Link to join online: bit.ly/4yw1whL

Join us this Wednesday in person for the (con)Founders Journal Club. Dr Claire Davies will be presenting exciting work on inflammation phenotypes in children with perinatally acquired HIV. 📅 Wednesday 5 August 🕛 12-1pm 📍 HEU Boardroom

💻 We offer a series of R training courses annually that cover a range of skills. #UCTPublicHealth @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social @uctcider.bsky.social 🖱️ Please sign up using the registration links or check out the website for more information: health.uct.ac.za/school-publi...

Q: What advice do you have for social epidemiology students and early career social epidemiologists? A: All epidemiology is social epidemiology.

Q: What is the most pressing issue for social epi in your region? A: Social & economic inequalities are obvious & ubiquitous–-so much so that we can become accustomed & let them drift to the back of our minds. The most pressing issue is making sure health inequality is constantly part of our work.

Q: Why did you join I-SES? A: To help bring more attention to the role of social epidemiology in promoting population health in sub-Saharan Africa–the social determinants of health are so deeply ingrained in many settings here that epidemiologic research overlooks their pivotal & modifiable roles.

Landon Myer, MD, PhD, is Professor & Head of the Division of Epidemiology & Biostatistics in the School of Public Health at the University of Cape Town. @epibiostats-uct.bsky.social His research focuses on critical public health concerns facing women, children & their families in southern Africa.

Over the next couple of months, we're excited to each week spotlight through a brief Q&A a member of our executive council, including our regional councilors, president, & secretary-general. In our first spotlight, meet our Regional Councilor for Africa, Dr. Landon Myer bsky.app/profile/land...!

🤓 Wishing a warm welcome to all our returning students for Semester 2! We hope you had a restful break and are feeling energised for the weeks ahead 🌟

🌡️ Very exciting to see The Guardian featuring our Division's HABVIA project and the power of “cool roofs” to improve sleep, health, and wellbeing 🏠 Read the full article: www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

Better sleep, improved health, happier people: how ‘cool roofs’ could help millions avoid deadly heat

A project to measure how reflective paint reduces indoor temperatures is delivering tangible benefits across Africa

theguardian.com

📄 New article highlights the acceptability of long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI ART) among adults starting or restarting treatment with 74% of participants being very interested in LAI ART 💉 👉🏾 Read the full article: www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/...

Interest in long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (ART) among adults living with HIV newly starting or restarting ART in Cape Town, South Africa

Long-acting injectable antiretroviral therapy (LAI ART) has proven effective in maintaining viral suppression among people living with HIV but recommendations to switch to LAI ART are limited to in...

tandfonline.com

🧠 New insights from DolPHIN-2 PLUS: In 3–4-year-olds, no significant brain structure differences between HIV-exposed uninfected and unexposed children, or by prenatal ART (DTG vs EFV). Results support DTG use in late pregnancy but ongoing monitoring is needed. academic.oup.com/jpids/articl...

Brain Structure of South African Children Born to Mothers on Dolutegravir Versus Efavirenz-Based Antiretroviral Therapy

AbstractBackground. The impact of in utero exposure to specific antiretroviral therapy (ART), particularly integrase strand transfer inhibitors, on early b

academic.oup.com

✨ Present your research ✨ Are you a registered student in the Division of Epi & Biostats? Submit a poster abstract for Research Day and share your findings with other researchers. Save the dates for upcoming seminars to help with abstract writing and poster creation. @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social

Join us this Wednesday in person for the (con)Founders Journal Club. 🗓️ Wednesday 3 June 🕛 12-1pm 📍 Seminar Room 2

🧪 Inspiring the next generation of scientists 📊 @epibiostats-uct.bsky.social judged the Grade 9 Eskom Expo at Springfield Convent Senior School. We reviewed projects & engaged with students. It was inspiring to see young minds present their first research. Future scientists in the making! 🌟

🚨Don’t miss the opportunity to join a webinar featuring STI experts who are advancing advocacy for affordable, accessible STI diagnostics. 🗓️May 12 | 8:00am ET 🔗Register: stiwatch.org/event/launch...

Please join the School of Public Health for the noon meeting seminar presented by Dr Thokozile Malaba from the Division of Epi & Biostats. Meeting presented in person and online. Online link: bit.ly/4vX34jF

📄New systematic review from our Division highlights important gaps in maternal and newborn health. Point-of-care diagnostic tests have the potential to transform care in low-resource settings, yet implementation remains a challenge. 👉🏾 Read the full article: link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Factors influencing implementation of point-of-care tests for maternal and newborn screening and diagnosis in low-resource settings: a systematic review - BMC Global and Public Health

Background Despite the potential of point-of-care (POC) tests to improve maternal and newborn health, implementation in low- and middle-income countries remains inconsistent. POC testing enables rapid...

link.springer.com

This week we joined UCT StatsGeeks Society for a talk introducing undergrads to Biostats. We shared insights into what we do and what makes our work rewarding. We love contributing to growing the next gen of biostatisticians and data-driven scientists at UCT!

🌍 World TB Day: Community Wellness Outreach To mark World TB Day, the Division of Epi & Biostats delivered food parcels to TB TUTT beneficiaries at Gugulethu TB Clinic, alongside TB education, screening, and community outreach with the UCT Lung Institute @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social

🔍New insights on hyperglycaemia in pregnancy (HIP) in Africa 📈The prevalence of adverse outcomes related to HIP in for mothers and babies is high 📌We need earlier screening, improved access to care, and context‑appropriate clinical guidelines 👉🏾Read the article: journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...

Outcomes of hyperglycaemia in pregnancy in Africa: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective The global prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus has significantly risen in recent decades, leading to a corresponding increase in the incidence of diabetes-complicated pregnancies. Hyperglycaemia in pregnancy (HIP), the most common metabolic complication encountered during pregnancy, is associated with a range of adverse maternal and foetal outcomes. This systematic review comprehensively examined the maternal, foetal, neonatal, childhood, and long-term maternal outcomes of HIP in Africa. Methods A systematic review of all studies investigating HIP outcomes in Africa from January 1998 to February 2025 was undertaken. We searched PubMed-MEDLINE, Cochrane Library, Scopus, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Embase and Web of Science databases for eligible studies. Studies were included if they were observational studies describing outcomes of HIP in Africa. For each outcome, study results were synthesised using an inverse variance heterogeneity meta-analysis with the Freeman-Tukey transformation. Heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 statistic, and publication bias was assessed using Doi plots. Results Thirty studies were included in the review, comprising 9742 participants. These studies were conducted across the following African countries: South Africa (n = 11), Ethiopia (n = 4), Nigeria (n = 3), Sudan (n = 3), Uganda (n = 2), and one each from Ghana, Algeria, Morocco, Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe, Togo, and Egypt. The most common adverse pregnancy outcomes for gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) were caesarean section (CS) (overall prevalence 46.0%, 95% CI 35.7–56.4, I2 = 95.6%), preterm delivery (overall prevalence 25.2% (95% CI 12.7–40.2, I2 = 96.7%) and neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission (overall prevalence 25.9% (95% CI 13.7–40.2, I2 = 85.7%). The most common adverse pregnancy outcomes for women with preexisting type 1 diabetes (T1DM) were CS (overall prevalence 57.5%, 95% CI 44.9–69.7, I2 = 81.2%), preterm delivery (overall prevalence 50.7%, 95% CI 16.3–84.8, I2 = 92.6%), and neonatal hypoglycaemia (overall prevalence 20.2%, 95% CI 0.0–61.4, I2 = 94.6%). CS (overall prevalence 60.6%, 95% CI 45.5–74.8, I2 = 93.6%) and preterm delivery (overall prevalence 35.2%, 95% CI 29.5–41.1, I2 = 49.3%) were the most prevalent adverse pregnancy outcomes for women with preexisting type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Postpartum T2DM was the most common long-term adverse outcome of women who had GDM or hyperglycaemia first detected in pregnancy (HFDP). There was significant heterogeneity across most outcomes. Conclusions The prevalence of adverse outcomes of HIP in Africa is high, in particular CS, preterm delivery and neonatal hypoglycaemia, with higher frequencies in pregestational T1DM and T2DM compared to GDM. Additionally, T2DM prevalence in women post-GDM is about 50%. The outcome data predominantly come from a few studies, indicating the necessity for more high-quality research to improve HIP-related maternal and child health in Africa. The high heterogeneity across most outcomes suggests that their prevalence varies across populations and underscores the need for more high-quality data. PROSPERO Registration Number: CRD42020184573.

journals.plos.org

📄 New findings in The Lancet Regional Health Africa show BMI ≥30kg/m² alone misses many SA women with excess body fat. 🌍 A lower threshold (~26kg/m²) improves detection which is crucial as NCDs rise across Africa. 👉🏿 Read the full article: www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

Application and implications of new global definitions of obesity: a cross-sectional study of South African women

Obesity confirmation increased prevalence estimates, primarily by extending assessment to below BMI 30 kg/m2. Anthropometric confirmation may overestimate obesity prevalence compared with BF% and impr...

thelancet.com

💯 Quiz afternoon, Public Health style! 🧪 We had a great time getting to know our MPH/MSc Epi & Biostats students at our Public Health-themed quiz social event. #quiz #PublicHealth #MPH #MSC @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social

Last week we partnered with Central Library for Libraries Week to introduce high school learners to public health. Students explored the role of an epidemiologist and took part in a hands‑on outbreak investigation game. Thanks to Central Library and everyone who joined!

Don’t miss our two in-person upcoming R workshops next week! Multiple imputation with R: 🔗 docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... 📅 Weds, March 25 🕛 11:00 - 14:00 🧑🏾‍💻 Advanced Group summaries and comparisons with R: 🔗 docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... 📅 Fri, March 27 🕛 11:00 - 14:00 🧑🏾‍💻 Beginner

📚 We’re thrilled to celebrate South African Library Week with an interactive presentation for high school learners at Central Library, Cape Town. Join us, all are welcome! 🗓️ 19 March 2026 🕒 3PM 📍 Central Library, Cape Town @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social #LibraryWeek

📈Working with data and need to visualise your results effectively? Join our Basic data visualization with R – Part 1 workshop to learn plotting tools to support your analyses. 🔗Link: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F... 🗓️Friday, March 20 🕙10:00 - 13:00 📍In-person @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social

🌡️ News article warns about dangers of extreme heat in South Africa especially among vulnerable populations. Climate change policy action is needed in South Africa ASAP! health-e.org.za/2026/03/11/e... #climatechange #policy #publichealth @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social @climatencds.bsky.social

Extreme Heat Is Taking A Toll On Children’s Health In South Africa

Children have a limited capacity to tolerate extreme heat compared with adults.

health-e.org.za

Interested in performing statistical inference? 📊 Upcoming R workshop👇🏼 🔗 Link: forms.gle/dUozjGaT3jQu... 📅 Fri, March 13 🕛 10:00-13:00 📍 In-person #UCTPublicHealth #RStats #Biostatistics #DataScience @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social @uctcider.bsky.social

Interested in learning how to perform longitudinal data analysis using R? 📊 Upcoming R workshop👇🏼 🔗 Link: forms.gle/P59uU2HqkKF8... 📅 Wed, March 11 🕛 10:00 -13:00 📍 In-person #UCTPublicHealth #RStats #Biostatistics #DataScience @uct-fhs-research.bsky.social @uctcider.bsky.social