Moreover, the demographic characteristics and other indicators appeared to have significant influence in the prevalence of stunting. Public health programs are needed to avert the risk factors of stunting among children in Bangladesh.

Objective: This paper focuses on the use of ‘concurrent evaluation’ to evaluate a nationally scaled-up programme in Bangladesh that was implemented by BRAC (an international development organisation) using Shasthya Shebika (SS) – volunteer community health workers – to promote home fortification with micronutrient powders (MNP) for children under-five. Design: We developed a programme impact pathway to conceptualise the implementation and evaluation strategy and developed a strategic partnership among the key programme stakeholders for better use of evaluation evidence. We developed a multi-method concurrent evaluation strategy to provide insights into the BRAC programme and created provision for course correction to the implementation plan while it was in operation. Setting: One hundred sixty-four sub-districts and six urban slums in Bangladesh. Participants: Caregivers of children 6–59 months, SS and BRAC’s staff members. Results: The evaluation identified low awareness about home fortification among caregivers, inadequate supply and frequent MNP stockouts, and inadequate skills of BRAC’s SS to promote MNP at the community level as hindrances to the achievement of programme goals. The partners regularly discussed evaluation results during and after implementation activities to assess progress in programme coverage and any needs for modification. BRAC initiated a series of corrections to the original implementation plan to address these challenges, which improved the design of the MNP programme; this resulted in enhanced programme outcomes. Conclusions: Concurrent evaluation is an innovative approach to evaluate complex real-world programmes. Here it was utilised in implementing a large-scale nutrition programme to measure implementation process and effectiveness.

Higher accumulation of toxic heavy metals in rice grown in agricultural soil may lead to health disorder. The present study was carried out to assess the levels of different heavy metals like potassium, calcium, titanium, vanadium, chromium, manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper and zinc in agricultural soil. The soil samples were collected by soil auger from the arable fields of Nolam near Dhaka Export Processing Zone Area (DEPZA), Savar, Dhaka of Bangladesh. The samples were irradiated using 3MV Van de Graaff Accelerator at the Atomic Energy Centre, Dhaka and Proton Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) technique was employed for the analysis. The results indicated a substantial build-up of heavy metals in surface soil andsub-surface soil. Average metal concentrations were calculated and compared with reference values. The persistence of heavy metals in surface soil was higher than the sub-surface soil and it exceeded the standard safe limit. Uptake and translocation factor of heavy metal from surface soil to sub-surface soil were quite distinguished for almost all elements examined. In terms of health risk, the observed highest concentrations of these elements in soil could have an effect on human health which may pose public health hazards and for this pretreatment process of waste water is necessary for reducing the amount of heavy metals before using it to the agricultural soil. Wastewater from industries or other sources carries an appreciable amount of toxic heavy metals therefore their discharge into the environment must be minimized and carefully controlled.

Packed and unpacked spices may contain high level of lead that poses health threats. It may be due to soil contamination or artificial mixing of heavy elements to make the spices look brighter to attract customers. Some spices sample like turmeric and red chilli powder of local market in Bangladesh were collected to determine the toxicity present in them. The sample were dried and pressed to make pellet and irradiated by proton beam of 2.4 MeV and in the current range of 10-15 nA using 3 MV Van de Graaff Acclerator, Atomic Energy Centre, Dhaka and the IBA technique PIXE has been used for all of the experiments. Accuracy and precision of the technique were assured by analyzing certified reference material in the same experimental conditions. The elements that were found to be present in these samples are P, S, Cl, K, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn. Among the investigated sample, one turmeric powder sample contains excess Pd which may affect human health. Proper care should be taken on processing the spices.

Objective: To determine the epidemiological profile of dermatophytes among patients of tinea capitis and their susceptibility pattern to fluconazole and terbinafine. Method: The cross-sectional study was conducted at the Department of Microbiology, Basic Medical Sciences Institute, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi, from August to December 2019, and comprised samples of hair and skin from the scalp of tinea capitis patients regardless of age and gender. Demographic details were collected and the samples were processed for direct microscopy and mycological culture. Antifungal susceptibility testing for fluconazole and terbinafine was performed using broth microdilution method. Data was analysed using SPSS 21. Results: Of the 207 patients, 115(55.5%) were males, and 114(55.1%) were children. Alopecia was the most common presenting complaint 141(68.1%), while grey patch tinea was the most characteristic clinical form 53(25.6%). Dermatophytes were yielded in 61(29.5%) cases, non-dermatophytes were isolated in 45(21.7%) specimens, and 101(48.8%) were culture-negative. Among the dermatophytes, trichophyton violaceum was the most common pathogen 21(34.4%), followed by trichophyton mentagrophytes 18(29.5%). Resistance to fluconazole and terbinafine among dermatophytes was recorded in 12(19.7%) and 7(11.5%) isolates, respectively. Conclusion: The frequency of dermatophytes among tinea capitis patients was higher compared to non-dermatophyte species. Antifungal resistance was predominantly seen in trichophyton violaceum and trichophyton mentagrophytes. Key Words: Antifungal agents, Drug resistance, Fluconazole, Terbinafine, Tinea capitis.