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Background Despite snakebite antivenom being included on the WHO list of essential medicines, many parts of the world, especially Africa, lack effective and safe antivenoms. Methods A descriptive, field-based, cross-sectional study was undertaken from August to November 2020 in 40 out of 71 health facilities in Ndola district. Interviews and physical inspection were conducted at each facility. Results The study revealed that only three (8%) of all the private health facilities had antivenom available at the time of the assessment. Factors significantly associated with antivenom supply included lack of central country supply (90%), lack of demand of the antivenom (55%) and no budget allocation for the antivenom (95%). Conclusions Despite the high number of notified snakebites within Ndola district, there remains poor availability of snakebite antivenom within the district. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: New cases of HIV are increasing among young adults in Zambia; yet voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC) coverage as an HIV prevention measure remains low. Despite having the highest HIV burden in the province, Ndola district had a VMMC coverage of 23% in 2015 compared to the national target of 80% among high-risk groups. Objectives: To determine predictive factors associated with circumcision status among male students in Ndola district. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study in May 2016 among students aged 18–35 years enrolled in five conveniently sampled colleges. We administered a structured questionnaire to assess the knowledge, attitudes and perceptions about VMMC. We used multivariable logistic regression to determine factors associated with male circumcision (MC) status. Results: Of 136 students interviewed, 63% were circumcised, and of those, 96% were medically circumcised. Half of all students were aged 21–24 years. Those who perceived the circumcision procedure to be ‘safe’ (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 5.13; 95% CI: 2.09–14.82), and knew that it reduced female to male HIV transmission risk (aOR = 3.65; 95% CI: 3.12–11.67), were more likely to be circumcised. The perception that MC promotes ‘promiscuous behaviour’ (aOR = 0.20; 95% CI: 0.07–0.61), and that sexual sensitivity is the ‘same’ regardless of circumcision status, were associated with not being circumcised (aOR = 0.13; 95% CI: 0.02–0.80). Conclusion: Students had adequate knowledge about the safety of medical circumcision, and the subsequent risk reduction of HIV infection. Interventions aimed at addressing negative sexual perceptions about circumcision may increase VMMC coverage among college students.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of oral lesions in HIV infected children on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and association of HIV progression with oral lesions at Arthur Davison children's hospital in Ndola, Zambia. Participants and Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among 212 children aged 0-15 years. Participants were selected from patients coming to access HAART on any particular day at Arthur Davison Children's' Hospital Ndola, Zambia between November and December 2014 following informed consent. Participants needed to have been on HAART for at least one month. Oral lesions were detected and diagnosed based on clinical presentation. Data was captured using Epi Data version 3.1 and analyzed using SPSS version 16.0 for windows. The Fisher's exact test and the Yates' corrected Chi-squared test were used to compare proportions at the 5% patient significance level. Results: A total of 212 patients were recruited into the study. The majority (47.6%) was in the age group of 10-15 years. More than half (57.2%) of the patients were females. Of the 212 participants, 33 (15.6%) had oral lesions. Angular cheilitis was the most common lesion (8.1%) children, while Herpes simplex was the least common (0.5%). Out of 212 clients, 202 (95.3%) were on first line drugs (Zidovudine, Lamivudine &Niverapine, or Abacavir, Lamivudine &Niverapine). There was no statistically significant association between age and drug regimen (p=0.751). No significant association was observed between CD4 count and lesions (p=0.405). Conclusion: A low prevalence of oral lesions was observed among children on HAART. Adherence and early initiation on HAART is encouraged in order to maintain the low prevalence of lesions in this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2002, Zambia has experienced a decentralisation of powers from central government to local level. Accompanying this shift towards decentralisation, local economic development (LED) planning emerged in several urban centres. The aim in this article is to examine one facet of emerging LED planning in Zambia, analysing local responses towards economic restructuring of Copperbelt Province. The specific focus is the city of Ndola, which experienced economic decline from the early 1990s. The paper highlights the weaknesses and limitations of municipal-led interventions for LED and documents the expansion of community-led local responses to economic decline as expressed in the growth of urban cultivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]