Obstetrics and Gynaecology Head Awarded Prestigious Prize for Clinical Research Publication

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Head of the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department in the College of Health Sciences at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Professor Motshedisi Sebitloane has recently been honored by the International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (IJGO) and awarded the John J. Sciarra IJGO Prize Paper Award for 2017. IJGO is the official journal of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), and established the JJ Sciarra award in 1998 for the purpose of encouraging investigators from low- and middle-income countries to submit their best clinical research articles for publication in the IJGO.

Her publication, co-authored with Professor Jack Moodley and Professor Benn Sartorius, was titled Associations between HIV, Highly Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy, and Hypertensive Disorders of Pregnancy among Maternal Deaths in South Africa 2011–2013. The publication looked at maternal deaths from hypertensive disorders, and determined associations by HIV infection, with or without the use of HAART.

The paper received an honorable mention from the editors of the IJGO and the Executive Board of FIGO, and was chosen amongst the 76 clinical research articles from low- and middle-income countries published during 2017 that were shortlisted and considered for this prize.

Words by: Lihle Sosibo