279 research outputs found
Nutritional Status of Adolescent Girls from Rural Communities of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia
Background: Addressing the nutritional needs of adolescents could be an important step towards breaking the vicious cycle of intergenerational malnutrition. Objective: Assess nutritional status of rural adolescent girls. Design: Cross-sectional. Methods: Anthropometric and socio-demographic information from 211 adolescent girls representing 650 randomly selected households from thirteen communities in Tigray was used in data analysis. Height-for-age and BMI-for-age were compared to the 2007 WHO growth reference. Data were analyzed using SAS, Version 9.1. Results: None of the households reported access to adolescent micronutrient supplementation. The girls were shorter and thinner than the 2007 WHO reference population. The cross-sectional prevalence of stunting and thinness were 26.5% and 58.3%, respectively. Lack of latrine facilities was significantly associated with stunting (p = 0.0033) and thinness (p <0.0001). Age was strong predictor of stunting (r(2) = 0.8838, p <0.0001) and thinness (r(2) = 0.3324, p <0.0001). Conclusion: Undernutrition was prevalent among the girls. Strategies to improve the nutritional status of girls need to go beyond the conventional maternal and child health care programs to reach girls before conception to break the intergenerational cycle of malnutrition. Further, carefully designed longitudinal studies are needed to identify the reasons for poor growth throughout the period of adolescence in this population. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2009; 23(1):5-11
Adsorptive removal of fluoride from water using nanoscale aluminium oxide hydroxide (AlOOH)
In this study the fluoride removal potential of nanoscale aluminium oxide hydroxide (nano-AlOOH) has been investigated. The material was produced using aluminium nitrate (Al(NO3)3.9H2O, 95%), and ammonium bicarbonate (NH4HCO3, 98%) and its density and mineralogy were investigated. A series of batch adsorption experiments were carried out to assess parameters that influence the adsorption process. The parameters considered were contact time and adsorbent dose, initial fluoride concentration, and pH. Results showed that most of the adsorption took place during the first 30 min; and equilibrium was reached at one hour contact time with an optimum adsorbent dose of 1.6 g L-1 for initial fluorideconcentration of 20 mg L-1. The removal efficiency of fluorideincreased with increase in adsorbent dosage. The fluoride removal efficiency was increased as the pH of the solution increases from pH 3 to 8, but any further increase in pH led to a decrease in fluoride removal efficiency. Maximum adsorption occurred at around pH 7 with initial fluoride concentration of 20 mg L-1. The adsorption data were well fitted to the Langmuir isotherm model with a maximum adsorption capacity of 62.5 mg F- g-1. The kinetic studies showed that the adsorption of fluoride by nano-AlOOH obeys a pseudo-second order rate equation. The intraparticle diffusion was not a rate-controlling step for the adsorption process. Thus, the overall study indicates that nano-AlOOH is an efficient defluoridating material. KEY WORDS: Nanoscale AlOOH, Defluoridation, Fluoride removal efficiency, Adsorption capacity, Adsorption kinetics, Adsorption mechanism Bull. Chem. Soc. Ethiop. 2014, 28(2), 215-227.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4314/bcse.v28i2.
Lack of Dietary Sources of Iodine and the Prevalence of Iodine Deficiency in Rural Women from Sidama Zone, Southern Ethiopia
Iodine deficiency has been reported to affect a large number of people in Ethiopia. Although significant progress against iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) has been reported worldwide, millions of people remain with insufficient iodine intake. Multiple factors may contribute to iodine deficiency. Hence, the objective of this study was to investigate iodine deficiency and dietary intake of iodine. A crosssectional survey design was used to assess urinary iodine concentration (UIC), goiter and dietary intake of iodine in a sample of 202 non-pregnant women living in three rural communities of Sidama Zone, southern Ethiopia. Urinary iodine concentration was analyzed using the Sandell-Kolthoff reaction, goiter was assessed using palpation and dietary source of iodine was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. Data were analyzed using selected descriptive and analytical statistical measures with SAS software. Mean (SD) age, mid upper arm circumference (MUAC) and body mass index [BMI - Wt(kg)/(Ht(m))2] were 30.8 (7.9) y, 24.8(2.5) cm and 20 (2.2) respectively. Median UIC was 37.2 μg/L. Participants with UIC <20 μg/L, classified as severely iodine deficient were 22.8%; 46.5% had UIC between 20 to <50 μg/L, classified as moderately iodine deficient, and 27.2 % had UIC in the mild deficiency range of 50 to <100 μg/L. Only 3.5% of the women had UIC ≥ 100 μg/L. The total goiter rate was 15.9%, which was 1.5% visible and 14.4% palpable goiter. A majority of the participants consumed Enset (E. ventricosum), corn and kale frequently and meat was consumed rarely. None of the participants reported ever consuming iodized salt or ever having heard about use of iodized salt. Adjacent communities (Alamura, Tullo and Finchawa) showed significant differences in UIC, goiter rate and frequency of fish and dairy consumption. The findings of the present study revealed that iodine status of the population is a significant public health problem. Hence, there is a need to supply iodized salt in order to achieve the goal of elimination of iodine deficiency disorders in the community.Key words: urinary iodine, goiter, food frequenc
Dynamics of multidimensional child poverty and its triggers: Evidence from Ethiopia using Multilevel Mixed Effect Model
Empirical studies on the dynamics of multidimensional child poverty are very limited and still more research is required to understand its nature and triggering factors especially in the context of developing countries. In light of this, this paper tries to assess the dynamics of multidimensional child poverty and major factors associated with it using longitudinal data mainly collected to assess child poverty in Ethiopia. It uses multilevel mixed effect logit models that could possibly incorporates fixed and random effects to capture the effect of cluster level and time varying variables on multidimensional child poverty transition. Results of the multidimensional poverty analysis indicate that, although there were significant variations among regions, multidimensional child poverty has decreased during 2002-2009. The paper argues that multidimensional child poverty has dynamic nature that would possibly resulted from the interaction of multiple factors including household demographic, household capital (human, social and resources), household economic activities, geographic locations, and household shocks. Moreover, the study shows the relevance of considering cluster level differences during poverty analysis to generate information relevant for designing targeted policies and strategies that would help to distribute available development resources efficiently and achieve sustainable poverty reduction in developing countries
Dynamics of multidimensional child poverty and its triggers: Evidence from Ethiopia using Multilevel Mixed Effect Model
Empirical studies on the dynamics of multidimensional child poverty are very limited and still more research is required to understand its nature and triggering factors especially in the context of developing countries. In light of this, this paper tries to assess the dynamics of multidimensional child poverty and major factors associated with it using longitudinal data mainly collected to assess child poverty in Ethiopia. It uses multilevel mixed effect logit models that could possibly incorporates fixed and random effects to capture the effect of cluster level and time varying variables on multidimensional child poverty transition. Results of the multidimensional poverty analysis indicate that, although there were significant variations among regions, multidimensional child poverty has decreased during 2002-2009. The paper argues that multidimensional child poverty has dynamic nature that would possibly resulted from the interaction of multiple factors including household demographic, household capital (human, social and resources), household economic activities, geographic locations, and household shocks. Moreover, the study shows the relevance of considering cluster level differences during poverty analysis to generate information relevant for designing targeted policies and strategies that would help to distribute available development resources efficiently and achieve sustainable poverty reduction in developing countries
High-Energy 2-Micrometers Doppler Lidar for Wind Measurements
High-energy 2-micrometer wavelength lasers have been incorporated in a prototype coherent Doppler lidar to test component technologies and explore applications for remote sensing of the atmosphere. Design of the lidar is presented including aspects in the laser transmitter, receiver, photodetector, and signal processing. Calibration tests and sample atmospheric data are presented on wind and aerosol profiling
WIND MEASUREMENTS WITH HIGH-ENERGY DOPPLER LIDAR
Coherent lidars at 2-micron wavelengths from holmium or thulium solid-state lasers have been in use to measure wind for applications in meteorology, aircraft wake vortex tracking, and turbulence detection [1,2,3] These field-deployed lidars, however, have generally been of a pulse energy of a few millijoules, limiting their range capability or restricting operation to regions of high aerosol concentration such as the atmospheric boundary layer. Technology improvements in the form of high-energy pulsed lasers, low noise detectors, and high optical quality telescopes are being evaluated to make wind measurements to long ranges or low aerosol concentrations. This research is aimed at developing lidar technology for satellite-based observation of wind on a global scale. The VALIDAR project was initiated to demonstrate a high pulse energy coherent Doppler lidar. VALIDAR gets its name from the concept of validation lidar, in that it can serve as a calibration and validation source for future airborne and spaceborne lidar missions. VALIDAR is housed within a mobile trailer for field measurements
Credible practice of modeling and simulation in healthcare: ten rules from a multidisciplinary perspective
The complexities of modern biomedicine are rapidly increasing. Thus, modeling and simulation have become increasingly important as a strategy to understand and predict the trajectory of pathophysiology, disease genesis, and disease spread in support of clinical and policy decisions. In such cases, inappropriate or ill-placed trust in the model and simulation outcomes may result in negative outcomes, and hence illustrate the need to formalize the execution and communication of modeling and simulation practices. Although verification and validation have been generally accepted as significant components of a model\u27s credibility, they cannot be assumed to equate to a holistic credible practice, which includes activities that can impact comprehension and in-depth examination inherent in the development and reuse of the models. For the past several years, the Committee on Credible Practice of Modeling and Simulation in Healthcare, an interdisciplinary group seeded from a U.S. interagency initiative, has worked to codify best practices. Here, we provide Ten Rules for credible practice of modeling and simulation in healthcare developed from a comparative analysis by the Committee\u27s multidisciplinary membership, followed by a large stakeholder community survey. These rules establish a unified conceptual framework for modeling and simulation design, implementation, evaluation, dissemination and usage across the modeling and simulation life-cycle. While biomedical science and clinical care domains have somewhat different requirements and expectations for credible practice, our study converged on rules that would be useful across a broad swath of model types. In brief, the rules are: (1) Define context clearly. (2) Use contextually appropriate data. (3) Evaluate within context. (4) List limitations explicitly. (5) Use version control. (6) Document appropriately. (7) Disseminate broadly. (8) Get independent reviews. (9) Test competing implementations. (10) Conform to standards. Although some of these are common sense guidelines, we have found that many are often missed or misconstrued, even by seasoned practitioners. Computational models are already widely used in basic science to generate new biomedical knowledge. As they penetrate clinical care and healthcare policy, contributing to personalized and precision medicine, clinical safety will require established guidelines for the credible practice of modeling and simulation in healthcare
A Two Micron Coherent Differential Absorption Lidar Development
A pulsed, 2-micron coherent Differential Absorption Lidar (DIAL)/Integrated Path Differential Absorption (IPDA) transceiver, developed under the Laser Risk Reduction Program (LRRP) at NASA, is integrated into a fully functional lidar instrument. This instrument measures atmospheric CO2 profiles (by DIAL) from a ground platform. It allows the investigators to pursue subsequent in science-driven deployments, and provides a unique tool for Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Night, Days, and Seasons (ASCENDS) validation that was strongly advocated in the recent ASCENDS Workshop. Keywords: Differential Absorption Lidar, Near Infrared Laser
Incidence and predictors of puerperal sepsis among postpartum women at Debre Markos comprehensive specialized hospital, northwest Ethiopia: A prospective cohort study
Background: Puerperal sepsis is one of the leading causes of maternal mortality, particularly in low and middle-income countries where most maternal deaths occur. Women with puerperal sepsis are prone to long-term disabilities, such as chronic pelvic pain, blocked fallopian tubes, and secondary infertility. Besides this, puerperal sepsis has received less attention. For this reason, this study aimed to determine the incidence of puerperal sepsis and its predictors among postpartum women at Debre Markos Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted among 330 postpartum women from September 2020 to 2021. A pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire with a data extraction checklist was used to collect the data. Data were entered into Epi data 4.2 and analyzed using STATA 14.0. The incidence rate of puerperal sepsis was calculated, and a Kaplan-Meier survival curve was used to estimate the survival probability of developing puerperal sepsis. The cox-proportional hazards regression model was fitted to identify predictors of puerperal sepsis. Results: The study participants were followed for a total of 1685.3 person-week observations. The incidence rate of puerperal sepsis was 14.24 per 1,000 person-weeks. However, the overall incidence of puerperal sepsis was 7.27%. Not attending formal education [AHR: 3.55, 95% CI: (1.09–11.58)], a cesarean delivery [AHR: 4.50; 95% CI: (1.79–11.30)], premature rupture of the membranes [AHR: 3.25; 95% CI: (1.08–9.79)], complicated pregnancy [AHR: 4.80; 95% CI: (1.85–12.43)], being referred [AHR: 2.90; 95% CI: (1.10–7.65)], and not having birth preparedness and complication readiness plan [AHR: 2.95; 95% CI: (1.08–10.50)] were statistically significant predictors of puerperal sepsis. Conclusion: The incidence of puerperal sepsis was 7.27%. Not attending formal education, cesarean delivery, premature rupture of membranes, complicated pregnancy, referral status, and absence of birth preparedness and complication readiness plan were predictors associated with the incidence of puerperal sepsis
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