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Objective. To determine the hematologic profile of preterm infants with regard to different diseases. Methods. A prospective, cross-sectional, observational study, conducted in 5 hospitals in Ethiopia from July 2016 to May 2018. Preterm babies <7 days of age were included and investigated with complete blood counts (CBC) and other investigations, accordingly. Results. Out of 4919 preterms, 3852 (78.3%) were admitted to a newborn intensive care unit, and of these, 68.3% had a CBC performed. The mean values of hemoglobin, white blood cell (WBC) and platelet counts were 17.9 mg/dL; 12 685 cells/mm3, and 159 340 cells/mm3, respectively. Early onset neonatal sepsis (EONS) 1433 (37%), asphyxia 266 (6.9%), and respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) 1738 (45.3%) were common reasons for admission. The WBC count was <5000 cells/mm3 for 8.8%, 9.0%, and 11.1% of neonates with EONS, asphyxia and RDS, respectively. The hemoglobin value was <7 mg/dL for 0.6%, 1.7%, and 0.4% of preterm infants with EONS, asphyxia, and RDS, respectively. The platelet count was <50 000 cells/mm3 for 16.8%, 17.7%, and 19.8% of preterms admitted with a diagnosis of EONS, asphyxia, and RDS, respectively. Conclusion. WBC and platelet counts were the most common to be associated with EONS, asphyxia, and RDS. Further study is recommended to determine the effect of abnormal hematologic profile on the outcome of preterm babies.

Background Every 75 seconds, a child under five dies of malaria. Mainly children, aged between six months and five years, are at the highest risk for malaria. These children lost maternal immunity and did not yet developed specific immunity to the infection. Under the age of five, children bear the highest burden of malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Many individual and community level factors could contribute to malaria prevalence remaining high among under-five children in the region. Thus, this study aimed to assess the pooled prevalence of malaria among children aged 6–59 months and identify potential factors associated with malaria by using recent Malaria Indicator Surveys in 13 SSA countries. Methods Data for this study were drawn from recent 13 Sub-Saharan African countries Malaria Indicator Surveys (MIS). A total weighted sample of 60,541 children aged 6–59 months was included. STATA version 14.2 was used to clean, code and analyze the data. Multilevel logistic regression was employed to identify factors associated with malaria. Adjusted odds ratio with 95% CI and a P value <0.05 was reported to indicate statistical association. Model fitness and comparison were done using Inter cluster correlation coefficient, Median odds ratio, proportional change in variance, and deviance. Results The pooled prevalence of malaria among children aged 6–59 months was found to be 27.41% (95% CI: 17.94%-36.88%). It ranges from 5.04% in Senegal to 62.57% in Sierra Leone. Aged 36–47 months (AOR = 3.54, 95% CI 3.21–3.91), and 48–59 months (AOR = 4.32, 95% CI 3.91–4.77), mothers attended primary education (AOR = 0.78, 95% CI 0.73–0.84), richer (AOR = 0.35, 95% CI 0.32–0.39), and richest household (AOR = 0.16, 95% CI 0.14–0.19), number of three and more under-five children (AOR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.26–1.45), improved floor material (AOR = 0.65, 95% CI 0.57–0.73), improved wall material (AOR = 0.73, 95% CI 0.64–0.84), improved roof material (AOR = 0.70, 95% CI 0.51–0.93), insecticide-treated bed net (ITN) use (0.56, 95% CI 0.51–0.62), not anemic (AOR = 0.05, 95% CI 0.04–0.06), rural resident (AOR = 2.16, 95% CI 2.06–2.27), high community ITN use (AOR = 0.40, 95% CI 0.24–0.63) and high community poverty (AOR = 2.66, 95% CI 2.53–2.84) were strongly associated with malaria. Conclusions and recommendations Almost 3 out of 10 children were infected by malaria in 13 SSA countries. Malaria infection remains one of the main killers of children aged 6–59 months in the SSA. This study revealed that older under-five children living in large families with low incomes in rural areas are most vulnerable to malaria infection. Our results clearly indicate that ITN utilization and improved housing are promising means to effectively prevent malaria infection among children aged 6–59 months. It is therefore important to note that households with low wealth quintiles and rural residents should be prioritized in any mass distribution of ITNs. This has to be accompanied by education using mass media to enhance community awareness.

Background Ethiopia was using the ChAdOx1 COV-19 vaccine, and health professionals were targets of the first phase of the vaccination strategy. Evidence on the adverse events following immunization (AEFI) was barely available. The study aimed to assess the magnitude and associated factors of adverse events following ChAdOx1 COV-19 immunization among health professionals of the University of Gondar Specialized and Comprehensive Hospital, 2021. Methods An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among health professionals of the University of Gondar Comprehensive and specialized referral hospital. All health professionals who took the ChAdOx1 COV-19 vaccine in the 1st phase were surveyed. A total of 314 health professionals who took the ChAdOx1 COV-19 vaccine were included. The EpiData version 4.6.0.0 and Stata 16 were used for data entry and analysis, respectively. A binary logistic regression was used to identify statistically significant factors associated with AEFI. Chi-square and multicollinearity assumptions were tested. A p-value <0.2 and 0.05 were used as cut-off values of significance in the bi- and multivariable logistic regression models, respectively. An adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with 95% CI was reported for statistically significant variables. Results Among 314 study participants, 263 of them had at least one mild to severe AEFI of ChAdOx1 COV-19 with a prevalence of AEFI of 83.76% (95% CI: 79.23, 87.46). The commonest AEFI observed were injection site tenderness (n=198/263), fatigue (114/263), headache (n=107/263), and muscle pain (n=85/263). Females (AOR=2.75, 95% CI: 1.15, 6.58), and participants who felt the vaccine was unsafe (AOR=2.84, 95% CI: 1.03, 7.85) were having nearly three times more odds of AEFI immunization as compared to males and those who felt the vaccine was safe, respectively. Conclusion Adverse event following immunization has been a public health problem in Northwest Ethiopia. Being female and having a feeling that the vaccine is unsafe were statistically significantly associated with AEFI.

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