Adolescence is characterized by rapid growth and development with a significantly increased need for macro and micronutrients. However, there is little empirical evidence on the burden of anaemia among adolescent girls in developing countries such as Ethiopia. This study aims to address this gap by evaluating the magnitude of anaemia with an aim to guide design of intervention modalities to address anaemia among adolescent girls. The study employed a community based cross sectional design. The study was conducted on weekends to capture both in school and out of school adolescent girls. Data was collected from a total 1323 adolescent girls. From each district, we randomly selected villages and ensured that the sampled households had a range geographical spread (lowlands, highlands) within the larger category of rural and urban. We performed anaemia testing using HemoCue B-Haemoglobin analyser. We applied a complex survey data analysis method to estimate the level of anaemia. The hemoglobin level was adjusted for altitude and smoking status. We ran a logistic regression model to evaluate predictors of anaemia. The overall anaemia prevalence ranged from 24 to 38%, with an average rate of 29%. Less than half of the girls heard the term anaemia, and about one third knew the relationship between anaemia and the intake of iron rich foods. The risk of anaemia is higher among adolescent girls in their early adolescence period (10–14 years) (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR); 1.98; 95% CI; 1.03, 3.82] and among adolescent girls who lived in moderately food insecure households (AOR 1.48; 95% CI; 1.05–2.09). However, knowing the term “anaemia” was found to be protective against the risk of anaemia. The risk of anaemia was particularly high among adolescent girls in their early age and among those living in food insecure households. The prevalence of anaemia among adolescent girls is a moderate public health problem. According to the WHO set criteria, the districts could be candidates for intermittent iron and Folic acid supplementation program.

Background: Nutrition transition in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) has led to shift in childhood nutritional outcomes from a predominance of undernutrition to a double burden of under- and overnutrition. Yet, policies that address undernutrition often times do not include overnutrition nor do policies on overweight, obesity reflect the challenges of undernutrition. It is therefore crucial to assess the prevalence and determinants of concurrence stunting and overweight/obesity to better inform nutrition programs in Ethiopia and beyond.Methods: We analyzed anthropometric, sociodemographic and dietary data of children under five years of age from 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS). A total of 8,714 children were included in the current study. Concurrence of stunting and overweight/obesity (CSO) prevalence was estimated by basic, underlying and immediate factors. To identify factors associated with CSO, we conducted hierarchical logistic regression analyses.Results: The overall prevalence of CSO was 1.99% (95% CI, 1.57–2.53). The odds of CSO was significantly higher in children in agrarian region compared to their counter parts in the pastoralist region (AOR = 1.51). Other significant factors included; not having improved toilet facility (AOR = 1.94), being younger than 12 months (AOR = 4.22), not having history of infection (AOR = 1.83) and not having taken deworming tablet within the previous six months (AOR = 1.49).Conclusion: Our study provided evidence on the co-existence of stunting and overweight/obesity among infants and young children in Ethiopia. Therefore, identifying children at risk of growth flattering and excess weight gain provides nutrition policies and programs in Ethiopia and beyond with an opportunity of earlier interventions through improving sanitation, dietary quality by targeting children under five years of age and those living in Agrarian regions of Ethiopia.

Background: Immunization is a cost-effective public health strategy. Immunization averts nearly three million deaths annually but immunization coverage is low in some countries and some regions within countries. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to assess pooled immunization coverage in Ethiopia. Method: A systematic search was done from PubMed, Google Scholar, EMBASE, HINARI, and SCOPUS, WHO’s Institutional Repository for Information Sharing (IRIS), African Journals Online databases, grey literature and reviewing reference lists of already identified articles. A checklist from the Joanna Briggs Institute was used for appraisal. The I² was used to assess heterogeneity among studies. Funnel plot were used to assess publication bias. A random effect model was used to estimate the pooled prevalence of immunization among 12–23 month old children using STATA 13 software. Result: Twenty eight articles were included in the meta-analysis with a total sample size of 20,048 children (12–23 months old). The pooled prevalence of immunization among 12–23 month old children in Ethiopia was found to be 47% (95%, CI: 46.0, 47.0). A subgroup analysis by region indicated the lowest proportion of immunized children in the Afar region, 21% (95%, CI: 18.0, 24.0) and the highest in the Amhara region, 89% (95%, CI: 85.0, 92.0). Conclusion: Nearly 50% of 12–23 month old children in Ethiopia were fully vaccinated according to this systematic review and meta-analysis this indicates that the coverage, is still low with a clear disparity among regions. Our finding suggests the need for mobile and outreach immunization services for hard to reach areas, especially pastoral and semi-pastoral regions. In addition, more research may be needed to get more representative data for all regions. PROSPERO registration number: CRD42020166787.

The intergenerational continuity of undernutrition is influenced by shared genetic, household socio-economic and cultural resources which will be associated with the mother and the child nutritional status, possibly to the same degree. Provided that this assumption is valid, maternal height and BMI could be a simple way of measuring nutritional status of their children. Data were obtained from the 2011 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS 2011). An analytical sample of 8, 505 children whose mothers are not pregnant and live with their biological mothers was included. The bivariate associations between nutritional indices of the mother and the children were analyzed with Pearson correlation coefficients. The sensitivity, specificity, predictive values and area under Roc curves were calculated. Logistics regression for binary outcomes was also used to evaluate the predictors of child undernutrition. Children who experienced stunting, underweight or wasting had mothers with lower mean BMI than those who did not (p < 0.001). Maternal and child nutritional status were positively correlated. The sensitivity of maternal underweight (defined by BMI < 18.5 kg/m²) as a predictor of child’s nutritional status (<− 2 z-scores) is low, failing to reach 50% for any of the child nutrition indices. In logistics regression, maternal BMI was associated with stunting, underweight and wasting (p < 0.001) while maternal height was only associated with stunting and underweight (p < 0.001). The sensitivity and specificity of maternal anthropometric indicators to identify growth deficits among children were too low to justify using maternal indicators as a replacement for child growth measurements.

Background: On March 13, 2020, Ethiopia reported the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Addis Ababa. COVID-19 is likely to overwhelm an already-fragile health care delivery system and reduce the availability of essential health services. This analysis of data from the Somali Region of Eastern Ethiopia on health care workers’ (HCWs) knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding the prevention and control of COVID-19 may be used in planning health education programs about the emerging viral disease. Objective: This study aimed to investigate the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of HCWs regarding COVID-19 infection. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs in three public health facilities in the Somali Region, Eastern Ethiopia. A self-administered questionnaire was shared with all HCWs working at the public health facilities. A total of 15 knowledge questions were scored as 1 or 0 for correct or incorrect responses, respectively. A total of 14 practice questions were scored on a 3-point scale from 1 (“always”) to 3 (“never”). A total of six attitude questions were rated on a 5-point Likert scale, in a negative dimension, as follows: 1 (“strongly agree”), 2 (“agree”), 3 (“neutral”), 4 (“disagree”), and 5 (“strongly disagree”). Mean scores were calculated and used as a cut point to dichotomize the outcome variables (>13.7 indicated good knowledge, <18.8 indicated good practices, and ≤10.5 indicated favorable attitudes). We used t tests and analyses of variance (ie, F tests) to analyze the mean score differences of knowledge, attitudes, and practices between the independent variables. Spearman correlation was used to assess the relationship between mean knowledge and attitude scores. Results: Of the 686 HCWs approached, a total of 434 HCWs responded (63.3% response rate). The mean age of the participants was 27.6 (SD 5.3) years, and the majority of the participants were male (293/434, 67.5%). The mean knowledge score was 13.7 (SD 2.6), and 73.3% (318/434) of participants had sufficient knowledge. The mean attitude score was 10.5 (SD 4.1), and 54.8% (238/434) of the participants had a good attitude toward COVID-19. The mean practice score was 18.8 (SD 5.8), and 61.5% (267/434) of the participants practiced precautionary measures to prevent COVID-19. There was a negative correlation between knowledge and attitude scores (r=–0.295, P<.001) and between knowledge and practice scores (r=–0.298, P<.001). Conclusions: The overall levels of knowledge and practice were relatively better than the attitude level. This highlights the need to implement strategies that enhance the positive attitudes and safe practices of the HCWs for better containment of the pandemic and supporting of essential health care services.

Mid‐upper arm circumference (MUAC) screening is a simple community‐level method for detecting acute malnutrition. The Family MUAC approach, which trains caregivers to measure their children's MUAC and refer them for treatment, has shown promise, but evidence regarding its impact on malnutrition severity at admission is limited. To address this gap, we conducted a longitudinal study from March to May 2024 in two districts in Eastern Ethiopia, enrolling 360 children aged 6–59 months. We compared children referred by their mothers or caregivers using the Family MUAC (n = 180) with those referred by Health Extension Workers (HEWs) (n = 180). We found that the median MUAC at admission was 119 mm (IQR 116–120) in the mother‐referral group versus 116 mm (IQR 115–119) in the HEWs‐referral group, and the proportion of severe acute malnutrition (MUAC < 115 mm) was lower among caregiver‐referred children (4.2% vs. 18.4%). Multivariable regression analysis showed that mother/caregiver‐referred children had an 80.5% lower risk of severe MUAC at admission [ARR 0.195(0.06, 0.59)] and a 75% reduced likelihood of SAM admission compared to the HEWs‐Referral group (ARR 0.25; 95% CI, 0.148–0.448). The Family MUAC approach significantly reduced the severity of malnutrition at admission. Consequently, this strategy should be expanded and prioritized in national screening programs.