Low birth weight is a global public health problem having various severe and life-threatening health effects. The World Health Organization is working to reduce the prevalence of low birth weight to 30% by the year 2025. Pinpointing the determinants of low birth weight at different scenarios is crucial to reduce the rate of low birth weight in low-income countries which consist of 96.5% of global low birth weight newborns. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess determinants of low birth weight in Sidama Zone public hospitals of South Ethiopia. An institution-based case-control study was conducted from March 1 to May 5, 2019, in Sidama Zone public hospitals. Data were collected from 354 mother-neonate samples with 118 of them having newborns with birthweight<2500g (cases) and 236 of them having birthweight≥2500g (controls) using a pretested, interviewer-administered structured questionnaire and medical record review. The odds of being rural dweller women was 3.51 times higher among cases (low birth weight babies) than among controls (normal birth weight babies) as compared to being urban dweller women (AOR=3.51, 95% CI (1.91-6.45)). The likelihood of initiating antenatal care late was 3.22 times more among cases than among controls when compared with timely initiation of antenatal care (AOR=3.22, 95% CI (1.47-7.14)). The probability of having pregnancy-induced hypertension was 4.49 times higher among mothers of the cases than among mothers of the controls as compared to not having pregnancy-induced hypertension (AOR=4.49, 95% CI (1.94-10.38)). The odds of not taking iron and folic acid during pregnancy was 3.92 times higher among mothers of the cases than mothers of the controls when compared with taking iron and folic acid (AOR=3.92, 95% CI (1.80-8.50)). The likelihood of having Mid-Upper Arm Circumference MUAC<23cm was 4.27 times higher among mothers of the cases than among mothers of the controls as compared to having MUAC≥23cm (AOR=4.27, 95% CI (2.24-8.12)). The probability of having inadequate dietary diversity was 3.75 times higher among cases than among controls as compared to having adequate dietary diversity (AOR=3.75, 95% CI (1.64-8.57)). Interventions targeting the aversion of low birth weight should focus on promotion of iron-folic acid supplementation and dietary diversification through timely initiation of antenatal care.

Background: Podoconiosis is entirely preventable, non‐communicable disease with high potential of elimination. The prevalence of podoconiosis in Ethiopia was 7.45%. One of the pillars for elimination of podoconiosis is morbidity control and management. Therefore, the present study aimed to assess the knowledge, attitude, practices and associated factors of health professionals towards podoconiosis cause, prevention and treatments.Methods: Facility based cross‐sectional study was conducted. The source population was all health professionals currently working in public health facilities. The final estimated sample size was 349. A pretested self‐administrated structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. The data were coded, entered, and cleaned by using Epi.info version7, and analyzed by using SPSS version 20.Result: A total of 320 health professionals participated in the study. Sixty eight (23.1%) health professionals had poor knowledge towards podoconiosis. Seventy (21.9%) identified podoconiosis as infectious disease. Profession, address of health facility, service year and attitude of participants were significantly associated with knowledge towards podoconiosis. More than half (56%) had favorable attitude towards podoconiosis patients. Knowledge score (95%CI: 1.389, 4.059, p‐value = 0.002) was the independent predictor for attitude status. Very few (11.6%) respondents treated podoconiosis patients. Age group 45 years old and above and training on lymphedema morbidity management and disability prevention were significantly associated with clinical experience in treating affected patients, (AOR = 17.345; 95%CI: 4.62, 65.119) and (AOR = 7.385; 95%CI: 2.5, 21.797), respectively.Conclusion: Despite, high percent of good knowledge of health professionals towards podoconiosis, clinical experience of health professionals in treating podoconiosis patients was very low. In‐service trainings will be given for health professionals to improve treatment. In podoconiosis endemic districts hygiene supplies and other referencing materials should be made available for podoconiosis case management.

Background: In 2018, nearly 90% of the global children living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Compared to the adult population, antiretroviral therapy (ART) coverage among children was limited. However, adherence remained a problem among children though they had limited access to ART. This study was conducted to identify the risk factors of non-adherence to ART among children aged 6 to 17 years. Methods: This case-control study was conducted in 2020 using data obtained from clinical record reviews and self-reported data from 272 caregivers of HIV-infected children aged 6–17 years. Cases and controls represented children with poor versus children with good adherence to ART, respectively. Good adherence was defined based on a past 30-day physician adherence evaluation of taking ≥ 95% of the prescribed doses. Binary logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with non-adherence to ART. All statistical tests are defined as statistically significant at P-values < 0.05. Results: Of the 272 children, for whom data were obtained, 78 were cases and 194 were controls; females accounted for 56.3%, 32% attended secondary school, and for 83.1%, the reporting caregivers were biological parents. Non-adherent children had higher odds of association with the following risk factors: a caregiver who is a current substance user (aOR = 2.87, 95% CI: 1.44, 5.71), using AZT-and ABC-based regimen compared to the TDF-regimen (AZT-based, aOR = 4.12, 95% CI: 1.43, 11.86; ABC-based, aOR = 5.58, 95% CI: 1.70, 18.30), and had an increase in viral load from baseline compared to those remained undetectable (remained at or decreased to < 1000, aOR = 4.87, 95% CI: 1.65, 14.33; remained at ≥ 1000, aOR = 9.30, 95% CI: 3.69, 23.46). In contrast, non-adherent children had 66% lower odds of being at early adolescent age compared to 6–9 years old (10–14 years, aOR = 0.34, 95% CI: 0.12, 0.99) and had 70% lower odds of being aware of their HIV status (aOR = 0.30, 95% CI: 0.13, 0.73). Conclusion: Technical support to caregivers to build disclosure self-efficacy, identifying the appropriate regimen for children, counseling on viral load suppression on subsequent visits, and helping caregivers avoid or reduce substance use may help improve the problem of children’s non-adherence to ART.

Background: Scabies, a common human skin disease with a prevalence range of 0.2% to 71.4% in the world. It can have considerable impact on general health leading to illness and death not only through direct effect of its infestation and as a result of secondary bacterial infection. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of scabies and its associated factors among school age children in Arba Minch zuria district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia. Methods: A community based cross sectional study was carried out in 845 school age children from February 20 to March 30, 2018. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select study populations. Logistic regression an analysis was used to identify factors associated with scabies. Findings were presented using 95% CI of Crude Odds Ratios (COR) and Adjusted Odds Ratios (AOR. To declare statistical significance, p-value less than 0.05 was used. Result: A total of 825 children participated in the study with response rate of 97.6%. The overall prevalence of scabies was 16.4% [95% CI: 13.9%, 18.9%]. overcrowding index, family history of itching in the past two weeks, wealth index, knowledge of scabies, climatic zone, frequency of washing body, frequency of washing clothes, finger nails cutting practice, history of skin contact with scabies patient, washing hair more than once weekly, and sharing of clothes were significantly associated scabies disease. Conclusion: In conclusion, the prevalence of scabies in Arba Minch lies at 16.4% in the global scabies range 0.2% to 71.4%. The prevalence was highest in highlands followed by midland and then lowland. This represents a significant scabies burden which we recommend warrants health service intervention. Authors summary: Scabies, a common human skin disease with a prevalence range of 0.2% to 71.4% in the world. It can have considerable impact on general health leading to illness and death not only through direct effect of its infestation and as a result of secondary bacterial infection. Conducting a research on this neglected tropical disease would contribute in designing a policies and strategies on prevention and control measures in the study area. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of scabies and its associated factors among school age children in Arba Minch zuria district, Gamo zone, Southern Ethiopia.

Unintended pregnancy remains a significant driver of maternal morbidity and mortality, particularly in humanitarian settings where health systems and social structures are disrupted. In Ethiopia, while the national prevalence is 26%, there is a critical research gap regarding the unique reproductive challenges faced by displaced populations. This study assessed the prevalence and associated factors of unintended pregnancy in Nguenyyiel Refugee Camp, southwestern Ethiopia. A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted from January 8 to February 10, 2026, among 422 ever-pregnant women selected through proportional allocation and simple random sampling. Data were collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires via the Kobo Collect application. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression analyses were employed to identify predictors of unintended pregnancy, with statistical significance set at P < 0.05. The overall prevalence of unintended pregnancy was 57.1% (95% CI: 52.2%, 61.9%), consisting of 43.4% mistimed and 13.7% unwanted pregnancies. Multivariable analysis revealed that maternal age ≥ 36 years (AOR = 0.14, 95% CI: 0.03, 0.67) and no history of previous unwanted pregnancy (AOR = 0.04, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.08) were significantly inversely associated with unintended pregnancy. Conversely, grand multigravida women were 7.23 times more likely to report an unintended pregnancy compared to primigravida women (AOR = 7.23, 95% CI: 1.66, 31.45). The prevalence of unintended pregnancy in Nguenyyiel Refugee Camp is substantially higher than national and regional estimates. These findings suggest a significant gap in reproductive health autonomy and underscore the need for targeted interventions, including youth-friendly services and expanded access to long-acting reversible contraceptives (LARCs) for grand multigravida women in humanitarian settings.