Unmet need refers to fecund women who either wish to postpone the next birth (spacers) or who wish to stop childbearing (limiters) but are not using a contraceptive method. The aim of this study was to assess the unmet needs of family planning and identify associated factors in Debre Berhan town among women in reproductive age. The community-based cross-sectional study design was used among 411 study participants (women with reproductive age) at Debre Berhan town. A systematic sampling technique was used to select the households. Bivariate and multivariable analyses were done to determine the association of each independent variable with the dependent variable. The overall unmet need for family planning among women in reproductive age groups was found to be 30.9%. Occupational status AOR = 13.992 (1.054–185.833), from whom the respondents got information about family planning AOR = 0.018 (0.002–0.170), having a discussion with husband AOR = 16.692 (2.911–95.713) and support from husband AOR = 0.005 (0.001–0.025) was significantly associated with the outcome variable. The level of unmet need for family planning in the study area is still high compared to the target set (10%) in the national family planning guide plan for Ethiopia.

Objective: Bronchial asthma is one of the major public health challenges throughout the world that negatively impact patients, families and community. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated risk factors of bronchial asthma among patients in adult emergency department of Debre Berhan Referral Hospital. A hospital based cross-sectional study design was used among 257 study participants. A systematic sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data was collected by using pretested and structured questionnaire and analyzed by using SPSS version 20.0. Both bivariate and multivariate logistic regression model was used to identify the predictors of asthma. Results: Prevalence of bronchial asthma among adult patients was 29.6%. Being an urban resident (AOR: 1.5: 95% CI 1.3–3.9), income of household less than 1000 EBr/month (AOR: 1.7: 95% CI 1.6–4.1), having family history of asthma (AOR: 2.7: 95% CI 1.3–5.8), and presence of vermin in the house (AOR: 2.4: 95% CI 1.2–4.7) were significantly associated with bronchial asthma. The authors concluded that the prevalence of bronchial asthma among adult patients was high. Therefore, educational program about the risk factors and preventive measures of asthma is highly recommended.

Double burden of malnutrition is a global problem posing a serious public health challenge especially in low- and middle-income countries including Ethiopia, where a high prevalence of under-nutrition continues to exist and overweight is increasing at an alarming rate. Although both under-nutrition and over-nutrition are investigated extensively in Ethiopia, evidence about the double burden of malnutrition especially at the individual level is very limited. To assess the prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting and associated factors among under-five children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia at an individual level. Institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted from May to June 2021 among 422 mothers to child pairs in Addis Ababa. Twenty-nine (30%) of the health centers in Addis Ababa were selected to take part in the study using a simple random sampling technique. The total sample size was allocated proportionally to each of the selected health centers based on their performances within 6 months prior to the study. A systematic random sampling method was used to select the study participants. An interviewer-administered structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics and a hierarchical logistic regression model were used to characterize the study population and to identify factors that are associated with the outcome variable respectively. Odds ratio along with 95% CI were estimated to measure the strength of the association. The level of statistical significance was declared at a p-value less than 0.05. The prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting was 5.1% with 95% CI (2.9–7.1%). The hierarchical logistic regression analysis revealed that child age (6–23 months) [(AOR = 2.86, 95% CI: (1.02–8.04)], maternal education status (non-educated) [(AOR = 4.98, 95% CI: (1.33–18.66)], maternal age during birth (≥ 28 years) [(AOR = 0.22, 95% CI: (0.06–0.79)] and childbirth order (3+) [(AOR = 6.38, 95% CI: (1.03–39.7)] were significantly associated with the co-existence of overweight /obesity and stunting. Conclusion and recommendations: The study revealed that the prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting is low in Ethiopia. However, local and national nutrition policies and programs should be tailored and implemented to simultaneously address both under-nutrition and over-nutrition.

Background: Birth asphyxia is the major public health problem in the world. It is estimated that around 23% of all newborn deaths are caused by birth asphyxia worldwide. Birth asphyxia is the top three causes of newborn deaths in sub-Saharan Africa and more than one-third of deaths in Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify determinants of birth asphyxia which can play a crucial role to decrease the death of newborns. Methods: Unmatched case-control study design was implemented among 276 (92 cases and 184 controls) newborns from January 1st to March 30th, 2020. A systematic sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data were collected by using a semi-structured interviewer-administered questionnaire and document review by trained nurses and midwives who work at the delivery ward of the hospitals. Bivariate logistic regression analysis was done to identify determinants of birth asphyxia. Adjusted odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals and p-value less than and equal to 0.05 were used to assess the level of significance. Results: In this study, maternal education of being can’t read & write [AOR = 4.7, 95% CI: (1.2, 11.9)], ante-partum hemorrhage [AOR = 7.7, 95% CI: (1.5, 18.5)], prolonged labor [AOR =13.5, 95% CI: (2.0, 19.4)], meconium stained amniotic fluid [AOR = 11.3, 95% CI: (2.7, 39.5)], breech fetal presentation [AOR = 4.5, 95% CI: (2.0, 8.4)] and preterm birth [AOR: 4.1, 95% CI: (1.8, 9.2)] were factors which showed significantly associated with birth asphyxia among newborns. Conclusions: In this study, maternal education can’t read & write, antepartum hemorrhage, prolonged labor, stained amniotic fluid, breech fetal presentation, preterm birth were significantly associated with birth asphyxia. So, educating mothers to enhance health-seeking behaviors and close monitoring of the labor and fetus presentation were recommended to reduce birth asphyxia.

Background: Double burden of malnutrition is a global problem posing a serious public health challenge especially in low- and middle-income countries including Ethiopia, where high prevalence of under-nutrition continues to exist and overweight is increasing at an alarming rate. Although both under-nutrition and over-nutrition are investigated extensively in Ethiopia, evidences about double burden of malnutrition especially at individual level are very limited.Objective: To assess the prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting and associated factors among under-five children in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.Methods: Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted from May to June, 2021 among 422 mothers to child pairs in Addis Ababa. Twenty nine (30%) of the health centers in Addis Ababa were selected to take part in the study using simple random sampling technique. The total sample size was allocated proportionally to each of the selected health centers based on their performances within six months prior to the study. Systematic random sampling method was used to select the study participants. An interviewer-administered structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics and hierarchical logistic regression model were used to characterize the study population and to identify factors that are associated with the outcome variable respectively. Odds ratio along with 95% CI were estimated to measure the strength of the association. Level of statistical significance was declared at p value less than 0.05.Results: The prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting was 5.1% with 95% CI (2.9% - 7.1%). The hierarchical logistic regression analysis revealed that child age (6 -23 months) [(AOR = 2.86, 95% CI: (1.02 - 8.04)], maternal education status (non-educated) [(AOR = 4.98, 95% CI: (1.33 - 18.66)], maternal age during birth (≥ 28 years) [(AOR = 0.22, 95% CI: (0.06 - 0.79)] and child birth order (3⁺) [(AOR = 6.38, 95% CI: (1.03 - 39.7)] were significantly associated with the co-existence of overweight /obesity and stunting.Conclusion and recommendations: The study revealed that the prevalence of the co-existence of overweight/obesity and stunting is low in Ethiopia. However, local and national nutrition policies and programs should be tailored and implemented to simultaneously address both under-nutrition and over-nutrition.