Knowledge about child birth and postpartum obstetric danger signs and associated factors among mothers in Dale district, Southern Ethiopia
Background: Globally, every day, approximately 800 women die from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. The majority of these deaths occur after childbirth (post-partum period) mostly within 24 h. Raising awareness of women on obstetric danger sign of childbirth and postpartum, are crucial for safe motherhood initiative and to reduce maternal mortality. Methods: A […]
Helminths are positively associated with atopy and wheeze in Ugandan fishing communities: results from a cross-sectional survey
Background: Parasitic helminths are potent immunomodulators and chronic infections may protect against allergy-related disease and atopy. We conducted a cross-sectional survey to test the hypothesis that in heavily helminth-exposed fishing villages on Lake Victoria, Uganda, helminth infections would be inversely associated with allergy-related conditions. Methods: A household survey was conducted as baseline to an anthelminthic […]
Exposure to family planning messages and contraceptive use among women of reproductive age in sub-Saharan Africa: a cross-sectional program impact evaluation study
Many women of reproductive age in sub Saharan Africa are not utilizing any contraceptive method which is contributing to the high burden of maternal mortality. This study determined the prevalence, trends, and the impact of exposure to family planning messages (FPM) on contraceptive use (CU) among women of reproductive age in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). We […]
Birth preparedness, complication readiness and other determinants of place of delivery among mothers in Goba District, Bale Zone, South East Ethiopia
Background: Ethiopia is one of the countries with the highest maternal mortality ratio 676/100,000 LB and the lowest skilled delivery at birth (10 %) in 2011. Skilled delivery care and provision of emergency obstetric care prevents many of these deaths. Despite implementation of birth preparedness and complication readiness packages to antenatal care users since 2007 […]
Social affiliation matters: Both same-sex and opposite-sex relationships predict survival in wild female baboons
Social integration and support can have profound effects on human survival. The extent of this phenomenon in non-human animals is largely unknown, but such knowledge is important to understanding the evolution of both lifespan and sociality. Here, we report evidence that levels of affiliative social behaviour (i.e. ‘social connectedness’) with both same-sex and opposite-sex conspecifics […]
Parental imprisonment as a risk factor for cardiovascular and metabolic disease in adolescent and adult offspring: A prospective Australian birth cohort study
Objectives: Parental imprisonment is linked with child health in later life. The present study provides the first prospective cohort analysis and non-U.S. based study examining parental imprisonment and cardiometabolic risk factors in adolescence and adulthood. Methods: The study followed 7,223 children born from live, singleton births from 1981 to 1984 in Brisbane, Australia. Data on […]
Breastfeeding practices of HIV-positive and HIV-negative women in Kabarole district, Uganda
Ugandan policy regarding infant feeding for HIV-positive mothers is replacement feeding (RF), if feasible; otherwise, exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for 3 months is advised (or EBF for 6 months, if RF is still not feasible). HIV-negative mothers should practise EBF for 6 months. The study objective was to explore the association between maternal HIV status and […]
Role of Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILCs) in improving household wealth and financial preparedness for birth in rural Zambia
Savings and Internal Lending Communities (SILCs) are a type of informal microfinance mechanism adapted in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to improve financial resources for poor and rural communities. Although SILCs are often paired with other health and non-health-related interventions, few studies have examined SILCs in the context of maternal health. This study examined […]
Facility level factors that determine consistent delivery of essential newborn care at health centers in Ethiopia
Background: Essential newborn care (ENC) is a package of interventions which should be provided for every newborn baby regardless of body size or place of delivery immediately after birth and should be continued for at least the seven days that follows. Even though Ethiopia has endorsed the implementation of ENC, as other many counties, it […]
Comparison of nutritional status and associated factors of lactating women between lowland and highland communities of District Raya, Alamata, Southern Tigiray, Ethiopia
Background: The Ethiopian regions have a relatively higher prevalence of under-nutrition are found in the lowlands of the country, with the exception of the highlands of Tigiray, where under-nutrition is also prevalent. The intention of this study was to compare anthropometric nutritional status and associated factors of lactating women between lowland and highland communities of […]
