commerciallyThe magnitude and associated factors of ocular lesions/complications among leprosy patients treated at Boru Meda General Hospital, Ethiopia: Cross-sectional study design, 2021

BACKGROUND: Leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is one of the world’s oldest diseases, and it is one of the major blinding diseases. Visual impairment in leprosy patients needs special consideration by dermatologists and ophthalmologists, not only preventable but also has a severe burden that affects productivity if not managed early. Nevertheless, little was understood about ocular complications and associated factors among leprosy patients in low income countries like Ethiopia, including the study locality. MATERIAL AND METHODS: An institution based cross-sectional study was conducted among a total of 423 leprosy patients at the dermatology clinic at Boru Meda Hospital, Dessie, Ethiopia. The collected data were entered into EpiData v3.1 and exported to the statistical package for SPSS v.20 for statistical analysis. The odds ratio (OR) and a 95% confidence interval (CI) were estimated to measure the strength of the association between dependent and independent variables. p ≤ 0.05 was used to determine the level of statistical significance. RESULT: 419 leprosy patients participated in this study, accounting for a response rate of 99%. The proportion of ocular complications was found to be 69.9% (95% CI: 65.09–73.9). Age 40 years and above [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 5.2, 95% CI: 3.14–8.83], presence of leprosy reaction (AOR = 1.92, 95% CI: 1.12–3.24), and leprosy disability grading [grade 1 disability (AOR = 2.9, 95% CI: 1.35–6.33), grade 2 disability (AOR = 3.0,95% CI: 1.36–7.08) ]were associated with the presence of ocular complication among leprosy patients. CONCLUSION: Our finding showed that the ocular complication/lesion magnitude was high. Age 40 and above, the presence of leprea reaction and disability were significant factors associated with developing ocular complications among leprosy patients. Our results emphasize the need for solid collaboration efforts and commitment to handling ophthalmologic complications among leprosy patients aged 40 and above with leprosy reactions and disabilities

Clinical Characteristics and In-Hospital Outcome of Acute Heart Failure Patients Admitted to the Medical Ward of University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia

The authors acknowledge the School of Pharmacy, University of Gondar, all staff members of the medical ward for their cooperation during conducting this study, and the study participants for their willingness to be involved in the research project.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Does phone messaging improves tuberculosis treatment success? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Compliance to anti-TB treatment is crucial in achieving cure and avoiding the emergence of drug resistance. Electronic health (eHealth) interventions are included in the strategy to end the global Tuberculosis (TB) epidemic by 2035. Evidences showed that mobile messaging systems could improve patient adherence to clinic appointment for diagnosis and treatment. This review aimed to assess the effect of mobile-phone messaging on anti-TB treatment success. Methods: All randomized controlled trial (RCT) and quasi-experimental studies done prior to August 26, 2019 were included in the review. Studies were retrieved from PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane and ScienceDirect databases including, grey and non-indexed literatures from Google and Google scholar. Quality of studies were independently assessed using Cochrane Risk of Bias Assessment Tool. A qualitative synthesis and quantitative pooled estimation were used to measure the effect of phone messaging on TB treatment success rate. PRISMA flow diagrams were used to summarize article selection process. Results: A total of 1237 articles were identified, with 14 meeting the eligibility criteria for qualitative synthesis. Eight studies with a total of 5680 TB patients (2733 in intervention and 2947 in control groups) were included in meta-analysis. The pooled effect of mobile-phone messaging revealed a small increase in treatment success compared to standard of care (RR 1.04, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.06), with low heterogeneity (I2 = 7%, p < 0.0002). In the review, performance, detection and attrition biases were reported as major risk of biases. Conclusions: Mobile-phone messaging showed a modest effect in improving anti-TB treatment success; however, the quality of evidence was low. Further controlled studies are needed to increase the evidence-base on the role of mHealth interventions to improve TB care. Protocol registration number: CRD420170744339. http://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/display_record.php?ID=CRD42017074439Other UBCNon UBCReviewedFacult

Community-Led Total Sanitation and the rate of latrine ownership

Abstract Objective Lack of sanitation affecting billions of people worldwide is a serious public health problem of Ethiopia. So, we aimed at examining the influence of community interventions on households’ latrine ownership status in Northwest Ethiopia. Results The proportion of households owning latrines were 47% (95% CI 42.5, 52.0). Community Lead Total Sanitation practice in the kebele [AOR = 1.78, 95% CI (1.57, 2.03)], health facilities available in the village [AOR = 2.37, 95% CI (2.14, 2.64)], and increased educational attainment of the head of the household were statistically significantly associated with households’ latrine ownership. So, we recommend expansion of community interventions for those who are not yet reached

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts $486,170,000 general obligation bonds, consolidated loan of 2006, series D

BACKGROUND:In Ethiopia, Multi-drug resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is one of the major public health problems that need great attention. Time to sputum culture conversion is often used as an early predictive value for the final treatment outcome. Although guidelines for MDR-TB are frequently designed, medication freely provided, and centers for treatment duly expanded, studies on time to sputum culture conversion have been very limited in Ethiopia. This study was aimed at determining the time to sputum culture conversion and the determinants among MDR-TB patients at public Hospitals of the Amhara Regional State. METHODS:A retrospective follow up study was conducted between September 2010 and December 2016. Three hundred ninety two MDR-TB patients were included in the study. Parametric frailty models were fitted and Cox Snell residual was used for goodness of fit, which the Akaike's information criteria was used for model selection. Adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was reported to show the strength of association. RESULT:Out of the 392 participants, sputum culture changed for 340(86.7%) during the follow up period. The median culture conversion time in this study was 65 (60-70 days). Alcohol drinking (AHR = 3.79, 95%CI = 1.65-8.68), sputum smear grading +2 (AHR = 0.39, 95%CI 0.19-0.79), smear grading +3 (AHR = 0.30, CI = 0.14-064), cavitations (AHR = 0.36, 95%CI = 0.19-0.68), and consolidation (AHR = 0.29, CI = 0.13-0.69) were the determinants of time to sputum culture conversion. CONCLUSION:In this study, time to sputum culture was rapid as compared to 4 months WHO recommendation. Alcohol drinking, sputum smear grading, cavitations and consolidations were found to be the determinants of time to sputum culture conversion. Therefore, providing a special attention to patients who had baseline radiological finding is recommended, high bacillary load and patients with a history of alcohol intake at baseline should be given priority

Factors associated with the time to cessation of breastfeeding among mothers who have index children aged two to three years in Debre Markos, northwest Ethiopia: a retrospective follow up study

Abstract Background Breastfeeding of children, which needs to continue until two years and beyond, is one of the essential requirements for child survival. However, in Ethiopia there is scarcity of literatures on the duration of breastfeeding. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the rate of cessation of breastfeeding among mothers with index children aged 2 to 3 years, northwest Ethiopia. Methods A retrospective follow-up study was conducted at Debre Markos town from March 1, 2014 to March 30, 2016. A total of 500 mother-child pairs were selected using the systematic random sampling method by moving from house to house with an interval of three eligible houses. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. The Cox regression model was employed to identify the predictors of breastfeeding cessation. Results The proportion of women breastfeeding until 2 years was 13.70 per 1000 person- months. HIV-positive mothers decreased the time of breastfeeding by 3.4 times compared to HIV-negative mothers (AHR = 3.41, 95% CI: 1.96, 5.94). Government employee mothers decreased the time of breastfeeding by 2.8 times compared to housewives (AHR = 2.8, 95% CI: 1.80, 4.40).Better education increased the time of breastfeeding (AHR = 0.45, 95% CI: 0.24, 0.58). Number of children, family income, and place of delivery were the other significant predictors of time to cessation of breastfeeding (p < 0.05). Conclusion In this study, the rate of cessation of breastfeeding was good. HIV negative mothers, government employment, number of children, place of delivery, and family monthly income were significant predictors to the time of breastfeeding cessation. Therefore, family planning and breastfeeding education in health institutions are essential to increase breastfeeding duration

Seroprevalence of foot and mouth disease in Bench

A cross-sectional sero-epidemological study was conducted in two districts of the Bench Maji Zone

Spatial distribution and determinants of acute respiratory infection among under-five children in Ethiopia: Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey 2016.

BackgroundChildhood acute respiratory infection remains the commonest global cause of morbidity and mortality among under-five children. In Ethiopia, it remains the highest burden of the health care system. The problem varies in space and time, and exploring its spatial distribution has supreme importance for monitoring and designing effective intervention programs.MethodsA two stage stratified cluster sampling technique was utilized along with the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) data. About 10,006 under-five children were included in this study. Bernoulli model was used to investigate the presence of purely spatial clusters of under-five acute respiratory infection using SaTScan.ArcGIS version 10.1 was used to visualize the distribution of pneumonia cases across the country. Mixed-effect logistic regression model was used to identify the determinants of acute respiratory infection.ResultIn this study, acute respiratory infection among under-five children had spatial variations across the country (Moran's I: 0.34, p Conclusion and recommendationIn Ethiopia, acute respiratory infection had spatial variations across the country. Areas with excess acute respiratory infection need high priority in allocation of resources including: mobilizing resources, skilled human power, and improved access to health facilities