In many lowand middle-income countries (LMICs), a poor link between antibiotic policies and practices exists. Numerous contextual factors may influence the degree of antibiotic access, appropriateness of antibiotic provision, and actual use in communities. Therefore, improving appropriateness of antibiotic use in different communities in LMICs probably requires interventions tailored to the set...

This paper presents a multidimensional approach to examining the urban evidence-policy interface in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and applies this approach to a case study from Pakistan. Key features of urban health policy and the significance of the evidence-policy interface in rapidly changing LMICs are articulated; characteristics of evidence that has been successfully incorporat...

Worldwide trauma is currently the sixth leading cause of death, according to 10% of mortalities (1,2). Injury impact and the death from trauma are more common in males than females. People aged between 15 and 45 years include about half of the trauma deaths (3). Citizens of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) account for 89% of all deaths from trauma worldwide. This is particularly because...

Raymond Hutubessy is a health economist affiliated to the Immunization, Vaccines and Biologicals (IVB) Department of the World Health Organization (WHO), and is the executive secretary of the WHO Immunization and Vaccines related Implementation Research (IVIR) Advisory Committee. His main research interests focus on economic and financial analyses of vaccine implementation in lowto middleincome...

OBJECTIVE Although there is an overall reduction in underfive mortality rate, the progress in reducing neonatal mortality rate has been very slow. Over the last 20 years, preterm births have steadily increased in low-income and medium-income countries (LMICs) particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Preterm birth is associated with increased mortality and morbidity, particularly in LM...

BACKGROUND Vaccine against pertussis has been in use for several decades. Despite the widespread use of pertussis vaccine, evidence shows resurgence of pertussis in high-income countries. Pertussis surveillance data is largely missing from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Without data on trends of pertussis, it is difficult to review and amend pertussis control policies in any country....

INTRODUCTION In high-income countries, secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure is higher among disadvantaged groups. We examine socioeconomic inequalities in SHS exposure at home and at workplace in 15 low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). METHODS Secondary analyses of cross-sectional data from 15 LMICs participating in Global Adult Tobacco Survey (participants ≥ 15 years; 2008-2011) were used. C...

Epilepsy is one of the most common and widespread neurological disorders. Recent estimates suggest that it accounts for 1% of the global burden of disease [1] and affects over 65 million people [2]. In addition, because the relatives and friends of people with epilepsy (PWE) also bear the burden of this condition, more than 500 million people are indirectly affected by epilepsy [3]. Thus, epile...

BACKGROUND Upcoming vaccination efforts against typhoid fever require an assessment of the baseline burden of disease in countries at risk. There are no typhoid incidence data from most low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), so model-based estimates offer insights for decision-makers in the absence of readily available data. METHODS We developed a mixed-effects model fit to data from 32 po...