Editorial: Are we ready for the rising silent epidemic of metabolic syndrome and chronic non-communicable disease in Ethiopia?

No Abstrac

Awareness about feeding optins for infants born to HIV positive mothers and mother to child transmission of HIV in Gurage zone, south Ethiopia

No Abstract. The Ethiopian Journal of Health Development Vol. 21 (1) 2007: pp. 40-4

Glycogenic control and associated factors among diabetic patients visiting Adama specialized Hospital, Oromiya, Ethiopia: A facility based cross sectional study

Introduction: Although glycaemic control is essential in diabetes management, evidences are lacking in resource limited settings. Therefore, this study was intended to assess the level of glycaemic control and associated factors among diabetic patients.Methods: The data were collected from 332 diabetic patients in Adama Specialized Hospital, Ethiopia from February to March 2012. A patient was included in the study if he/she was 15 years and above. The data were collected using structured questionnaires; a medical card review and anthropometric measurement was done by trained nurses. SPSS version 16.0 was used to analyze the data.Results: The study revealed that 180 (55.9%) of the respondents were adequately controlled their glycaemic level. The remaining were poorly controlled their glycaemic level. Poor glycaemic control was found among rural residents, type I diabetic patients, older age groups (>46 years), those who consumed alcohol and less restricted simple sugar intake, don’t adhere to their meal time and had been prescribed oral hypoglycaemic drug alone (p<0.05). On the other hand, being physically active, obtaining advice from health workers and self monitoring blood glucose level significantly helped patients to control their gylcaemic level (p<0.05).Conclusions: Significant proportions of diabetic patients were not able to control their glycaemic level and poor diabetic control was mainly found in patients with poor self care practices. Thus, health care providers should deliver individualized patient education and support those with elevated glycaemic level to help them better controls their conditions.Keywords: Diabetic, Glycaemic control, EthiopiaAfr J Health Sci. 2013; 26:302-31

Knowledge, Attitude and Practice about Malaria Transmission and Its Preventive Measures among Households in Urban Areas of Assosa Zone, Western Ethiopia

Background: Knowledge about the modes of transmission and preventive measures of malaria are important preceding factors for the acceptance and use of proven control tools by the community. Objective: To assess knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) about modes of malaria transmission and preventive methods in the study areas. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in three urban areas of Assosa zone, Western Ethiopia from January to February, 2006. Data analysis was carried out using SPSS for windows version 12.0.1. Adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals were employed to test the strength of association. Results: About 48% of the study participants were aware that malaria can be transmitted by mosquito bites. Thirty percent (30%), of respondents were aware that mosquitoes carry disease causing microorganism, 95% were aware that mosquitoes bite during night, and 61% were aware that mosquitoes rest at dark places inside the house. Sleeping under a mosquito net and eliminating mosquito-breeding sites were identified by 58% and 52% of respondents, respectively, as major malaria preventive measures. Respondents' education and wealth status were associated with comprehensive knowledge on malaria preventive measures (OR= 2.42, 95% CI: 1.09, 5.4 and OR= 3.89, 95% CI: 1.99, 7.6, respectively). Conclusion: Knowledge of the role of mosquitoes in malaria transmission and comprehensive knowledge about malaria prevention strategies among the study population were observed to be lower than 50%. Comprehensive behavioral change and communication is required to improve the knowledge of the mode of malaria transmission and its preventive and control measures.The Ethiopian Journal of Health Development Vol. 21 (2) 2007: pp. 157-16

Calcium deficiency and causation of rickets in Ethiopian children

Objective: To assess the role of calcium in the development of clinical rickets among Ethiopian children coming to Jimma Specialised Hospital outpatient, department. Design: Case control study. Settings: Jimma Specialised Teaching Hospital and surrounding urban and rural community in the catchment area. Subjects: One hundred and thirty five under five year old children (30 cases of rickets and 104 non-rachitic cases) who came for paediatric service in Jimma hospital. Results: The mean (±SD) level of calcium intake for cases and controls was 664.5 (± 102.7) mg and 645.8(± 144.4) mg, respectively. There was no statistically significance difference between the two groups in the mean level of calcium intake (t=0.659, P>0.05). Generally, in both cases and controls the majority of the study participants were taking calcium below the recommended daily calcium requirement of 800 mg for age group according to Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council. When adjusted for different co-variates including age, sex, breast feeding history, history of diarrhoea lasting longer than 14 days and 24 hours calcium intake children and religion, occupation, educational status and residence the mothers/care givers using logistic regression model, frequency of exposure to sunlight ( OR=1.55, 95%CI: 1.2, 2.0), being from rural areas(OR= 5.0, 95% CI: 1.1, 23.3) and age 12-23 months (OR= 4.5, 95%CI: 1.2, 16.5) were significantly associated with rickets(

The status of hygiene and sanitation practice among rural model families of the Health Extension Program (HEP) in Wolayta and Kembata Tembaro Zones of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region of Ethiopia

Background: Since the Health Extension Program (HEP) started the training and graduation of model families, little is known about the status and maintenance of hygiene and sanitation practice to inform future directions and decisions.Objective: to assess the status and maintenance of hygiene and sanitation practices among rural model families of the Health Extension Program.Method: A cross-sectional comparative study was conducted from Dec.-June 2010/11 in Wolayta and Kembata Tembaro Zones of Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Regional State of Ethiopia. Two types of comparisons were involved in the study; comparison of hygiene and sanitation practices of a randomly selected 690 model families and 686 non-model families, and comparison of similar practices among model families at the time of graduation, assessed in retrospective interview, versus at the time of survey. Quantitative data were collected from the two zones from Dec- Jan. 2010/11. Qualitative data were also collected in June 2011 to complement the findings of the quantitative data from a purposively selected group of women and men among model families in the study areas. Descriptive and analytics statistics were used to analyse the quantitative data using STATA version 10 while the qualitative data were analysed using Open Code version 3.6.2.0Results: The study showed that among model families, 82% of them had pit latrine, 23.1 % had solid and liquid waste disposal pits, 19.0% had shelves for storing utensils and 34.1 % had separate dwelling for people and cattle as compared to 55.6 %, 9.1%, 6% and 18.5 % of similar practices among non-model families respectively (p<0.001). Latrine availability, storage of water in a narrow necked covered container, possession of shelves for storage of utensils and fuel saving stoves declined from 96.6% to 82.3%, 92.7% to 78.6%, 33.6% to 19.1% and from 6.1% to 3%, respectively among model families after graduation (p<0.01). During FGDs and in-depth interviews, socio-economic and cultural reasons were mentioned as factors that hindered the maintenance of the practices.Conclusion: Generally, model families performed better in most of the hygiene and sanitation practices than nonmodel families. The study also indicated a decline in the maintenance of certain practices among some model families

Seismicity of the central Afar rift and implications for Tendaho dam hazards

Temporary broadband seismic networks deployed from 2007 to 2011 around the Afar triple junction of the East African Rift System provide insights into seismicity patterns of the actively deforming crust around the 1.86 km3 impounded lake system behind the Tendaho dam. The observed seismicity correlates well with the active magmatic centres around central Afar. The area around the dam site is characterized by a network of intersecting NNE- and NW-trending faults. Seismicity clusters observed in the specified time interval indicate that both fault sets are active and are potential sources of seismogenic hazards. The dam neighbourhood is naturally active and it is a challenge to associate the observed seismic activity to either a change in magmato-tectonic conditions or attribute it to the influence of reservoir load. It is evident that the dam region experi- ences high levels of seismic and volcano-tectonic unrest, regardless of the origin of the activity. The spatial overlap of narrow zones of crustal seismicity and upper mantle low velocity zones observed in S-wave tomography models suggests that melt production zones guide the distribution of strain during continental rupture. Given its volcanically and seismically active setting, the Tendaho dam site and the surrounding region require continuous monitoring for the safety of downstream popu- lations and development infrastructures in the Afar National Regional State of Ethiopia

A multidisciplinary study of the final episode of the Manda Hararo dyke sequence, Ethiopia, and implications for trends in volcanism during the rifting cycle

The sequence of dyke intrusions between 2005 and 2010 in the Manda Hararo rift segment, Ethiopia, provided an opportunity to test conceptual models of continental rifting. Based on trends up to dyke 13 in the sequence, it was anticipated that, should magma supply continue, dykes would shorten in length and eruptions would increase in size and decrease in distance from the segment centre as extensional stress was progressively released. In this paper we revisit these predictions by presenting a comprehensive overview of the May 2010 dyke and fissure eruption, the 14th and last in the sequence, from InSAR, seismicity, satellite thermal data, ultra violet SO2 retrievals, and multiple LiDAR surveys. We find the dyke is longer than other eruptive dykes in the sequence, propagating in two directions from the segment centre, but otherwise fairly typical in terms of opening, propagation speed and geodetic and seismic moment. However, though the eruption is located closer to the segment centre, it is much smaller than previous events. We interpret this as indicating that either the Manda Hararo rifting event was magma limited, or that extensional stress varies north and south of the segment centre