Measuring child survival for the Millennium Development Goals in Africa: what have we learned and what more is needed to evaluate the Sustainable Development Goals?
Reducing child mortality is a key global health challenge. We examined reasons for greater or lesser success in meeting under-five mortality rate reductions, i.e. Millennium Development Goal #4, between 1990 and 2015 in Sub-Saharan Africa where child mortality remains high. We first examined factors associated with child mortality from all World Health Organization African Region […]
Determinants of exclusive breastfeeding among mothers of infants aged 6 to 12 months in Gwanda District, Zimbabwe
Background: In 2016, 98% of children in Zimbabwe received breastmilk, however only 40% of babies under six months were exclusively breastfed 24 h prior to data collection. A 2014 survey revealed that Matabeleland South Province had the country’s highest starvation rates and food insecurities were rife. This study aimed at investigating maternal, infant, household, environmental […]
Prenatal alcohol exposure is associated with early motor, but not language development in a South African cohort
Objective:To investigate the association of prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) and early neurodevelopment in the first 2 years of life, adjusting for maternal sociodemographic and psychosocial factors, in the Drakenstein Child Health Study (DCHS), a South African birth cohort study.Methods:The DCHS comprises a population-based birth cohort of 1143 children, of which, a subsample completed the Bayley […]
Prevalence of stillbirth and its associated factors in East Africa: generalized linear mixed modeling
Background: Stillbirth is the most frequently reported adverse pregnancy outcome worldwide, which imposes significant psychological and economic consequences to mothers and affected families. East African countries account for one-third of the 2.6 million stillbirths globally. Though stillbirth is a common public health problem in East African countries, there is limited evidence on the pooled prevalence […]
Incidence of infant mortality and its predictors in East Africa using Gompertz gamma shared frailty model
Background: Globally, infant mortality is a major public health concern and a sensitive indicator of countries’ socio-economic and health status. Despite the substantial reduction of under-five mortality in sub-Saharan African countries specifically in East Africa, the infant mortality rate remains highest and too far below to achieve the WHO target. As to our search of […]
Association of Higher Educational Attainment on Antenatal Care Utilization Among Pregnant Women in East Africa Using Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) from 2010 to 2018: A Multilevel Analysis
Introduction: The use of antenatal care (ANC) plays a major role in minimizing maternal and child mortality through effective and appropriate screening, preventive, or treatment intervention. Even though almost all pregnancy-related mortalities are largely preventable through adequate use of ANC, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), particularly East African Countries, continues to share the largest share of global […]
Maternal anemia is a potential risk factor for anemia in children aged 6-59 months in Southern Africa: A multilevel analysis
Background: The effect of maternal anemia on childhood hemoglobin status has received little attention. Thus, we examined the potential association between maternal anemia and childhood anemia (aged 6-59 months) from selected Southern Africa countries. Methods: A cross-sectional study using nationally representative samples of children aged 6-59 months from the 2010 Malawi, 2011 Mozambique, 2013 Namibia, […]
Determinants of postnatal care utilization in sub-Saharan Africa: a meta and multilevel analysis of data from 36 sub-Saharan countries
Introduction: Globally, over 65% of maternal deaths occur during the first 42 days of postpartum while the same proportion of neonatal deaths occur during the first 7 days of life. In sab- Saharan Africa, 4.7 million mothers, newborns, and children die on annual basis. As to our knowledge, there is no study on postnatal care […]
Effect of a novel vital sign device on maternal mortality and morbidity in low-resource settings: a pragmatic, stepped-wedge, cluster-randomised controlled trial
Background: In 2015, an estimated 303 000 women died in pregnancy and childbirth. Obstetric haemorrhage, sepsis, and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy account for more than 50% of maternal deaths worldwide. There are effective treatments for these pregnancy complications, but they require early detection by measurement of vital signs and timely administration to save lives. The […]
Maltreatment in childhood and intimate partner violence: A latent class growth analysis in a South African pregnancy cohort
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant global problem, prevalent in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). IPV is particularly problematic during the perinatal and early postnatal period, where it is linked with negative maternal and child health outcomes. There has been little examination of profiles of IPV and early life adversity in LMIC contexts. We […]
