Browsing by Author "Okalebo, Charles"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    A phase I/II randomized controlled clinical trial to assess the feasibility, safety, and preliminary effectiveness of paracetamol in resolving acute kidney injury in children with severe malaria.
    (Springer Nature, 2026) Paasi, George; Namayanja, Cate; Ongodia, Paul; Okalebo, Charles; Okiror, William; Abongo, Grace; Masifa, George; Amorut, Denis; Muhindo, Rita; Olupot-Olupot, Peter
    Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is prevalent among children with severe malaria, contributing to considerable morbidity and mortality. Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathophysiology of malaria-induced AKI, and paracetamol, with its antioxidant properties, has been proposed as a solution. This phase I/II randomized trial evaluated paracetamol as a potential renoprotective adjunct in children with severe malaria and acute kidney injury. Methods: We conducted a phase I/II open label parallel randomised controlled trial of 40 hospitalised children aged >6month to <12 years with malaria-induced AKI in eastern Uganda. Participants were randomized by a sealed envelope 1:1 to receive either oral paracetamol 20mg/kg 6-hourly for 48 hours or tepid sponging every 30 minutes until fever subsided. Only the assessors of the primary outcome were masked to the intervention. The primary outcome was renal recovery at 48 hours assessed using restricted mean survival time (RMST) in intention to treat population of children according to their randomisation groups. Results: Between 19 September 2021 and 25 August 2023, 250 children with haemoglobinuric severe malaria were screened and the 40 enrolled were randomly assigned paracetamol (n=20) or tepid sponging (n=20). The mean age was 6.54 (2.61) years. The mean time to renal recovery in the paracetamol group was 0.491 hours (95% CI: -9.265 to 10.248; p=0.921) longer than the control group within 48 hours, but this difference was not statistically significant even after adjusting for age and weight: 1.04 hours (95% CI: -8.61-10.70; p=0.832). The safety assessment indicated no significant differences in adverse events and hepatoxicity in either group. Conclusions: Although Paracetamol was safe, it did not significantly improve renal recovery in children with malaria-induced AKI. Further larger studies are needed to explore this role of paracetamol. The trial registration: ISRCTN84974248. Keywords: Acute kidney injury, Paracetamol, Children, Severe malaria, Blackwater fever, Restricted mean survival time, Randomised controlled trial
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Farmers protest sugar bill.
    (New Vision, 2017-09-02) Okalebo, Charles
    Tension gripped Uganda's sugarcane growers' fraternity after the sugar Bill 2016 was presented to the parliamentary committee on trade as the first stage in the process of its being tabled in parliament. The Bill aims at zoning sugarcane, setting prices and relocating or closing new sugar mills.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Jinja family wants justice for daughter.
    (Sunday Vision, 2017-08-13) Okalebo, Charles; Etukuri, Charles
    Eight months after death of 23-year-old Agnes Nayiga, a former student of Kampala University, Jinja branch in Jinja town, relatives and friends are still seeking justice. The family says the polic hve failed to establish the motive of the murder.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    NAADS to blacklist suppliers of fake agricultural inputs.
    (New Vision, 2017-08-23) Kakamwa, Charles; Okalebo, Charles
    The National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) secretariat will soon blacklist companies caught supplying substandard agricultural inputs to farmers. The NAADS board chairperson, Robert Kibirango, also revealed that apart from being blacklisted, those engaged in the practice would be prosecuted for derailing a government development programme, geared towards improving the household income of the recipients.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    Rice farmers warned on fake seeds
    (New Vision, 2017-09-18) Okalebo, Charles
    Rice farmers and traders have asked the Government to enact tough laws against seed companies dealing in fake agricultural inputs.
  • No Thumbnail Available
    Item
    USAID donates bicycles to village health teams
    (New Vision, 2017-11-07) Okalebo, Charles
    The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has donated 967 bicycles to Village Health Teams (VHTs) in five districts in the east.