Wisdom Nakanga is a post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Edinburgh and the Project Manager for the Generation Malawi study at MEIRU. He trained in medicine at the University of Malawi and completed his PhD in Medical Studies at the University of Exeter, UK. His dissertation, titled “Accuracy and utility of fasting and stimulated glucose in sub-Saharan Africa”, represented a wide-ranging set of epidemiological and experimental studies looking at the role of the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in diagnosing diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance and gestational diabetes and was supervised by Professors Andrew T. Hattersley, Rob C. Andrews, and Moffat J. Nyirenda. He is interested in non-communicable diseases in sub-Saharan Africa, researching to understand better and curb their epidemiology and develop pragmatic and realistic solutions and interventions to the challenges we face regarding these diseases.

Selected Publications

• Nakanga, W.P., et al., Waist circumference and glycaemia are strong predictors of progression to diabetes in individuals with prediabetes in sub-Saharan Africa: 4-year prospective cohort study in Malawi. medRxiv, 2022: p. 2022.10.18.22281222.
• Sekitoleko I, Tino S, Mubiru M, Nansubuga F, Zaake D, Nakabuye B, Ayiko B, Kalema H, Nakubulwa S, Sekikubo M, Milln J, Nakanga WP, Nakimuli A, Webb EL, Nyirenda MJ. The influence of fasting and post-load glucose levels on maternal and neonatal outcomes in women with hyperglycaemia in pregnancy in Uganda: A prospective observational cohort study. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2022 Sep;191:110049. doi: 10.1016/j.diabres.2022.110049. Epub 2022 Aug 24. PMID: 36029888.
• Fabian, J., et al., Measurement of kidney function in Malawi, South Africa, and Uganda: a multicentre cohort study. The Lancet Global Health, 2022. 10(8): p. e1159-e1169.
• Nakanga WP, Balungi P, Niwaha AJ, Shields BM, Hughes P, et al. (2022) Alternative pre-analytic sample handling techniques for glucose measurement in the absence of fluoride tubes in low resource settings. PLOS ONE 17(2): e0264432. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0264432
• Manda, CM, Nakanga, WP, Mkandawire, J, Muula, AS, Nyirenda, MJ, Crampin, AC, et al. Handgrip strength as a simple measure for screening prediabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus risk among adults in Malawi: A cross-sectional study. Trop Med Int Health. 2021; 00: 1– 9. https://doi.org/10.1111/tmi.13694
• Kalyesubula, R., Fabian, J., Nakanga, W. et al. How to estimate glomerular filtration rate in sub-Saharan Africa: design and methods of the African Research into Kidney Diseases (ARK) study. BMC Nephrol 21, 20 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12882-020-1688-0
• Hamilton, S.A., Nakanga, W.P., Prynn, J.E. et al. Prevalence and risk factors for chronic kidney disease of unknown cause in Malawi: a cross-sectional analysis in a rural and urban population. BMC Nephrol 21, 387 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12882-020-02034-x
• Jean-Claude Katte, Nakanga, W.P., et al. Post-meal Urinary C-peptide creatinine ratio is a moderate measure of insulin secretion in diabetes patients in Cameroon: results from a cross-sectional study. PAMJ – Clinical Medicine. 2020;3:12. [doi: 11604/pamj-cm.2020.3.12.22419]
• Nakanga WP, Prynn JE, Banda L, et al. Prevalence of impaired renal function among rural and urban populations: findings of a cross-sectional study in Malawi. Wellcome Open Res. 2019;4:92. Published 2019 Jun 10. doi:10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15255.1
• Edwards-Jackson N, North K, Chiume M, Nakanga W, Schubert C, Hathcock A, et al. Outcomes of in-hospital paediatric cardiac arrest from a tertiary hospital in a low-income African country. Paediatrics and International Child Health. 2019:1-5.
• Nakanga WP, Crampin A, Nyirenda M. Should haemoglobin A1C be used for the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus in Malawi? Malawi Med J. 2016;28(1):28–30. doi:10.4314/mmj.v28i1.7
• Nakanga W, Patel P, Panjwani S, Kennedy N, Kawaza K. Supra-treatment threshold neonatal jaundice: Incidence in HIV-exposed compared to non-exposed neonates at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi. Malawi Med J. 2015;27(3):104–108. doi:10.4314/mmj.v27i3.7