JMIR Research Protocols

Dementia is a global health priority with significant challenges due to its complex nature and increasing prevalence. Health systems worldwide struggle to address chronic conditions like dementia, often providing fragmented care. However, information about how health systems respond to the needs of people with dementia and their carers, and the quality of care provided, is scarce in low- and middle-income countries.

While access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an important tool for reducing HIV incidence in the United States, disparities in uptake by race, sex, socioeconomic status, and geography persist. In 2018, the US South accounted for more than half of all new HIV diagnoses but only one-third of PrEP users. PrEP use in North Carolina (NC) similarly lags, with uptake being the lowest among young, sexual and gender minority populations, who account for nearly two-thirds of the state’s incident infections. The PrEP-to-need ratio, a metric of PrEP equity that measures PrEP uptake relative to new HIV diagnoses, highlights disparities in PrEP uptake among specific demographic groups such as women and Black, Hispanic, and Southern people, indicating that these groups are underserved relative to their epidemic need. Despite behavioral risk overlap of incident sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV, in NC, PrEP is only offered at a few primarily urban health department–affiliated STI clinics. The lack of robust health care infrastructure in these areas presents challenges for HIV prevention services.

Pudilan Xiaoyan oral liquid (PDL) is a proprietary Chinese medicine preparation widely used for upper respiratory tract infection, known for its significant therapeutic effects. However, the safety profiles reported in several observational studies vary, and these studies primarily focus on efficacy rather than specifically addressing safety concerns, thus representing inadequate safety monitoring.

Despite the availability of highly effective HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), uptake and adherence to PrEP among young men who have sex with men (YMSM) remains low, limiting its impact on the prevention of HIV infection. Strategies that incorporate an array of prevention options and provide YMSM and their providers with tailored education and support tools, including tools to support shared decision-making, are needed.

Patient safety is essential in pharmacotherapy, especially in surgical contexts, due to the elevated risk of drug-related complications. Vascular surgery patients are particularly susceptible because of their complex medication needs and underlying health conditions. Improved safety monitoring and targeted pharmaceutical care in collaboration with physicians are crucial to minimize these risks and enhance patient outcomes.

Rhino-orbital-cerebral mucormycosis (ROCM) is the most common (45%-74%) mucormycosis in India. With contemporary medical care, ROCM has a mortality rate of 40%-50% and 70% of survivors are left with residual defects. Recently, several cases of mucormycosis in people with COVID-19 have been increasingly reported worldwide, from India, due to immune dysregulation caused by SARS-CoV-2. To reduce the high mortality rate and residual defect in most survivors under the guidelines of the Ministry of AYUSH, the Government of India recommended homoeopathy as an add-on therapy to maximize the effectiveness of standard treatment in conventional therapy.

Mobile health (mHealth) interventions that leverage social support (SS) can improve partner involvement and pregnancy experiences and promote antenatal care (ANC) attendance and skilled births. In our previous studies, we used behavioral frameworks to develop a user-centered mHealth-based, audio SMS text messaging app to support pregnant individuals to use maternity care services in rural Uganda (Support-Moms app). In our pilot study, we observed high intervention uptake, acceptability, and feasibility, as well as increased ANC attendance and skilled births.

The obesity rate among women in Côte d'Ivoire is rising, particularly in urban areas. Merchantry is the leading occupation for women in the country, and merchant women face a high risk of obesity owing to their sedentary lifestyle. A previous survey indicated that the obesity rate among merchant women was 30%, double the national average. Furthermore, 82.2% of merchant women with obesity were unaware of their condition, and 40.1% expressed no interest in losing weight. While most weight loss programs target individuals ready to lose weight, community interventions should also address those with minimal readiness. Additionally, low-cost weight-loss interventions that do not require health professionals are needed in countries with limited medical resources. Smartphones could offer a cost-effective solution as they enable self-monitoring and remote communication.

Even in the absence of weight loss, any level of physical activity (PA) can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease among individuals with obesity. However, these individuals face multifaceted barriers that reduce their motivation and engagement in PA. They prefer programs that are convenient, fun to engage in, and feature people who they can relate to. Yet, there is a paucity of PA interventions that are designed to incorporate these preferences. We designed the web-based PA for The Heart (PATH) intervention to address this gap.

With the expected increase in the number of people needing care and the increasing shortage of skilled care workers, new care concepts are required. Therefore, digital assistive technologies (DATs), especially robotics, can improve the situation of people with different needs and create opportunities for participation. For a human-technology interaction to have a high level of usability, DAT’s meaningfulness and effectiveness must be accessible to end users. Significant barriers to the use of DATs in health care are the lack of controllability and adaptivity, as well as control functions that are too complex.

The consequences of preterm birth extend beyond the clinical conditions of the newborn, profoundly impacting the functioning and well-being of families. Parents of preterm infants often describe the experience of preterm birth and subsequent admission to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) as a disruptive event in their lives, triggering feelings of guilt, helplessness, and fear. Although various research examines changes in parents’ well-being and perception of self-efficacy during the stay in the NICU, there is a lack of research analyzing what happens in the transition phase at home after the baby’s discharge. Recently, scholars have advocated for the use of web-based support programs to monitor and prevent preterm family maladjustment and assist parents.

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an effective approach for preventing HIV infection, but it is underutilized by populations who may benefit the most, including people living in the Southern United States and those involved in the criminal legal (CL) system. Improving the access and use of PrEP for these groups could decrease HIV-related health disparities. Beyond individual outcomes, HIV prevention for CL-involved people can have a significant public health impact on HIV incidence due to a high turnover between jails and the community.