Magnitude of kangaroo mother care practice and its associated factors in Tigray region, northern Ethiopia, 2019: cross-sectional study design.

Introduction: kangaroo mother care is an evidence based approach care of preterm and low birth weight infants carried skin-to-skin with the parents that can decrease morbidity and mortality of infant. Country level adoption and practice of kangaroo mother care has been limited and global coverage remains low and few studies have examined the reasons for low practice. The aim of this study was to assess the magnitude of kangaroo mother care practice and its associated factors in Tigray, northern Ethiopia, 2019. Methods: an institutional-based cross-sectional study design was conducted in public general hospitals of Tigray, northern Ethiopia, 2019. Two-stage sampling technique was used and an interviewer-administered questionnaire were used to collect the necessary information. The data were cleaned and entered using epi-Data version 3.1 then exported to stoical package for social science (SPSS) version 22.0 for analysis. Bivariate logistic regression and multivariable analysis were carried out at adjusted odds ratios (AOR) with 95% CI and significance level p-value (<0.05). Results: out of the total 844 selected mothers with their infants, 840 were participated in the study yielding to a response rate of 99.5%, of these respondent's kangaroo mother care practice was found to be 70.2%. Being mothers housewife [(AOR=4.12, 95% CI: (1.5, 0.11)], maternal age [(AOR=9.3, 95% CI: (2.5, 33.9 )], currently mode delivery [(AOR=5.39, 95% CI: (2.3, 12.25)], number of children [(AOR=8.38, 95%: (4.6, 15.3)], mother having ≥5 children [(AOR=18.2, 95%CI: (9.4, 35.4)], antenatal care [(AOR=3.299 95%CI: (1.54, 7.07)] were factors at p-value (<0.05) significantly associated with kangaroo mother care practice. Conclusion: in this study, maternal age, parity, antenatal care, occupation and mode of delivery were factors that influence kangaroo mother care practice in the study area, so healthcare providers, policymakers and other stakeholders should give special focuses on those influencing factors.

The outcome of COVID-19 among the geriatric age group in African countries: protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the outbreak of coronavirus disease in 2019 (COVID-19) has been declared as a pandemic and public health emergency that infected more than 5 million people worldwide at the time of writing this protocol. Strong evidence for the outcome of COVID-19 among the geriatric age group has not been published in Africa. Therefore, this protocol will be served as a guideline to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of the outcome of COVID-19 among the geriatric age group in Africa. METHODS: Published and unpublished studies on the outcome of COVID-19 among the geriatric age group in Africa and written in any language will be included. Databases (PubMed / MEDLINE, Google Scholar, Google, EMBASE, Web of Science, Microsoft Academic, WHO COVID-19 database, Cochran Library, Africa Wide Knowledge, and Africa Index Medicus) from March to August 2020 will be searched. Two independent reviewers will select, screen, extract data, and assess the risk of bias. The proportion will be measured using a random-effects model. Subgroup analysis will be conducted to manage heterogeneity. The presence of publication bias will be assessed using Egger's test and visual inspection of the funnel plots. This systematic and meta-analysis review protocol will be reported per the PRISMA-P guidelines. CONCLUSION: This systematic review and meta-analysis protocol will be expected to quantify the outcome of COVID-19 among the geriatric age group in Africa. SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: This protocol was submitted for registration with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) in April 2020 and accepted with the registration number: (https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO). CRD42020180600.

Prevalence of Undernutrition and Associated Factors among Pregnant Women in a Public General Hospital, Tigray, Northern Ethiopia: A Cross-Sectional Study Design.

BACKGROUND: Undernutrition is a global health problem, particularly in pregnant women. Despite the limited studies performed in different parts of Ethiopia, the information about the prevalence of undernutrition of pregnant women in the current study area is not documented. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the prevalence of undernutrition and associated factors in pregnant women. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study design was conducted in the Tigray region from August 01 to December 30, 2018. Study subjects were selected by systematic sampling technique from the respective hospitals. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. Data were cleaned and entered using Epi-Data version 3.1 and then exported to statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 23.0 for analysis. Multivariate analyses were carried out, and adjusted odds ratios (AORs) with 95% CI and significance level (p value) <0.05 were considered. RESULTS: Out of the total 844 selected pregnant women, 840 participated in the study, yielding a response rate of 99.5%; of this, respondent's undernutrition prevalence was found to be 40.6% with 95% confidence interval (38.93% and 42.27%). Agriculture as occupation (AOR = 2.6, 95% CI: 1.5, 4.5), women who wanted the pregnancy (AOR = 0.25, 95% CI: 0.14, 0.448), no history malaria during pregnancy (AOR = 0.291, 95%: (0.152, 0.555)), coffee intake during pregnancy (AOR = 1.6, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.69), and hemoglobin < 11 g/dl (AOR = 4.9, 95% CI: 3.09, 7.8) were the factors that were significantly associated with undernutrition, p value (<0.05). CONCLUSION: In this study, occupation, history of having malaria during pregnancy, wanted type pregnancy, coffee intake during pregnancy, and hemoglobin < 11 g/dl were factors significantly associated with undernutrition in pregnant mothers. So, healthcare providers, policymakers, and other stakeholders should give special focus on these factors.

Uncontrolled asthma in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

INTRODUCTION: Despite significant improvement in the diagnosis and management of this disorder, asthma in the majority of Ethiopians remains poorly controlled. Although the prevalence of uncontrolled asthma is a public health problem in Ethiopia, its reported prevalence varies from study to study. Hence, this review aims to determine the true prevalence of uncontrolled asthma among asthmatic patients in Ethiopia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Different database searching engines were used including PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, Africa journal online, World Health Organization (WHO) afro library, and Cochrane review. They were systematically searched for published studies on uncontrolled asthma in Ethiopia from 2014 to 2019. Primary search terms were "asthma", "uncontrolled asthma", "uncontrolled wheezing", and "Ethiopia". The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guideline was followed. Publication bias was examined by the funnel plot. The random-effect model was fitted to estimate the pooled prevalence of uncontrolled asthma among asthmatic patients. All statistical analysis was done using R version 3.5.3 and the RStudio version 1.2.5033 software for Windows. RESULTS: The overall pooled prevalence of uncontrolled asthma was found to be 71.67% [95% CI (0.6772; 0.7562)]. Potential associated factors were: unscheduled visits, frequency of short-acting beta2-agonist (SABA) use, type of treatment and perceived rate of asthma control, low monthly income, age group, presence of comorbidity, moderate persistent asthma, severe persistent asthma and use of SABA alone as anti-asthmatic medication, use of biomass fuel for cooking, longer duration of asthma (> 30 years), incorrect inhalation technique, and asthma exacerbation in the last 12 months. Self-perceived poor asthma control was associated with any activity limitation due to asthma, inconsistent inhaled corticosteroid use, and lack of health education on metered-dose inhaler technique [AOR =4.96; 95% CI (1.08-22.89)]. CONCLUSIONS: Nearly two-thirds of patients were determined to have uncontrolled asthma. Thus, this evidence suggests that attention should be given to asthma patients and health care providers.

Determinants of hypertension among diabetic patients in Public Hospitals of the Central Zone, Tigray, Ethiopia 2018: unmatched case-control study.

INTRODUCTION: Hypertension, among diabetic patients, is a worldwide public-health challenge and a leading modifiable risk factor for other cardiovascular diseases. The main purpose of this study was to identify determinants of hypertension among diabetic patients. METHODS: Data were collected from January to March 2018 using an interviewer-administered structured questionnaire. Data collectors and supervisors were trained before the period of data collection. The questionnaire was pretested on 5% of the sample at Suhul hospital. Bivariable logistic regression was employed to examine the crude associations between the outcome variable and determinant variables. This was followed by multivariable analysis to examine the determinants of hypertension among diabetic patients by selecting variables which had p value ≤0.2 in the bivariable analysis. RESULTS: The age range of the respondents was 18-80 years, with the median age of 51.56±14.92 years. Not attending diabetes mellitus education sessions (AOR=2.61, 95% CI (1.12,6.1), duration since diagnosis with diabetes (AOR=8.52; 95% CI (1.97, 36.84), poor glycemic control (AOR=22.99, 95CI (5.92,89.28), overweight (AOR=4.84, 95%CI (1.42,16.51), and non-adherence to diabetes medication (AOR=4.66, 95% CI (2.22,9.79), diet (AOR=9.70,95% CI (3.34,28.22), exercise (AOR= 5.47, 95% CI (2.35,12.75), and self-monitoring blood glucose (AOR=6.62, 95% CI (3.16, 13.86) were found to be the determinants of hypertension among diabetic patients. CONCLUSION: This research concludes that longer duration with diabetes, nonattendance of diabetes education sessions, poor glycemic control, and not-adherence to antidiabetic medications, diet, exercise and self-monitoring blood glucose were found to be the determinants of hypertension among diabetic patients.

Risk factors of birth asphyxia among newborns in public hospitals of Central Zone, Tigray, Ethiopia 2018.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of study was to identify risk factors of birth asphyxia among newborns in public hospitals of Central Zone Tigray, Ethiopia 2018. RESULTS: A total of 88 cases and 176 controls were included in the study. Thirty (34.1%) cases and 28 (15.9%) of controls were not able to read and write. Twenty-one (23.9%) cases and 9 (5.1%) controls were had meconium stained on pelvic examination. Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that maternal illiteracy [AOR = 6; 95% CI (1.51, 23.80)], low birth weight [AOR = 6.9; 95% CI (3.01, 15.81)], preterm [AOR = 2.2; 95% CI (1.022, 4.76)], prim parous [AOR = 3.1; 95% CI (1.51, 6.38)], antepartum hemorrhage [AOR = 12; 95% CI (2.29, 63.11)] and meconium stained amniotic fluid [AOR = 7.88; 95% CI (2.92, 21.29)] were independent risk factors of birth asphyxia.