South African Medical Research Council

The impact of COVID-19 on all-cause mortality and life expectancy: findings from a population-based cohort in uMkhanyakude district, northern KwaZulu-natal

Abstract Background Despite the comprehensive death reporting system in South Africa, significant gaps persist in our understanding of the pandemic’s impact in rural areas. Methods We computed monthly death counts stratified by demographic factors from a population-based demograp...

Economic evaluation protocol of the Ntshembo (Hope) Trial (RCT) in rural and urban South Africa: an intervention to optimise adolescence body mass index (BMI) pre-conception to address the triple burden of malnutrition

South African adolescent girls face a triple burden of malnutrition, undernutrition alongside overweight/obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies, heightened risk factors for Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs). The Ntshembo trial is a South African Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT)...

Protocol for a cluster randomized controlled trial among young people and their peers to reduce substance use and inequitable gender beliefs in Southern Africa

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Substance use and the internalization of traditional gender norms, or inequitable gender beliefs, are co-occurring risk behaviors for poorer health and well-being in young people in Southern Africa. Addressing the social and structural factors that reinforce...

Psychometric analysis of an intersectional stigma scale for women who have experienced intimate partner violence in Botswana

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is pervasive in Botswana. IPV stigma may affect the mental health of women survivors. We developed and validated a new scale for intersectional stigma for women who experienced IPV in Botswana. We used a known-groups design. With interviews held in...

Home visits following hospital discharge for families with preterm and low-birthweight infants

RATIONALE: Home visiting programmes are widely used to support families of preterm and low-birthweight (LBW) infants after hospital discharge, yet evidence on their effectiveness is limited and of variable quality, particularly in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). A compr...

Acute mental stress-induced adrenergic reactivity profiles predict distinct cardiometabolic risk trajectories over three years: the SABPA study

OBJECTIVES: We previously characterised acute mental stress-induced alpha (α)- and beta (β)-adrenergic-haemodynamic reactivity profiles cross-sectionally and related them to unique cardiometabolic risk outcomes. Whether these profiles predict future cardiometabolic risk remains u...

Brief internet intervention for grieving children and adolescents: co-design and trial protocol

ISRCTN.org identifier: ISRCTN21132251.

Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Prevalence of Mental Disorders and Suicidality Among Children and Adolescents Living with HIV in South Africa

Abstract Despite progress in HIV prevention and treatment, global data suggests that youth living with HIV remain at risk of mental disorders and suicidality. However, reliable epidemiological data from South Africa (SA) are limited. We conducted a systematic review and meta-anal...

Neuropsychiatry genetics in Africa

Across Africa, rising mental health needs coincide with rapid advances in genomics, digital health and continental policy reform. Yet research into the genetic, environmental and social determinants of neuropsychiatric illness remains sparse and underfunded. This review argues th...

The Effect of Maternal Cigarette Smoking and Alcohol Consumption During Pregnancy on Cardio-Metabolic Risk Factors in Infants, Children, and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: The studies on the direct and indirect effects of maternal cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption during pregnancy on cardiometabolic risk in offspring have been rather inconsistent. This review evaluated the associations between maternal cigarette smoking and alco...

Big data and psychiatry: advances, constraints and future directions.

Early work in psychiatry research, often involving single sites, small samples, and limited variables, has shifted to contemporary research involving multiple sites, large samples, and many variables. Such research raises important questions, including concerns about data quality...

The invisible hands that stay: Recognition of the relational labour of research assistants and community researchers

Literature has shown how the assistants, brokers and facilitating researchers whose labour sustains field research routinely go uncredited, but this scholarship has mostly examined research conducted by Global North institutions in the Global South. Less is known about how the sa...

Genome-wide analysis of social behaviour across social domains, reporters and developmental stages: a meta-regression approach

Abstract Social behaviour is a heritable trait linked to well-being and mental health, yet it varies across social context, including social domains, informants and development, which may shape its underlying genomic architecture. Here, we conducted a genome-wide meta-regression...

Implementing and upscaling pregnancy and postpartum physical activity: a workgroup report from the international society of behavioral nutrition and physical activity — from individual-level barriers to multilevel implementation and scale-up

Abstract Background Physical activity during pregnancy and the postpartum period is important for maternal health, yet participation remains suboptimal, and the implementation and scale-up of physical activity initiatives across diverse cultural and health-system contexts remain...

Untargeted metabolomics reveals chemical variation and antimicrobial biomarkers in Dodonaea viscosa var. angustifolia (L.f.) Benth

Dodonaea viscosa var. angustifolia (L.f.) Benth is a widely used medicinal plant with reported biological activities, however few studies have identified marker compounds for quality control of the plant and interspecies chemical variation. The aim of this study was to investigat...

Post-colonial human admixture and natural selection: disentangling signals in complex demographic contexts

Natural selection and admixture are defining population genetic features of modern human populations, yet their interaction has only recently emerged as a major focus in human evolutionary genomics. While the influence of natural selection on population structure and trait divers...

Implementation and evaluation of a technical support center for the Research to Enhance the Adaptation and Implementation of Health Systems Guidelines in LMICs [RAISE] initiative

Abstract Background Capacity-strengthening initiatives for health policy and systems research (HPSR) in low- and middle- income countries (LMICs) are often designed with little consideration of LMIC stakeholder needs. We formed a Technical Support Centre to support research teams...

Poverty alleviation for people with severe mental health conditions in South Africa: A qualitative study

People with severe mental health conditions (SMHC) and caregivers in South Africa often experience poverty. The PRIZE trial found that recovery groups were acceptable, feasible and potentially effective in reducing relapse. Addressing economic needs was identified as a means to i...

Co-development of a Mental Health Data Discovery Platform and Harmonisation of Mental Health Measures for Young People in South Africa (PAMHoYA) - A research protocol

Africa’s mental health information landscape is widely recognised as fragmented, limiting planning, budgeting, and service delivery. In South Africa, this fragmentation is reflected in the collection of depression and anxiety data across multiple institutions and studies, using d...

Investigating strategies to enhance access to HIV services among children in Malawi: A multifaceted research approach, study protocol

Background Despite major progress in HIV epidemic control, children in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly in Malawi, continue to experience poorer HIV outcomes than adults. While Malawi has made substantial progress toward the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets, only 55% of children living wi...