Search

Alemu Degu, Gedefaye Nibret, Habtamu Gebrehana, Adanech Getie, Bekalu Getnet College of Health Sciences, Debre Tabor University, Debre Tabor, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Alemu Degu Email degualemu53@gmail.comPurpose: The current emerging respiratory disease known as the novel Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) is now an international concern and a pandemic with non-availability of treatment. Due to altered physiology, weakened mechanical and immunological features pregnant mothers constitute a particularly suspectable segment of population in any infection pandemic. The goal of this study was to assess level of knowledge and attitude towards COVID-19 and determinants among pregnant mothers attending antenatal care (ANC) in Debre Tabor General Hospital Northwest Ethiopia.Patient and Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was performed from June 05 to 26, 2020. A total of 403 pregnant mothers participated and were selected by systematic random sampling. Data were collected via face-to-face interviewer-administered questionnaire. Data were entered using Epi-Data version 4.2 and analyzed by SPSS version 23. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed and p-value < 0.05 at 95% CI was considered as statistically significant.Results: Overall, 52.1% and 52.6% of participants had a good level of knowledge and positive attitude towardCOVID-19, respectively. Level of knowledge was significantly associated with participants’ age (15– 24 years) (AOR: 4.58; 95% CI: 1.721– 12.201), educational status (AOR:7.78; 95% CI: 2.31– 15.65) occupation (AOR:2.26; 95% CI: 1.23– 4.15), and condition of pregnancy (AOR:4.55; 95% CI: 1.84– 11.25). Whereas age (25– 34 years) (AOR:2.61; 95% CI: 1.23– 5.55), participants husband completed secondary education (AOR=2.75, 95% CI: 1.13– 6.70) and college and above (AOR:3.77; 95% CI: 1.1.62– 8.76), wanted pregnancy (AOR:2.70; 95% CI: 1.22– 5.97) and knowledge (AOR:1.65; 95% CI: 1.06– 2.572) were the significant predictors for attitude.Conclusion: Findings show that almost half of the participants had a good level of knowledge and positive attitude towards COVID-19. Age, educational status, occupational status, condition of current pregnancy was positively associated with women level of awareness of COVID-19. Additional research is needed to see the impact of COVID-19 on pregnancy and feto-maternal effect.Keywords: attitude, COVID-19, Debre Tabor, knowledge, pregnant women

Gedefaye Nibret Mihretie, Amare Simegn, Agernesh Dereje, Habtamu Gebrehana, Adanech Getie, Bekalu Getnet, Alemu Degu Department of Midwifery, College of Health Sciences, Debre Tabor University, Debre Tabor, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Gedefaye Nibret Mihretie Tel +251918159217Email gedefayen@gmail.comIntroduction: While family planning (FP) is important throughout an individual’s and couple’s reproductive life, postpartum family planning (PPFP) focuses on the prevention of unintended and closely spaced pregnancies through the first 12 months following childbirth. However, modern contraception utilization practice during the postpartum period is underemphasized in Ethiopia.Objective: This study aimed to assess postpartum modern contraceptive utilization and associated factors among postpartum women in Addis Zemen, South Gondar, Ethiopia in 2019.Methods: Community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from January 1 to February 30, 2019 on 402 women. Study subjects were selected by simple random sampling technique. The data were collected by a structured and pretested, face-to-face, interviewer-administered questionnaire, entered into EpiData 4.2 and analyzed by using SPSS 23 software. Bivariate and multivariable analyses were used to examine the association. Odds ratio, 95% confidence interval (CI) and P-value < 0.05 were used to determine the statistical association.Results: The prevalence of postpartum family planning utilization was 54.7%. Maternal educational status (adjusted odd ratio (AOR)=2.99, 95% CI (1.72, 5.19)), menses return (AOR=4.76, 95% CI (3.03, 7.48)), less than four alive children (AOR=3.61, 95% CI (1.51, 4.51)), postnatal care follow-up (AOR=2.96, 95% CI (1.57, 5.57)), length of time after delivery (AOR=1.80, 95% CI (1.16, 2.79)) and knowledge (AOR=1.69, 95% CI (1.07, 2.66)) were significantly associated with postpartum modern contraceptive utilization.Conclusion: The postpartum modern contraceptive utilization was low. Therefore, health care providers should strengthen the integration of family planning services with maternal and child health service, provide health information about timely use of contraceptives and improve postnatal care follow-up after giving birth.Keywords: postpartum, modern contraceptive, utilization, reproductive age, Addis Zemen, Ethiopia

Getnet Kassa B. Int J Womens Health. 2021;13:9—17. The Editor and Publisher of International Journal of Women’s Health wish to retract the published article. It was brought to the journal’s attention the author, Bekalu Getnet Kassa, had taken data from a previous research study undertaken in 2019 by another researcher. The author used this data without permission and submitted the article to the International Journal of Women’s Health on the pretence that it was an original study performed by them. The author indicated the study had been performed in the South Gondar Zone of Northwest Ethiopia in 2020 and the data had been collected from hospitals in the South Gondar Zone, Ethiopia, from 12 January 2020 to 03 February 2020. However, the data was actually collected from Bahir Dar health facilities, North West Ethiopia, by another researcher in 2019. The Editor requested for the article to be retracted. The author wishes to apologise and agrees with the decision to retract the article. Our decision-making was informed by our policy on publishing ethics and integrity and the COPE guidelines on retraction. The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be digitally watermarked on each page as “Retracted”. Read the original article

Abstract Introduction Social and Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) plays a critical role in improving behavior and health outcomes across the continuum of healthcare. Failing to implement tailored SBCC strategies continues to pose a risk of ill health, increase disease burden, and impact the quality life of people. In Ethiopia, front-line healthcare system actors’ knowledge and skills about SBCC have not been rigorously assessed. Thus, the current study aimed to assess healthcare system actors’ competencies in designing, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating SBCC interventions in Ethiopia. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted between 01 August and 31 October, 2020. Five hundred twenty-eight frontline healthcare system actors in SBCC in Ethiopia were included using simple random sampling technique. Data was collected using a self-administered structured questionnaire adopted from Communication for Change; SBCC capacity assessment tool. Descriptive analysis frequencies, percentages, mean, median, standard deviation (SD), interquartile range (IQR) were employed. Besides correlations and linear regression with robust standard errors were carried out. A 95% confidence interval and a p-value of less than 0.05 were used to declare significant statistical association. Results A total of 488 frontline workers participated in the study, with a response rate of 92.4%. The mean SBCC knowledge score was 13.2 ± standard deviation (SD) 3.99 and 59.2% scored below 60% of the expected maximum score. The standard mean score of overall skill in SBCC intervention was 2.36 (SD ± 0.98) and 52.6% of them scored below mean score. The SBCC knowledge was significantly predicted by the service year and the regional variation. On the other hand, SBCC skills was significantly predicted by sex, service year, profession, regional variation, and SBCC knowledge. The regional variation was the main predictor of both knowledge and skill on SBCC. The regression models explained 23.1% and 50.2% of the variance in knowledge and skill of SBCC, respectively. Conclusion Front-line healthcare system actors in Ethiopia has low knowledge and skills in SBCC. Variations in SBCC knowledge and skill were observed based on demographic and professionals experience related characteristics. Hence, continuous capacity building activities need to be given to frontline healthcare system actors to enhance their knowledge and skill on SBCC program and achieve the intended health results.

ABSTRACTThe optimization of settings of spinning machinery is one of the technically most urgent tasks when it comes to achieving the best possible raw material utilization for a high-quality yarn. Carding, as part of an integrated draw frame, is the very critical process in spinning preparation for open end rotor spun yarn manufacturing. The aim of the integrated draw frame process in a spinning line is to produce uniform slivers (with low deviation in mass per unit length) where the fibers are laid parallel and the sliver has relatively low neps, short fiber, trash and dust contents. This work examined the potential effects of a range of speed settings on the physical properties of sliver. Optimization results of the study showed that 3.5 CVm% and 2.8 U% of sliver achieved with 96.3% desirability with optimum predicted value of neps 252 cnt/g, short fiber content by number 25.8%, trash 29 cnt/g and dust 234 cnt/g satisfied at licker in speed of 1250 rpm, cylinder speed of 650 rpm, flat speed 0.29 m/min, and C 60 RSB total draft of 2.11 for processing the cotton variety of Deltapine 90 (DP-90).

Increasing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) challenges conventional antibiotics, prompting the search for alternatives. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) from pasteurised cattle milk offer promise, due to their unique properties. This study investigates their efficacy against five pathogenic bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, aiming to combat AMR and to develop new therapies. EVs were characterised and tested using various methods. Co-culture experiments with S. aureus showed significant growth inhibition, with colony-forming units decreasing from 2.4 × 105 CFU/mL (single dose) to 7.4 × 104 CFU/mL (triple doses) after 12 h. Milk EVs extended lag time (6 to 9 h) and increased generation time (2.8 to 4.8 h) dose-dependently, compared to controls. In conclusion, milk EVs exhibit dose-dependent inhibition against S. aureus, prolonging lag and generation times. Despite limitations, this suggests their potential in addressing AMR.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of organizational justice (OJ) on organizational commitment (OC) in the public universities of Amhara region. A descriptive survey design was employed. The size of the population was 2170. Of these, 900 instructors were selected using stratified and simple random sampling techniques. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect the data. The collected data were analyzed using one-sample t-test, Structural Equation Modeling, and one-way analysis of variances (ANOVA). The result of one sample t-test indicated that instructors perceived the state distributive justice fairly, while they perceived procedural and interactional justice to a little extent in the workplace. With regard to OC, instructors were moderately committed to carry out their jobs due to their emotional attachment with their universities and sense of responsibility to serve their universities. There was a positive and statistically significant relationship between OJ and OC with a standardized correlation coefficient (r=.766) by the critical ratio test greater than ±1.96 at p

BackgroundInfections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria results in high rates of morbidity and mortality. Although the prolonged cotrimoxazole (CTX) prophylaxis is arguably associated with the risk of increasing drug resistance in the common pathogens, information regarding its impact on Streptococci pneumoniae / pneumococcus is very limited.ObjectiveThis study was conducted to investigate the effect of cotrimoxazole prophylaxis on nasopharyngeal colonization rate and antimicrobial resistance using Streptococci pneumoniae (pneumococcus) as an indicator organism among HIV patients in Arba Minch, Ethiopia.Materials and methodsA comparative cross-sectional study was designed and conducted among HIV patients attending the Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) clinic of Arba Minch General Hospital (AMGH) from April 01 to August 31, 2018. A total of 252 participants were systematically selected and clustered into two study groups based on their CTX prophylaxis status, one taking CTX prophylaxis, and the second one, the control group (without prophylaxis). A structured questionnaire was used to collect socio-demographic and clinical data from patients. A nasopharyngeal swab was collected and cultured for pneumococcal isolation and identification in accordance with standard microbiological techniques. An antibiotics sensitivity test was performed according to the CLSI guidelines. Data were analyzed using the Statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 20. The primary outcome was determined using logistic regression analysis.ResultsOf the 252 enrolled HIV patients (mean age (37.38± 9.03 years), 144 (57.14%) were males. The overall, nasopharyngeal colonization rate of S. pneumoniae was 13.5% (95% CI: 8.4-15.6). Asymptomatic pneumococcal carriage rates among patients on CTX prophylaxis and the control group were 16.3%, and 10.3% respectively (p-value = 0.03). Regarding the risk factors analyzed, CTX prophylaxis (AOR: 2.2; 95% CI: 1.05-4.9) and gender (AOR: 2.5; 95% CI: 1.09-5.93) were significantly associated with pneumococcal colonization, showing a male preponderance. Cotrimoxazole-resistant pneumococci were 85.7% vs. 47.4% in the prophylaxis group and the control group respectively and it was statistically significant (AOR: 6.7; 95% CI: 1.3-36). Percentages of multi-drug resistant isolates in these two groups were 38.09 and 15.38 respectively (p-value = 0.04). Among the CTX resistant pneumococci isolates, 85% were also found to be co-resistant towards penicillin and was statistically significant.ConclusionThe percentage prevalence of nasopharyngeal pneumococci colonization was higher in patients taking CTX prophylaxis. It was noted that CTX prophylaxis eventually results in the selection of cotrimoxazole resistance and multi-drug resistance in pneumococci. There is evidence of existing cross-resistance between cotrimoxazole and penicillin antibiotics. Therefore, CTX prophylaxis must be administered judiciously. Surveillance for antimicrobial susceptibility is warranted where the prophylaxis is common.

Abstract Background The prevalence of under nutrition is very high in developing countries especially in women and under five children. Stunting alone affected an estimated 154.8 million (22.9%) under five children globally in 2016. It is one of the main undernutrition and health problems facing children in Ethiopia. Hence, the aim of the current study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of stunting among preschool children from food secure and food insecure households in Albuko district, northeast Ethiopia. Methods This study was addressed by a community based comparative cross sectional study design which was conducted among preschool children in Albuko district from March to April 2017. Simple random sampling was used to select the five representative kebeles. To reach study participants, systematic sampling technique was utilized. Pretested and structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Height measurement was collected for each child. Anthropometric indicator, height-for-age was determined for children using current WHO growth standards. Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with its 95 % confidence interval (CI) was computed to assess the strength of the association. To identify the associated factors of stunting, multivariable logistic regression models were built. In the multivariable analysis, variables with a P-value of

Abstract Objective This study was done to determine the prevalence and phenotypic characterization of Enterococcus species isolated from clinical samples of pediatric patients in Jimma University Specialized Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia. Results The overall prevalence of Enterococci species was 5.5% (22/403). Five (22.7%) of Enterococci species were vancomycin resistant. Haemolysin, gelatinase and biofilm production was seen among 45.5, 68.2 and 77.3% of isolates respectively. The overall rate of antibiotic resistance was 95.5% (21/22). High resistance was observed against norfloxacin (87.5%), and tetracycline (77.3%). Whereas, low resistance (36.5%) was observed against ciprofloxacin and eighteen (80.8%) of the isolates were multi-drug resistant.

Following publication of the original article [1], the authors reported that one of the authors’ names was spelled incorrectly. In this Correction the incorrect and correct author name are shown.

Background: Promotion of facial cleanliness is recommended for the elimination of blinding trachoma, largely because of observational studies that have found an association between various measures of facial uncleanliness and trachoma. However, when a field grader assesses both facial cleanliness and trachoma, associations may be biased. Assessment of photographs of the face and conjunctiva by masked graders may provide a less biased estimate of the relationship between facial cleanliness and trachoma., Methods: Face photographs, conjunctival photographs, and conjunctival swabs were obtained on a random sample of 0-9-year-old children from each of 40 communities in Amhara region, Ethiopia. Face photographs were assessed for the presence of seven measures of an unclean face (i.e., wet nasal discharge, dry nasal discharge, wet ocular discharge, dry ocular discharge, food, dust/dirt, and flies) by three independent masked photo-graders. Conjunctival photographs were similarly graded in a masked fashion for signs of clinically active trachoma. Conjunctival swabs were processed for Chlamydia trachomatis DNA., Results: Of 2073 children with complete data, 808 (39%) had evidence of clinically active trachoma, 150 (7%) had evidence of ocular chlamydia infection, and 2524 (91%) had at least one measure of an unclean face. Dry ocular discharge had the strongest association with clinically active trachoma (age- and sex-adjusted prevalence ratio [PR] 1.4, 95% CI 1.2-1.6) and ocular chlamydia infection (PR 1.9, 95%CI 1.3-2.9), although significant associations were observed between each of the measures of facial uncleanliness and trachoma., Conclusions: Masked assessment of face and conjunctival photographs confirmed prior observational studies that have noted associations between various measures of facial uncleanliness and trachoma. The causal relationship between facial uncleanliness and trachoma is unclear since many features used to measure facial cleanliness (e.g., ocular discharge, nasal discharge, and flies) could be consequences of antecedent ocular chlamydia infection., Trial Registration: NCT02754583, clinicaltrials.gov., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist., (Copyright: © 2024 Caleon et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Malnutrition is one of the most significant child health problems in developing countries, accounting for an estimated 53% of child deaths per year. Depression is the leading cause of disease-related disability in women and adversely affects the health and well-being of mothers and their children. Studies have shown that maternal depression has an impact on infant growth and nutritional status. However, evidence is scarce regarding the relationship between maternal depression and child malnutrition., Objectives: The general objective of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of maternal depression among mothers of undernourished children at comprehensive specialized hospitals in Northwest Ethiopia in 2023., Methods: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 465 participants. Outcome variables were assessed using a Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Data were analyzed using SPSS-25. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were conducted. Variables with a p-value less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant with a corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI)., Results: The prevalence of maternal depression among mothers of children with undernutrition was 36.4% (95% CI = 32%-41%). According to a multivariate analysis, lack of maternal education (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.872, 95% CI = 1.502-5.492), unemployment (AOR = 2.581, 95% CI = 1.497-4.451), poor social support (AOR = 2.209, 95% CI = 1.314-3.713), perceived stigma (AOR = 2.243, 95% CI = 1.414-3.560), and stunting (AOR = 1.913, 95% CI = 1.129-3.241) were factors significantly associated with maternal depression., Conclusion: The overall prevalence of maternal depression was higher among mothers of children with undernutrition. This higher prevalence was associated with several factors, including lack of education, unemployment, poor social support, high perceived stigma, and stunted physical growth in the children themselves. To decrease maternal depression, we can address these factors by increasing the level of maternal education and employment opportunities, strengthening social support systems, reducing stigma, and providing interventions to reduce stunting., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Yenealem, Negash, Madoro, Molla, Nenko, Nakie and Getnet.)

Introduction: Anxiety disorder is an unpleasant emotional feeling with symptoms related to psychological and autonomic symptoms such as headache, perspiration, palpitations, dizziness, and stomach discomfort. The use of substances become a worldwide problem among youth which brings situation that leads to serious social and health-related problems. Anxiety disorders with substance use have a huge impact on their high prevalence, therapeutic issues, and poor prognosis on clinical effects. Although the prevalence of anxiety disorders is significant among young people who use substances, limited studies were conducted. Therefore, this study revealed the burden of anxiety disorders among youth with substance use and associated factors in Ethiopia., Method: A community-based multi-stage with a simple random sampling technique was conducted. A total of 372 substance users study participants were recruited for this study. Alcohol, Smoking, and Substance Involvement Screening Tests, Depression Anxiety Stress Scales, and other tools were used to assess anxiety disorders with substance use and associated factors. Data were entered into Epi-data version 4.6, and exported to SPSS version 20 for further analysis. Bi-variables logistic regression analysis was employed to identify variables with a p-value of < 0.2 and associated factors were determined in multi-variables logistic regression analysis with a p-value < 0.05 with AOR and CI., Results: From a total of 372 respondents the overall prevalence of anxiety disorders with substance use was 48.1%. Male sex [AOR = 1.99; 95% CI: (1.01-3.93)], low educational status of the father [AOR = 6.38 95%CI: (1.50-7.08)], and the presence of stress [AOR = 2.48; 95% CI: 2.48(2.43-4.40)] were significantly associated factors with anxiety disorders with substances use., Conclusions and Recommendations: The prevalence of anxiety disorders with substance use was 48.1% therefore; it is recommended that the zonal administration give collaborative work with the health bureau and facilitate awareness creation about the impact of substance abuse. Clinicians are recommended to mitigate anxiety disorders with substance use to get a good prognosis for clients with controlling their stress., Competing Interests: no conflict of interest., (Copyright: © 2024 Melkam et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.)

Background: Suicidal ideation and attempts usually occur during adolescence time, and living in war- affected area make the problem more predominate and severe. To the best of our knowledge, there were no studies done among high school students who live in war affected areas in Ethiopia., Objective: We assessed the prevalence and factors associated with suicide ideation and suicide attempts among high school students of war- affected area at Woldia town, Northeast, Ethiopia., Methods: School based cross-sectional study was conducted from May 23 to June 08, 2022.Data were collected from high school students in Woldia town, Ethiopia. Pretested, self-administered Amharic-language questionnaire was used to collect the data. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression was used to identify the independent factors associated with suicide ideation and attempt., Results: A total of 668 of the 707 sampled students participated in the study (94.5% response rate). The prevalence of suicidal ideation and attempts among high school students in Woldia town was 16.29% and 12.87%, respectively. In the multivariable analysis, poor social support(AOR = 2.86, 95% CI:1.49, 5.46), posttraumatic stress disorder (AOR = 2.15, 95% CI:1.20, 3.85), family history of suicide(AOR = 3.94, 95% CI:2.21, 7.04), anxiety(AOR = 3.45, 95% CI:1.72, 6.89), and depression (AOR = 2.31, 95% CI:1.24, 4.33) were factors significantly associated with suicide ideation, and poor social support(AOR = 2.75, 95% CI:1.38, 5.47), depression (AOR = 4.27, 95% CI:2.10, 8.67) and being a female sex (AOR = 2.12, 95% CI:1.22, 3.69) were factors significantly associated with suicidal attempt., Conclusions and Recommendations: This study revealed that at least one in six and one in eight of the students had suicidal ideation and attempt, respectively. Therefore, we recommend that Ministry of Education shall work with Ministry of Health to extend and implement mental health services in high schools and provide social support to those students who need the services in order for the prevention of suicidal ideation and attempts., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Background: Substance use is associated with high rates of psychiatric symptoms including psychotic symptoms. Despite the severity of the problem, there are intervention gaps in Ethiopia. To combat this, relevant evidence is required to raise the awareness of service providers. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of psychotic symptoms and its associated factors among the youth population who uses psychoactive substances in the Central Gondar Zone, Northwest Ethiopia., Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among the youth population in the Central Gondar zone, Northwest Ethiopia, from 01 January to 30 March 2021. A multistage sampling technique was used to recruit the study participants. All data were collected using questionnaires assessing socio-demographic; family-related variables; Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale; Multidimensional Scale Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), and Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-24). The data were analyzed using the STATA 14 statistical program., Results: A total of 372 young people who used psychoactive substances (79.57%, 53.49%, 34.14%, and 16.13% were consuming alcohol, Khat, tobacco/cigarette products, and other substances such as shisha, inhalants, and drugs, respectively) were included in the study. The prevalence of psychotic symptoms was 24.2% with a 95% CI: 20.1, 28.8. Being married [AOR = 1.87 95% CI: 1.06, 3.48], recent loss of loved ones [AOR = 1.97 95% CI: 1.10, 3.18], low perceived social support [AOR = 1.61 95% CI: 1.11, 3.02], and severe psychological distress [AOR = 3.23 95% CI; 1.64, 6.54] were the factors associated with psychotic symptoms among young people with psychoactive substances use at a p -value of < 0.05., Conclusion: Psychotic symptoms related to psychoactive substances among the youth population in Northwest Ethiopia were high. Thus, it is better to give a special attention to the youth population with low social support and existing psychological distress concurrent with psychoactive substance use., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Kassew, Tilahun, Alemayehu, Getnet, Demilew, Tarekegn, Alemu, Yesuf, Oumer, Mehari, Melkam and Nenko.)

Childhood maltreatment may alter fear neurocircuitry, which results in pathological anxiety and depression. One alteration of fear-related behaviors that has been observed in several psychiatric populations is an overgeneralization of fear. Thus, we examined the association between childhood maltreatment and fear generalization in a non-clinical sample of young adults. Two hundred and ninety-one participants underwent differential fear conditioning in a fear-potentiated startle paradigm. One visual stimulus (CS+), but not another (CS-), was associated with an aversive airblast to the throat (US) during acquisition. The next day, participants were tested for their fear responses to the CS+, CS-, and several generalization stimuli (GS) without the presence of the US. Participants also completed questionnaires that assessed symptoms of childhood maltreatment, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants reporting high childhood maltreatment ( n = 71; 23 males, 48 females) exhibited significantly greater anxiety, depression, and symptoms of PTSD than participants reporting low childhood maltreatment ( n = 220; 133 males, 87 females). Females reporting high childhood maltreatment demonstrated significantly enhanced fear learning and greater fear generalization, based on their fear-potentiated startle responses. Our findings suggest that childhood maltreatment may sex-dependently influence the development of fear neurocircuitry and result in greater fear generalization in maltreated females.

Background: Substance use leads to serious clinical conditions with the potential to cause major health and emotional impairments in individuals. Individuals with substance use typically report significantly poorer QoL than the general population and as low as those with other serious psychiatric disorders. It has a high impact on morbidity, mortality, and productivity, it also compromises the general safety and performance of the users, i.e., affects the quality of life. Therefore, this study aimed to assess quality of life and identify the potential predictors among youths who use substances., Methods: A multicenter cross-sectional study design was applied to assess quality of life and associated factors among substance use youths in the central Gondar zone from January 1 to March 30/ 2021. A total of 373 substance use youths were included in the study. The data were collected using face-to-face interview by structured questionnaires, and entered to Epi-data version 4.6 and exported to STATA version 16, and AMOS software for further statistical analysis. To identify factors associated with health-related quality of life, structural equation modeling was used, and it also used to estimate the relationships among exogenous, mediating, and endogenous variables., Results: Substance used youths had a moderate overall health-related quality of life (mean score = 50.21 and 14.32 standard deviation, p-value < 0.,0001), and poor health-related quality of life in the environmental health domain (mean score of 45.76 with standard deviation of 17.60). Age (β = 0.06, p<0.001), sex (β = 0.30, p<0.001), psychotic symptoms (β = -0.12, p<0.001), employment status (β = 0.06, p = 0.008,), loss of family (β = 0.35, p<0.001), and social support (β = 0.27, p<0.001) were variables significantly associated with health-related quality of life., Conclusion: According to the findings of this study, substance abuse during adolescence is associated with lower health-related quality of life and a higher report of psychopathological symptoms. Given this finding, mental health and health promotion professionals should learn about and emphasize the impact of substance use on youth quality of life., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Understanding the composition, diversity, and abundance of the zooplankton community is crucial for better utilization of the Ribb Reservoir, as zooplankton are the second link in the food chain in aquatic systems (they are also excellent bioindicators of aquatic health, given their central food web position) and the reservoir also serves as a source of income for the fishers. Therefore, sampling including some water quality parameters was conducted twice in the four seasons: autumn, summer, spring, and winter, from September 2020 to August 2021, in the first week of September, December, February, March, May, June, and August. Most of the physicochemical parameter values recorded in this study indicated that they were within the range of standards for zooplankton community requirements. Of the 14 species identified, Mesocyclops aequatorialis similis , T hermodiaptomus galebi , and Brachionus angularis had the first, second, and lowest records, respectively. Species abundance showed a decrease from autumn to winter and then to spring and summer. Species richness (14), abundance (6736), Margalef's diversity index (1.48), Menhinick's diversity index (0.17), Simpson index (0.098), dominance index (0.902), Shannon index (2.47), equality index (0.934), and reciprocal Simpson index (10.2) of the species were calculated in the reservoir. Some of the proposed management measures include reservoir buffering, impact assessment of over-abstraction of water for irrigation, time series of water quality data, and the reservoir water level should be above the conduit., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2022 The Author(s).)

Objectives: The objective of the study was to assess psychological distress (depression, anxiety and stress) and associated factors among healthcare professionals working at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Ethiopia., Design: Institution-based cross-sectional study., Setting: This study was conducted at the University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital., Participants: Study participants were healthcare professionals from University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. They were selected for the study using a stratified sampling technique., Measurement: Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. The 21-item Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale was used to assess the depression, anxiety and stress levels. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used to present the findings. To determine the predictor variables for depression, anxiety and stress, a binary logistic regression model was fitted. Finally, variables with p value <0.05 in the final model were declared as significantly associated with psychological distress., Result: Almost half (49.5) of the participants have psychological distress. The prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic among healthcare workers was 167 (42.7%), 201 (51.4%) and 242 (61.9%), respectively. In multivariable analysis, respondents found in the ages between 35 and 44; unmarried marital status; educational status with specialty, subspecialty and PhD holders; anaesthesia professionals; and healthcare professionals with known medical illness were significantly associated with depression. Unmarried marital status, anaesthesia professional, laboratory technologist and living with family were significantly associated with anxiety. Unmarried marital status; educational status with specialty, subspecialty and PhD holders; and anaesthesia professional were also statistically significant with stress., Conclusion and Recommendation: The prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 pandemic among the Gondar University healthcare professionals was high. This could contribute to implementation of mitigation measures in a standardised and sustainable manner and emphasis should be given to this aspect of health even for future similar and unanticipated events., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2022. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Substance use is referring to the use of psychoactive substances like chat, cigarettes, alcohol, and others. The use of substances particularly (alcohol, chat, and cigarette) is a major mental health burden in developing countries including Ethiopia among youth. Suicide ideation and an attempt are thinking or trying to kill oneself that facilitates the act of a person intentionally causing his or her death. Suicide is one of the most serious mental health problems and has a great social impact in the world as it is currently the third leading cause of death for youth. Youth is defined as the period of life between childhood and maturity with an age interval of (15-25)., Method: A cross-sectional study design was used to assess the prevalence of suicidal ideation and attempts with substance use among youth in northwest Ethiopia. Multi-stage sampling techniques of stratified with simple random sample ware used. In the first stage, substance users are selected then as the second stage among substance users the burden of suicide behavior is assessed. ASIST, DASS-21, and other tools were used to assess suicidal behavior with substance use and associated factors. Data were edited, purified, and entered into Epi-data version 4.6 before being exported to the statistical package for social sciences version 20 for analysis of bi-variables to see the associations' p-value < 0.2 and multi-variables to identify the associated variables with a p-value of < 0.05 AOR and CI also done., Results: From a total of 372 substance user participants over all prevalence of suicidal ideation and attempt among youth was 54(14.5%) with 95% CI of (11.0,18.0) and 37(9.9%) with 95% CI (7.0, 13.0) respectively. Being female [AOR =2.36;95% CI:(1.19, 4.68)], poor social support [AOR =3.03; 95% CI: (1.11, 8.25)], and anxiety [AOR = 3.82: 95% CI; (1.96, 7.46)]., Conclusion and Recommendations: The prevalence of suicidal ideation and attempt among substance users was 14.5 and 9.9% respectively therefore, immediate interventional actions needed to be administered to decrease the burden of suicide by reducing substance use and other associated factors., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: Acute stress disorder is the main factor of impairment in multiple areas of functioning that affects almost all age groups and which also influences mental and physical health. However, it negatively impacts the quality of life and social activities. The empirical evidence about probable acute stress disorder (ASD) and its associated factors is not available in Ethiopia to date. Therefore, the present study was aimed at identifying the magnitude and associated factors of probable ASD among traumatized patients in order to plan and render informed intervention for these vulnerable people., Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted at Felege-Hiwot and the University of Gondar comprehensive specialized hospitals from March 11/2020 to April 20/2020, by using a structured and semi-structured questionnaire. Systematic random sampling was used to recruit a total of 422 patients. The standard acute stress disorder scale was used to identify the prevalence of acute stress disorder by employing a face-to-face interview. Bivariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to identify associated factors with probable acute stress disorder. Statistical significance was declared on 95% of confidence intervals (CI) at P < 0.05., Results: The prevalence of probable acute stress disorder was found to be 45% (95% CI: 40.2 to 49.6). In the multivariate logistic analysis; exposure to past history of trauma (AOR = 3.46, 95%, CI: 1.01-11.80), past psychiatry illness (AOR = 3.02, 95% CI: 1.15-7.92), anxiety (AOR = 2.38, 95% CI: 1.30-4.38), poor social support (AOR = 4.07, 95% CI: 2.20-7.52) and moderate (AOR = 4.56, 95% CI:2.44-8.52), and sever perceived threat to life (AOR = 2.75, 95% CI: 1.64, 4.60) were factors significantly associated with probable acute stress disorder., Conclusion: Findings of this study indicated that the prevalence of probable acute stress disorder among study participants exposed to multiple forms of traumatic events was considerably high. History of trauma and past psychiatric illness, poor and moderate social support, and moderate perceived stress were factors significantly associated with probable acute stress disorder. The ministry of health and other concerned health organizations may find the current finding useful for early detection, prevention, and intervention strategies to minimize the factor of acute stress disorder in trauma survivors., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Background: In most developing countries, meeting young people's sexual and reproductive health (SRH) needs remains a problem. Despite policy initiatives and strategic measures aimed at increasing youth utilization of sexual and reproductive health services in Ethiopia, its utilization remains very low. Therefore, this study aimed to assess Ethiopia's youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services' utilisation and determinants., Methods: Scopus, Medline, Google Scholar, and CINAHL databases were searched for articles published until March 2021. The pooled prevalence and effect size of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health service use and associated factors were estimated using a weighted DerSimonian-laird random effect model. The I 2 statistics were used to determine the degree of heterogeneity. The funnel plot and Egger's regression test were used to examine publication bias. Subgroup analyses were performed to reduce underlying heterogeneity., Results: One thousand one hundred and ninety-one articles were generated from various databases, and a final 26 articles were included in the review, including 16246 participants. Ethiopia's pooled prevalence of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health service utilization was 42.73 % (95% CI: 35.38-50.09). The findings of this study showed that grade level 11-12, grade level 9-10, close to home sexual and reproductive health services, male sex, and discussion of sexual and reproductive health service with family, friends, and groups, ever experience sexual activity were associated with utilization of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services. Maternal educational status secondary school and above, age 15-19 years, age 20-24 years, having ever experienced reproductive problems, living with a partner, living alone, knowing about sexual and reproductive health, having a convenient working hour for youth-friendly service, and participation in a school clubs were also associated with the utilization of youth-friendly sexual and reproductive health services., Conclusion: We found several determinant factors for adolescent and youth utilization of sexual and reproductive health services. The review highlights the importance of improving service usage through youth education and promotion and the scaling up and institutionalizing of youth-friendly services through extensive capacity building., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest., (© 2021 The Authors.)

Introduction and Objective: Postdural puncture headache is one of the most frequent late complications of spinal anesthesia. There are different factors that might predispose for postdural puncture headache. Therefore, the main aim of this study was to assess the incidence of postdural puncture headache and its associated factors for parturients who gave birth by cesarean section under spinal anesthesia., Methods: Hospital-based longitudinal study was conducted on mothers who underwent cesarean section with spinal anesthesia. Descriptive analysis and chi-square test were employed. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression were used to measure the association of factors with the presence of postdural puncture headache. A p-value of ⩽0.05 was used to decide statistical significance for multivariable logistic regression., Result: A total of 119 parturients were participated in this study. The incidence of postdural puncture headache was 20.2%. According to multivariable logistic regression, having previous spinal anesthesia (adjusted odds ratio = 7.028; 95% confidence interval = 2.377-20.781; p = 0.0001), using 20- and 22-gauge needle (adjusted odds ratio = 4.206; 95% confidence interval = 1.247-14.187; p = 0.021), and repeated attempt (adjusted odds ratio = 4.699; 95% confidence interval = 1.594-13.872; p = 0.05) had statistically significant association with postdural puncture headache., Conclusion: Larger gauge needle size, repeated attempt, and previous spinal anesthesia might increase the incidence of postdural puncture headache., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interests: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article., (© The Author(s) 2021.)

Background: Early initiation of breastfeeding is putting the newborn to breast within one hour after birth. This study was aimed to assess prevalence of early initiation of breastfeeding and its associated factors among mothers who delivered by cesarean section in South Gondar Zone hospitals Northwest Ethiopia, 2020., Methods: An institutional based cross-sectional study was employed in South Gondar Zone hospitals from June 12 to July 03, 2020. A total of 356 cesarean delivered mothers were included. Data were collected using interviewer administered questionnaire and entered in to Epi Data version 4.2 and then exported to SPSS version 23.0. Logistic regression statistical analyses were used to identify factors associated with the outcome variables., Results: The prevalence of early initiation of breastfeeding among mothers who delivered by cesarean section was 51.9%. Mothers who had intended pregnancy [AOR = 2.69, 95% CI (1.34-5.38)], had professional guidance [AOR = 2.68, 95% CI (1.18-6.10)], had breastfeeding experience [AOR = 2.25, 95% CI (1.35-3.75)], and had four and above antenatal care visits [AOR = 2.20, 95% CI (1.24-3.91)] were positively associated with early initiation of breastfeeding among mothers who delivered by cesarean section., Conclusion: Type of pregnancy, professional guidance, had four or more antenatal care and breastfeeding experience were significantly associated with early initiation of breast feeding among mothers who delivered by cesarean section. Community based breastfeeding education and counseling to pregnant mothers and encouraging all mothers to follow recommended ANC visit is should be recommended.

Background: Depression is among the top mental health problems with a major contribution to the global burden of disease. This study aimed at identifying the latent factor structure and construct validity of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) Scale., Participants and Setting: A cross-sectional survey of 562 adults aged 18 years and above who were randomly selected from the Eritrean refugee community living in the Mai-Aini refugee camp, Ethiopia., Measures: The CES-D Scale, Primary Care PTSD (PC-PTSD) screener, premigration and postmigration living difficulties checklist, Oslo Social Support Scale (OSS-3), Sense of Coherence Scale (SoC-13), Coping Style Scale and fast alcohol screening test (FAST) were administered concurrently. Confirmatory factor analysis was employed to test prespecified factor structures of CES-D., Result: First-order two factors with second-order common factor structure of CES-D (correlated error terms) yielded the best fit to the data (Comparative Fit Index =0.975; root mean square error of approximation=0.040 [90% CI 0.032 to 0.047]). The 16 items defining depressive affect were internally consistent (Cronbach's α=0.932) and internal consistency of the 4 items defining positive affect was relatively weak (Cronbach's α=0.703). These two latent factors have a weaker standardised covariance estimate of 33% (24% for women and 40% for men), demonstrating evidence of discriminant validity. CES-D is significantly associated with measures of adversities, specifically, premigration living difficulties (r=0.545, p<0.001) and postmigration living difficulties (r=0.47, p<0.001), PC-PTSD (r=0.538, p<0.001), FAST (r=0.197, p<0.001) and emotion-oriented coping (r=0.096, p˂0.05) providing evidence of its convergent validity. It also demonstrated inverse association with measures of resilience factors, specifically, SoC-13 (r=-0.597, p<0.001) and OSS-3 (r=-0.319, p<0.001). The two correlated factors model of CES-D demonstrated configural, metric, scalar, error variance and structural covariance invariances (p>0.05) for both men and women., Conclusions: Unlike previous findings among Eritreans living in USA, second-order two factors structure of CES-D best fitted the data for Eritrean refugees living in Ethiopia; this implies that it is important to address culture for the assessment and intervention of depression., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: There is a scarcity of adapted measures to study resilience and mental health of people in humanitarian settings in Africa. The aim of this study was to identify the factor structure and other psychometric properties of the Sense of Coherence (SoC-13) scale in Eritrean refugees living in Ethiopia., Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, 562 adults were selected randomly from Eritrean refugees living in Mai Aini camp, Ethiopia. The SoC-13, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression scale (CES-D), the Pre and Post-Migration Living Difficulties checklist, the Primary Care Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder screener (PC-PTSD), the Oslo Social Support Scale (OSS-3), the Coping Style scale and the Fast Alcohol Screening Test (FAST) were administered concurrently. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) was used to investigate the factor structure of the SoC-13 using IBM SPSS Amos, version 21., Result: A one factor model of the SoC with twelve items had the best fit to the current data (CFA = 0.982, RMSEA = 0.035 [90%CI = 0.018, 0.050]), with good internal consistency (Cronbach's Alpha = 0.75). When all 13 items of the Tigrigna version were considered, there was an inverse association of SoC-13 with PC-PTSD(r = - 0.433, p  < 0.001), CES-D (r = - 0.597, p  < 0.001), Pre and post-migration living difficulties checklist (r = - 0.265, p  < .001and r = - 0.249, p < 0.001 respectively), and FAST (r = - 0.105, p  < 0.001), providing support for the divergent validity of the scale. The SoC-13 was associated positively with the Oslo Social Support scale (OSS-3)(r = 0.363 p  < 0.001) and task-oriented coping (r = 0.089, p < 0.001), demonstrating convergent validity. The four items, specifically item-1, item-2, item-3 and item-12 have shown relatively weaker item loadings (β<0.40); but item-2 demonstrated non-significant loading (β = 0.06, p>0.05) in a one factor model of SoC-13., Conclusions: Although the 13-items of the Tigrigna version of the SoC scale loaded significantly onto their respective factors in the three factor model, only 12 items loaded significantly onto the one factor model, which demonstrated superior fit to the current data. Keeping in mind that future research should examine the conceptualizations of the four items demonstrating poor convergent validity in this Eritrean sample, the reduced Tigrigna version of SoC-12 is a reasonable measure of sense of coherence in this community., Competing Interests: This study was conducted after obtaining an ethical clearance from Institutional Ethical Review Board (IRB) of College of Health Sciences in Addis Ababa University (AAU) under approval letter (protocol number: 052/14/Psy). Participants were provided with information sheet about the study regarding its objective, relevance, beneficence, risk, participant’s rights and others. Then a written consent from each participant was obtained before engaging them to participate. Ethical issues as outlined by declaration of Helsinki for human participants in medical research were adhered.Not Applicable.Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Objective: This study aimed at testing the significance of mediating and moderating roles of sense of coherence, adaptive coping styles and social support in the relationship between exposure to trauma and psychological symptoms in a refugee population in sub-Saharan Africa., Methods: A cross-sectional survey design was employed to collect data. The study was carried out in Mai Aini refugee camp in Ethiopia. A total of 562 adult Eritrean refugees aged 18-74 years were selected randomly to screen for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and to examine associated factors. Data were collected using the premigration and postmigration living difficulties checklist, Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression (CES-D) scale, Primary Care PTSD Screener, coping style scale, Sense of Coherence scale and Oslo Social Support scale. Path modelling was used to test the mediation and moderation effects of prespecified factors., Results: Premigration living difficulties were associated directly with symptoms of PTSD (β=0.09, p<0.05), and associated indirectly with PTSD symptoms in paths through duration of stay in the camp, sense of coherence, postmigration living difficulties, task-oriented coping style and depressive symptoms (β=0.26, p<0.01). Premigration and postmigration living difficulties were associated directly with depressive symptoms with standardised estimate of β=0.35(p<0.001) and β=0.23(p<0.05), respectively. Postmigration living difficulties were associated indirectly with PTSD through paths of sense of coherence, task-oriented coping style and depressive symptoms (β=0.13; p<0.01). Social support moderated the effect of postmigration living difficulties on depressive symptoms (p<0.05). Emotion-oriented coping style moderated the effect of premigration threat for abuse on PTSD (β=-0.18, p<0.001) and depressive (β=-0.12, p<0.01) symptoms, as well as moderating threat to life on PTSD symptoms (β=-0.13, p<0.001)., Conclusions: Sense of coherence and task-oriented coping style showed a partial mediating effect on the association between exposure to trauma and symptoms of PTSD. An emotion-oriented coping style and social support moderated the effect of premigration and postmigration living difficulties, respectively. Fostering social support, task-oriented and emotion-oriented coping styles may be beneficial for these refugees., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)