health Planning and Services program, versus provision of health insurance coverage, on blood pressure reduction. Findings from this study will provide policy makers and other stakeholders needed information to recommend efficient cost-effective policy with regards to comprehensive CV risk reduction in patients with hypertension in low resource settings.