Digestive tolerability and acceptability of Fibersol-2 in healthy and diarrheal children 1–3 years old at a rural facility, Bangladesh: Results from a four arm exploratory study

Background: Fibersol-2 has some beneficial effects on human health. We aimed to evaluate the digestive tolerability and acceptability of Fibersol-2 in healthy and diarrheal children, as well as improvement in stool consistencies in young diarrheal children. Methods: Sixty children of either sex, aged 1–3 years having four groups (healthy children/low dose, healthy children/high dose, children with diarrhea/low dose and children with diarrhea/high dose) were enrolled into this exploratory study between 1st August to 23rd October 2017. Two presumptive doses, low (2.5g) and high (5g), twice daily with 50 ml drinking water for seven days were the interventions. Outcomes were to observe the development of possible abdominal symptoms, such as pain, distension, rumbling, and bloating during the intervention and post-intervention periods in healthy and diarrheal children as well as improvement in stool consistencies in diarrheal children. Results: Among the diarrheal children, the median (IQR) duration of resolution of diarrhea was 3.9 (2.9, 5.1) days vs. 3.5 (2.0, 8.0) days, p = 0.885; in low dose and high dose groups, respectively. Significant difference was observed in terms of abdominal pain (27% vs. 7%, p = 0.038) and distension (40% vs. 0%, p<0.001) in diarrheal children, compared to healthy children during the pre-intervention period. We also observed significant difference in respect of abdominal distension (23% vs. 0%, p = 0.011), rumbling (27% vs. 0%, p = 0.005) and bloating (43% vs. 3%, p = 0.001) in diarrheal children, compared to healthy children during the intervention period. However, no significant difference was observed in relation to abdominal pain (p = 0.347) and distension (p = 0.165) during the pre-intervention period, compared to the intervention period in diarrheal children. Moreover, no significant difference was observed during the post-intervention period for the diarrheal and healthy children. Conclusion: Fibersol-2 was found to be well tolerated in healthy and diarrheal children aged 1–3 years.publishedVersio

Anthropometric Indices of Giardia-Infected Under-Five Children Presenting with Moderate-to-Severe Diarrhea and Their Healthy Community Controls: Data from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study

Among all intestinal parasitosis, giardiasis has been reported to be associated with delayed growth in malnourished children under 5 living in low- and middle-income countries. Relevant data on the nutritional status of children aged 0-59 months presenting with moderate-to-severe diarrhea (MSD) and giardia infection were collected from sentinel health facilities of the Global Enteric Multicenter Study's (GEMS) seven field settings, placed in diverse countries of Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia between, December 2007 and February 2011. Then, this study analyzed a robust dataset of study participants (n = 22,569). Children having giardiasis with MSD constituted as cases (n = 1786), and those without MSD constituted as controls (n = 3470). Among the seven field sites, symptomatic giardiasis was 15% and 22% in Asian and African sites, respectively, whereas asymptomatic giardia infection (healthy without MSD) in Asian and African sites was 21.7% and 30.7%, respectively. Wasting and underweight were more frequently associated and stunting less often associated with symptomatic giardiasis (for all, p < 0.001). Symptomatic giardiasis had a significant association with worsening of nutritional status in under-five children. Improved socio-economic profile along with proper sanitation and hygienic practices are imperative to enhance child nutritional status, particularly in resource limited settings

Toxoplasma gondii Infection Is Associated with Low Birth Weight: Findings from an Observational Study among Rural Bangladeshi Women

Gestational Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) infection may cause substantial adverse effects on developing fetuses, newborns and also mothers. This study aims to estimate the seroprevalence of T. gondii among rural Bangladeshi pregnant women and determine the risk of a low birth weight (LBW). We followed a longitudinal design where 208 pregnant women were followed until the birth of their infants. Levels of IgG and IgM of T. gondii were assessed using chemiluminescent immunoassay. Modified Poisson regression was used to estimate crude and adjusted associations and multiple regression analysis was performed to understand the confounding and modifying effects of the variables. Thirty-nine (19%) children were born with LBW, among whom 15 (39%) mothers were positive for T. gondii IgG during pregnancy. After adjusting for several confounders and modifiers, pregnant women with T. gondii IgG or IgM seropositivity were significantly associated with LBW of infants (aRR: 2.00, 95% CI: 1.17-3.42). The strength of this association increased after adjusting for maternal education (aRR: 4.88, 95% CI: 1.74-13.69). The final model had an AROC of 0.84 with a sensitivity of 36% and specificity of 97%. Although causality is yet to be established, the study observed an association between T. gondii infection during pregnancy among rural Bangladeshi women and LBW of newborns

Predictors of Death in Under-Five Children with Sepsis Attending an Urban Diarrheal Treatment Centre in Bangladesh

SETTING: Special Care Ward (SCW) of the Dhaka Hospital of icddr,b, Bangladesh. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical and laboratory predictors of death in under-five children with clinically defined sepsis presenting with diarrhea. METHODS: We prospectively enrolled all the diarrheal children (n = 151) aged 0 to 59 months with clinical sepsis admitted in the SCW during September’2007 through December’2007. Comparison was made between deaths (n = 23) and survivors (n = 128). Sepsis is defined as presence of inflammation [abnormal WBC count (>11 × 109/L or

Clinical and laboratory characteristics of children under five hospitalized with diarrhea and bacteremia.

BackgroundDiarrhea is one of the leading causes of mortality in children under five globally. When it is associated with bacteremia, mortality is even higher. However, bacteraemia in diarrheal children has gained little attention in spite of its deleterious impact in under-five mortality. So, we aimed to evaluate associated clinical and laboratory factors for death in under-five children hospitalized with both diarrhea and bacteremia.MethodsIn this retrospective cross-sectional study, we used patients' electronic database of Dhaka Hospital of 'icddr,b', and enrolled all under-five children with diarrhea and bacterial growth in their blood samples on admission between June-2014 and May-2017. Clinical and laboratory characteristics were compared between those who died and who survived with a special attention to bacterial pathogens related to deaths and their sensitivity pattern.ResultsIn a total of 401 diarrheal children with bacteraemia, 45 (11%) died. Although Salmonella Typhi (34%) was the most predominant isolate followed by Staphylococcus species (16%) and Pseudomonas species (9%), children who died more often had E. coli (OR = 5.69, 95% CI = 2.42-13.39, p = Conclusion and significanceThe results of our data suggest that diarrheal children with bacteremia who died more often had gram negative bacteremia compared to those who survived and these pathogens are highly resistant to WHO recommended first line and second line antibiotics. The results further emphasize the critical importance of early identification of important clinical problems such as clinical sepsis, hypoxemia and hyperkalaemia in diarrheal children and treat them with potential sensitive antibiotic(s) in order to reduce bacteremia related mortality in children with diarrhea, especially in resource limited settings

Intravenous Amoxicillin Plus Intravenous Gentamicin for Children with Severe Pneumonia in Bangladesh: An Open-Label, Randomized, Non-Inferiority Controlled Trial

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends intravenous (IV) ampicillin and gentamicin as first-line therapy to treat severe pneumonia in children under five years of age. Ampicillin needs to be administered at a six-hourly interval, which requires frequent nursing intervention and bed occupancy for 5–7 days, limiting its utility in resource-poor settings. We compared the efficacy of IV amoxicillin over IV ampicillin, which is a potential alternative drug in treating severe pneumonia in children between 2–59 months. We conducted an unblinded, randomized, controlled, non-inferiority trial in the Dhaka hospital of icddr,b from 1 January 2018 to 31 October 2019. Children from 2–59 months of age presenting with WHO defined severe pneumonia with respiratory danger signs were randomly assigned 1:1 to either 50 mg/kg ampicillin or 40 mg/kg amoxicillin per day with 7.5 mg/kg gentamicin. The primary outcome was treatment failure as per the standard definition of persistence of danger sign(s) of severe pneumonia beyond 48 h or deterioration within 24 h of therapy initiation. The secondary outcomes were: (i) time required for resolution of danger signs since enrolment, (ii) length of hospital stay, (iii) death during hospitalization, and (iv) rate of nosocomial infections. Among 308 enrolled participants, baseline characteristics were similar among the two groups. Sixty-two (20%) children ended up with treatment failure, 21 (14%) in amoxicillin, and 41 (27%) in ampicillin arm, which is statistically significant (relative risk [RR] 0.51, 95% CI 0.32–0.82; p = 0.004). We reported 14 deaths for serious adverse events, 4 (3%) and 10 (6%) among amoxicillin and ampicillin arm, respectively. IV amoxicillin and IV gentamicin combination is not inferior to combined IV ampicillin and IV gentamicin in treating severe pneumonia in under-five children in Bangladesh. Considering the less frequent dosing and more compliance, IV amoxicillin is a better choice for treating children with severe pneumonia in resource-limited settings

Disease perception and experiences among rural Bangladeshi hypertensive women: a qualitative approach

Background: Hypertension (HTN) is well established as a leading cause of common serious illnesses worldwide. We carried out this qualitative research to understand perception of and experiences related to HTN among rural Bangladeshi hypertensive women.Methods: A total of 74 female hypertensive participants who were diagnosed as HTN were purposively recruited in a rural community in Mirzapur, Bangladesh. A focus group discussion (FGD) was applied to share their perception and experiences. Transcripts were read in an iterative process, and a thematic analysis was performed. This paper is reported followed by COREQ checklist.Results: Three main themes were generated; (i) Perception of HTN based on experiences, (ii) Knowledge of management of HTN, and (iii) Barriers of management of HTN. Under the themes, seven subthemes were identified. The participants only knew about their high blood pressure (HBP) when they had symptoms, and they applied traditional remedies in the rural context to deal with those symptoms. Even though more than half of participants had relevant knowledge of how to manage HTN, but still there were social-cultural and economic barriers and lack of social infrastructure to access healthcare, existed to practice them.Conclusion: Based on our study reports, health education programs at the household and community level could be a potential starting point for any preventive and containment strategy in rural communities of Bangladesh

Experience With Nosocomial Infection in Children Under 5 Treated in an Urban Diarrheal Treatment Center in Bangladesh

We aimed to evaluate the factors associated with nosocomial infections (NIs) in under-5 children and in bacterial isolates from their blood, urine, and stool. We reviewed all under-5 hospitalized children with clinically diagnosed NIs in the inpatient ward at Dhaka Hospital of International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, between January and December 2012. Comparison was made among the children with (cases = 71) and without NI (controls = 142). NI was defined as the development of new infection 48 hours after admission. Bacterial isolates in urine, blood, and stool were found in 11/52 (21%), 9/69 (13%), and 2/16 (12%) respectively. In logistic regression analysis, the children with NI were independently associated with severe acute malnutrition, congenital anomaly, invasive diarrhea, urinary tract infection on admission, and use of intravenous cannula during hospitalization. Thus, identification of these simple clinical parameters may help in preventive measures being taken to reduce the rate of NIs in such children

Factors Associated With Pneumonia Among Overweight and Obese Under-Five Children in an Urban Hospital of a Developing Country

To our knowledge, there are no data on the role of overweight and obesity in childhood pneumonia. We sought to determine that impact of overweight and obesity in such children. In this retrospective chart analysis, we enrolled hospitalized children aged 6 to 59 months in the Dhaka Hospital of the icddr,b, Bangladesh (International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh), from January 2010 to June 2014. Children with pneumonia having overweight and obesity (body mass index score [BMIZ] >2.00) constituted cases (n = 25), and those who had pneumonia without overweight and obesity (BMIZ -2.00 to 2.00) constituted controls (n = 75). Controls were 3-fold of the cases and were randomly selected. Demographic, clinical, and laboratory data of the cases and the controls were compared. The cases more often had diarrhea and dehydration (36% vs 12%, = .013), hypoxemia (SpO < 90% in room air; 28% vs 7%, = .009) on admission, and required to change antibiotics (32% vs 11%, = .023) during hospitalization compared to the controls. However, in logistic regression analysis the cases were independently associated with diarrhea ( < .001) and hypoxemia ( = .024) on admission. Our data suggest that overweight and obesity in children with pneumonia is prone to be associated with hypoxemia on admission, which may guide clinicians in promptly managing pneumonia in order to evade its ramification in such children. However, future research with larger samples is imperative to consolidate or refute our observation