Reliability of the Currently Administered Language Tests in Bangladesh: A Case Study

This study aims at investigating the reliability of the language tests presently in use in Bangladesh, taking the Higher Secondary reading and writing tests as sample. To achieve this purpose, the English question papers of the H.S.C examinations of the last few years have been analyzed with a view to determining the extent to which the test formats used can affect candidates’ scores, and involve subjectivity in scoring. Besides, the marking scheme provided to the markers by the education board has been examined in order to find out whether and how far it is able to reduce the element of subjective judgement involved in the assessment of the responses  and thus to ensure inter-marker and intra-marker reliability of the tests. Furthermore, an empirical survey has been carried out in the form of questionnaires among the English language teachers of a few colleges in the country to collect quantitative data on various aspects of reliability of the H.S.C language testing. The study reveals that the Higher Secondary reading and writing tests, as a whole, are far below the satisfactory level in terms of reliability as they have deficiency in both test reliability and scorer reliability. Therefore, the scores produced by these tests cannot be considered reliable indicators of the test takers’ reading and writing abilities. The shortcomings of these tests, as identified in the investigation, include poor test items, inadequate test instruction, ambiguous marking criteria, insufficient marking guideline, etc. On the basis of the findings, some recommendations have been made for the improvement of the overall reliability of the H.S.C reading and writing tests. Key Words: Language test, test reliability, scorer reliability, subjectivity, quantitative, marking criteria

An Understanding of the Islamic Banking Industry from Customers’ Perspective

During the last decade, conventional banks faced stiff competition from Islamic bank. The main purpose of the study is to find out the customers’ perspective on Islamic banking in Bangladesh. The study was based on both primary and secondary data. For collecting primary data, a questionnaire survey was conducted among Islamic banks’ customers. Selection of respondents was based on random sampling as well as the convenient sampling method. Customer opinions were measured by a 5-point Likert scale. Customers’ perspectives have been measured with respect to various aspects (service quality, profit rate, service charge, internet banking, employee proficiency, etc.). Findings of the study reveal that the respondents think positively about almost all aspects of the Islamic bank. JEL Classification Code: G2

Fetomaternal outcome in patients with eclampsia: study in a territory care hospital in Bangladesh

Background: Eclampsia, a severe complication of preeclampsia, poses significant risks to both the mother and the fetus. Understanding the specific factors influencing these outcomes in the context of Bangladesh is crucial for improving maternal and neonatal healthcare in the region. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted at department of gynaecology and obstetrics, Jashore Medical College Hospital, Jashore, Bangladesh reviewing medical records of 155 patients diagnosed with eclampsia over a January 2020 to December 2020. Data on maternal age, gestational age, clinical presentation, management strategies, and fetal outcomes were collected and analyzed. Results: Preliminary findings suggest that maternal age, gestational age at onset, and timely interventions play crucial roles in determining the fetomaternal outcomes in eclampsia cases. Maternal mortality rates, neonatal morbidity, and mortality rates were assessed in relation to these factors. Additionally, the study investigates the impact of various management approaches, including antihypertensive medications, and magnesium sulfate therapy on these outcomes. Conclusions: Eclampsia continues to pose significant risks to both mothers and infants in Bangladesh. Inadequate antenatal care appears to contribute to the severity of cases. The high rate of emergency cesarean sections underscores the need for vigilant monitoring of high-risk pregnancies. Efforts to improve antenatal care utilization and implement timely interventions are crucial to mitigate the adverse fetomaternal outcomes associated with eclampsia in this setting. Further prospective studies are warranted to explore preventive strategies and optimize management protocols for better outcomes

An Understanding of the Islamic Banking Industry from Customers’ Perspective

During the last decade, conventional banks faced stiff competition from Islamic bank. The main purpose of the study is to find out the customers’ perspective on Islamic banking in Bangladesh. The study was based on both primary and secondary data. For collecting primary data, a questionnaire survey was conducted among Islamic banks’ customers. Selection of respondents was based on random sampling as well as the convenient sampling method. Customer opinions were measured by a 5-point Likert scale. Customers’ perspectives have been measured with respect to various aspects (service quality, profit rate, service charge, internet banking, employee proficiency, etc.). Findings of the study reveal that the respondents think positively about almost all aspects of the Islamic bank

Challenging myomectomy of large cervical fibroid - successful fertility outcome: a case report

The cervical fibroids are rare and large cervical fibroids are rarer. Removing large cervical fibroids when a patient desires future fertility is a surgical challenge because of the risks of significant blood loss, bladder and ureteric injury, and unplanned hysterectomy. For women who desire future fertility, myomectomy can improve the chances of pregnancy by restoring normal anatomy. In this article, we describe a successful pregnancy following the restoration of the normal anatomy of the cervix by a challenging myomectomy in a sub-fertile patient with a large cervical fibroid. A 38-year-old nulliparous lady presented to the reproductive endocrinology and infertility (REI) department of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka, Bangladesh with primary sub-fertility for five and half years, and dysmenorrhea for 2 years. She was a regularly menstruating woman with average flow and duration. Being a resident of Canada, she was diagnosed there as a case of large cervical fibroid (10×9 cm) by TVS extending up to the posterior wall of the uterus, cervix, and upper vagina impacted in the pouch of Douglas during infertility workup. For this reason, she was advised for in vitro fertilization (IVF) keeping the fibroid in situ. However, due to the failure of embryo transfer with this large cervical fibroid, she was advised for embryo transfer following myomectomy. Hysteroscopic myomectomy was tried first (in February 2019 in Canada) but was unable to be removed. Then Laparotomy was tried (in September 2019 in Canada) but failed again. Being a complicated case, she was counselled there for myomectomy by a multidisciplinary approach with the high risk of injury to the urinary bladder, ureter, bowel, and other pelvic structures. But she refused to do a myomectomy there after knowing the dreadful complications with the fear of injury to the pelvic organs. With this problem, she went to different institutions both in the country and abroad but couldn’t get the proper treatment. Finally, she visited the outpatient department (OPD) of the REI department, BSMMU, Dhaka, Bangladesh with the hope of getting the most appropriate treatment for her and she was reassured, counselled, and managed by a challenging myomectomy (in March 2022) through a combined approach of the vagina and abdominal route without any significant intra and post-operative complications. Her whole post-operative period was uneventful, the anatomy of the cervix was restored and detected by TVS, and trial transfer was done before embryo transfer with easy negotiation to the cervix. Finally, she conceived 1 year after myomectomy with easy frozen embryo transfer. Myomectomy in expert hand even for the large cervical fibroid can restore normal anatomy and can achieve successful pregnancy outcomes

Bioequivalence evaluation of two capsule formulations of amoxicillin in healthy adult male bangladeshi volunteers: A single-dose, randomized, open-label, two-period crossover study

AbstractBackground: Amoxicillin, a semisynthetic penicillin antibiotic, is widely prescribed in Bangladesh due to its extended spectrum and its rapid and extensive oral absorption with good tolerability. Although a number of generic oral formulations of amoxicillin are available in Bangladesh, a study of the bioequivalence and pharmacokinetic properties of these formulations has not yet been conducted in a Bangladeshi population.Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the pharmacokinetic properties and bioequivalence of 2 formulations of amoxicillin 500-mg capsules (test, SK-mox®; reference, Amoxil-Bencard®) using serum data.Methods: This single-dose, randomized, open-label, 2-period crossover study was conducted in healthy male subjects in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki and International Conference on Harmonisation guidelines. Subjects were assigned to receive the test or the reference drug as a single-dose, 500-mg capsule under fasting conditions after a 1-week washout period. After oral administration, blood samples were collected and analyzed for amoxicillin concentration using a validated high-performance liquid chromatography method. The pharmacokinetic parameters were determined using a noncompartmental method. The formulations were considered bioequivalent if the natural log-transformed ratios of pharmacokinetic parameters were within the predetermined equivalence range of 80% to 125%, according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirement.Results: Twenty-four healthy adult male Bangladeshi volunteers (mean [SD] age, 26.92 [3.37] years; age range, 23–34 years; mean [SD] body mass index, 23.O9 [1.58] kg/m2) participated in the study. Using serum data, the values obtained for the test and reference formulations, respectively, were as follows: Cmax, 9.85 (2.73) and 10.63 (2.12) μg/mL; Tmax, 1.29 (0.58) and 1.33 (0.49) hours; and AUC0–12, 27.09 (7.62) and 28.56 (6.30) μg/mL · h−1. No period, sequence, or formulation effects were observed; however, significant variation was found among subjects with regard to AUC0–12 (P < 0.001), AUC0−∞ (P = 0.002), area under the moment curve (AUMC) from 0 to 12 hours (P < 0.001), and AUMC0−∞ (P = 0.017). All CIs for the parameters measured were within the FDA-accepted limits of 80% to 125%.Conclusion: The present study suggests that the test 500-mg amoxicillin capsule was bioequivalent to the reference 500-mg capsule according to the FDA regulatory definition, in this population of healthy adult male Bangladeshi volunteers

Health Problems and Health Care Seeking Behaviour of Rohingya Refugees

Background: Rohingya refugees are one of the most vulnerable group due to lack of health care system, personal hygiene, shelter, sanitation and violence. Aim: The present study aims to find out the health problems and health care seeking behavior of rohingya refugees, to identify the socio-demographic information for such exposure group in relation to age, sex, occupation, living areas, to explore the patient’s physical, emotional, perceptions, attitudes and environmental health problems and to bring out health care seeking behavior of refugees. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 149 samples were selected conveniently for this study from the refugee camps. Data was collected by using mixed type of questionnaire. Descriptive statistic was used for data analysis which has depicted through tables, pie chart and bar chart. Results: The finding of the study showed that 45.6% participants had multiple problems, followed by 16.8% participants who had other specific problems like musculoskeletal pain, visual problems and peptic ulcer. Urinary tract infection was the leading individual health problem with 11.4% of the sample group having it. 10.7% participants had hypertension, 6% had respiratory tract infection, 3.4% had nutrition deficiency, 4.75% had diabetes mellitus and 1.3% had sanitation &amp; hygiene problems. Among the participants, 68.4% age ranged between 15-59 years. The study showed that, only 16.1% participants were satisfied with the quality of service they received while 37.6% participants said that they needed better services such as more laboratory test, radiological imaging, more medicine and more doctors. Conclusion: It is clear that refugees suffered from a variety of health problems, because their living condition and environmental situation were not similar like an independent nation. Further, basic amenities like medicines and other services were not available

Demography, Diagnosis and Complications of Spinal Cord Injury Patients in a Rehabilitation Center of Bangladesh

Background: Spinal cord injury and its health related complications pose a major impact on the overall morbidity and mortality as well as cause economic constrains. It was aimed at looking into the demographic distribution, diagnosis, as well as complications in patients with spinal cord injury. Methods: The study was conducted at Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP) between 2012 and 2013 from 201 respondents with the help of a structured preformed pretested questionnaire by face to face interview. Results: Out of 201 respondents 176 (87.6%) were male and 25 (12.4%) were female; majority of the patients were in their 3rd decade which consisted 28.6%, followed by 27.4% in between 21-30 years and 26.8% in between 41-50. Most of the respondents of this study had traumatic paraplegia (56.5%) and Buttock was found to be the predominant site for developing site pressure sore as evident form 67.5%. Conclusion: Productive males are more prone to spinal cord injury and the most common diagnosis is paraplegia with the most risky area is buttock for developing pressure sore. The findings may add in the way of developing awareness among stakeholders regarding demography, diagnosis and the pattern of the complications in a country like Bangladesh

Arsenic Exposure and Motor Function among Children in Bangladesh

Background: Several reports indicate that drinking water arsenic (WAs) and manganese (WMn) are associated with children’s intellectual function. Very little is known, however, about possible associations with other neurologic outcomes such as motor function

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博士（工学）創造科学技術大学院静岡大学甲第1256号non