ObjectiveThe aim of study was to identify risk factors of birth asphyxia among newborns in public hospitals of Central Zone Tigray, Ethiopia 2018.ResultsA 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.

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.

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.

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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) Guidelines 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.