Members

Dr Damalie Nalwanga MBChB, DTM&H, M.Med Paediatrics and Child Health (Group Lead)

Dr Rebecca Nantanda MBChB, M.Med Paediatrics and Child Health, PhD

Dr Hellen Aanyu MBChB, MMed (Paediatrics and Child Health), Diploma in Allergology, Training Certificate in Paediatric Pulmonology

Dr Phiona Ekyaruhanga MBChB, M.Med Paediatrics and Child Health

Irene Najjingo BBLT, Msc. Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Samson Omongot  BSC, MPH(Public health expert).

 

Vision

Healthy lungs for children in Uganda and beyond!

 

Mission

To conduct research and training addressing critical lung health gaps among children towards improving paediatric lung health in Uganda and beyond

Approach

The Paediatrics Research Group conducts research, training and advocacy covering a wide scope of health problems among children including;

Disease Prevention and Health Promotion: Immunisation, risk factors for lung diseases, Screening, and Community Engagement

Clinical care for communicable and non-communicable respiratory diseases

Capacity building through training and mentorship for pre- and in-service healthcare professionals

Paediatric Research at the MLI

Diagnosis and Treatment of Paediatric Infections

EMPIRICAL Study: Empirical treatment against cytomegalovirus and tuberculosis in HIV-infected infants with severe pneumonia: a multicenter, open-label randomized clinical trial funded by EDCTP supported by the European Union. The study is ongoing

The study is investigating the benefit on empirical treatment for TB and CMV pneumonia over standard of care treatment among HIV infected infants in Africa EMPIRICAL study: Patient recruitment reaches halfway point – EDCTP

Neuro-EMPIRICAL Study: This sub-study of the main trial is investigating the neuro-cognitive benefits of empirical pneumonia treatment on the cognition of HIV infected children with pneumonia. ISRCTN – ISRCTN80374799: Does treating cytomegalovirus and tuberculosis very early (even without being sure if the child has these infections) in addition to the usual treatment for pneumonia save HIV-positive children’s movement and reasoning?

PediCAP study: Impact of oral step-down to amoxicillin or co-amoxiclav and of duration of antibiotic therapy on effectiveness, safety and selection of antibiotic resistance in severe childhood community-acquired pneumonia (CAP): a randomised controlled trial funded by EDCTP supported by the European Union. The study is ongoing

The study is investigating the benefits in different, doses and durations of amoxiclav verses co-amoxiclav among children with community acquired pneumonia Home page – Project Pedicap EDCTP2

 

The ALRITE study 1: The study evaluated  health workers’ perceptions of acceptability, usability and feasibility of Acute Lower Respiratory Illness Treatment and Evaluation (ALRITE), a novel mobile health tool to help frontline health workers diagnose, treat and provide education about ALRI in children <5 years. This study was completed (http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-049708)

The study was funded by University of Washington Global Innovation Fund, the Firland Foundation, the Arthur Rosenfeld Endowment for Paediatric Pulmonary Fellows, and the NIH NHLBI

The Children’s COVID-19 (CCV) Study: The study is assessing feasibility, acceptability, safety, effectiveness, and immunogenicity of COVID-19 vaccines among children in Uganda

This on-going study is funded by the Science Technology and Innovation (STI), Office of the President

Post-TB Lung disease: The study aims to describe the factors associated with impaired lung function after completion of TB treatment among children in Uganda. It is the first study in Uganda to explore the major but under-recognized burden of post-TB lung disease in children. The study is led by the team from the University of Iowa and MUJHU. MLI will specifically support lung function testing and analysis.

Teen TB study (completed): The Aim was to improve uptake of tuberculosis (TB) care services among adolescents at Ugandan health facilities.

Using a human centered design, we developed an adolescent TB awareness and screening package.

The package consisted of 3 interventions (TB screening cards, awareness poster messages and local song) that were deployed in selected project health facilities and surrounding communities.

Overall, the intervention improved adolescent TB care in the four health facilities.

 

TDA4child Study: Evaluating the performance, feasibility, acceptability and impact of treatment-decision algorithms for pulmonary tuberculosis in children in Uganda.

The study aims to describe the diagnostic performance, feasibility, healthcare worker acceptability and effect of the study TDAs on pulmonary TB case notifications in children under 10 years old under programmatic conditions in Uganda

Funder: The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the United States agency for International Development (USAID).

 

ACACIA Study completed. The Achieving Control of Asthma in Children in Africa (ACACIA) study was an observational study of children’s lung health in

Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda and Zimbabwe. This study was funded by National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) using UK aid from the UK Government to support global health research.

The aim of the study was to identify children aged between 12 years and 14 years with asthma symptoms, assess their asthma control, current treatment, knowledge of and attitudes to asthma and barriers to achieving good control (details on the protocol: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2019-035885)

CHRONIC RESPIRATORY DISEASE OBSERVATORY FOR AFRICA (CHEST-AFRICA)

The study aims to determine the prevalence of asthma, describe the burden of symptoms, frequency and severity of exacerbations, emergency visits, and hospitalization for asthma in children aged 6-7 years in Uganda. In addition, the availability and affordability of diagnostic facilities and medicines for the management of asthma and COPD, as well as the cost of care for the same will be assessed. It is a multi-country study involving Uganda, Sudan, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Mozambique, Namibia, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Nigeria and Ghana. The data from this study will contribute to the Chronic Respiratory Disease repository in Africa, aimed at providing high-quality, relevant regional health intelligence that informs interventions, health care planning and public health policies in Uganda and Africa at large.

Collaborations

EDCTP

USAID

Science Technology and Innovation (STI), Office of the President

National Institute for Health Research (NIHR)

University of Washington

Pan African Thoracic Society

 

Opportunities

Training on Pediatric lung health

Research mentorship; Grant writing, Scientific writing, Research implementation

Clinical Apprenticeship on management of pediatric lung diseases

Mentorship on scientific presentation