Publications by authors named "Desalegn M Shifti"

Objective: To examine the overall incidence rate and trends in emergency department (ED) presentations related to asthma and allergic diseases in regional Australia with a particular focus on First Nations Australians.

Design: A retrospective analysis of data from the Emergency Department Information System.

Setting: This study used data from 12 public hospitals in Central Queensland, Australia, a region encompassing regional, rural and remote outback areas.

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Background: Despite the progress made in improving maternal and child health in Ethiopia, it still has one of the highest maternal and neonatal mortality rates in the world. This is largely due to inadequate healthcare infrastructure and a lack of comprehensive evidence-based maternal and reproductive health services. To achieve the Sustainable Development Goal targets related to maternal and child health, it is essential to conduct culturally sensitive and policy-relevant research to identify areas for improvement.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study examines rising obesity rates among women of reproductive age in ten Asian countries due to urbanization and lifestyle changes, using data from 2000 to 2022.
  • Key risk factors identified include marital status, age, wealth, television habits, and urban living, which collectively account for 73.3% of obesity cases.
  • The study highlights the importance of education and lifestyle interventions, particularly in wealthier urban areas, to combat obesity, with a specific focus on Pakistan and the Maldives.
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  • - The study examines how intimate partner violence (IPV) affects childhood health outcomes, highlighting its significant role in child morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa.
  • - Analyzing data from 37 countries, findings reveal that children under 5 years old with mothers exposed to various forms of IPV had notably higher odds of developing health issues like undernutrition, diarrhoeal disease, and acute respiratory infections.
  • - The results emphasize the importance of addressing IPV as a means to improve child health and survival rates, indicating that maternal experiences of violence lead to detrimental health impacts on their children.
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Background: Men exhibit higher prevalence of modifiable risk factors, such as smoking and alcohol consumption, leading to greater cancer incidence and lower survival rates. Comprehensive evidence on global cancer burden among men, including disparities by age group and country, is sparse. To address this, the authors analyzed 30 cancer types among men in 2022, with projections estimated for 2050.

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Background: Around half of preterm births lack identifiable causes, indicating the need for further investigation to understand preterm birth risk factors. Existing studies on the intergenerational association of preterm birth showed inconsistency in effect size and direction.

Objective: This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to review existing studies and provide comprehensive evidence on the intergenerational association of preterm births.

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Background: Short inter-pregnancy or birth interval is associated with an increased risk of adverse perinatal outcomes. However, some emerging evidence questions this association and there are also inconsistencies among the existing findings. This study aimed to systematically review the evidence regarding the effect of short inter-pregnancy or birth intervals on adverse perinatal outcomes in the Asia-Pacific region.

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  • * The study analyzed data from 35 countries in SSA and found that significant contributors to neonatal deaths include delayed breastfeeding initiation and lack of maternal education, among others.
  • * The findings indicate that these key factors account for nearly 40% of neonatal deaths, with consistent patterns observed across different SSA regions, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.
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Background: Infant feeding guidelines in Australia changed in 2016 to recommend introducing common allergy-causing foods by age 1 year to prevent food allergy. Although most Australian infants now eat peanut and egg by age 6 months, some still develop food allergy despite the early introduction of allergens.

Objectives: To describe the prevalence of food allergy in a cohort recruited after introducing the nationwide allergy prevention recommendations; identify characteristics of infants who developed allergy despite early introduction of allergens; and estimate the causal effect of modifiable exposures on food allergy prevalence and whether this differed between infants who were introduced to allergens before or after age 6 months.

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Cervical cancer is a prevalent disease among women, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), where most deaths occur. Integrating cervical cancer screening services into healthcare facilities is essential in combating the disease. Thus, this review aims to map evidence related to integrating cervical cancer screening into existing primary care services and identify associated barriers and facilitators in LMICs.

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Background: Short birth interval is associated with an increased risk of adverse health outcomes for mothers and children. Despite this, there is a lack of comprehensive evidence on short birth interval in the Asia-Pacific region. Thus, this study aimed to synthesise evidence related to the definition, classification, prevalence, and predictors of short birth interval in the Asia-Pacific region.

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Child malnutrition remains a significant concern in the Asia-Pacific region, with short birth intervals recognised as a potential risk factor. However, evidence of this association is inconclusive. This study aimed to systematically review the existing evidence and assess the summary effects of short birth interval on child malnutrition in the Asia-Pacific region.

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Background: Cervical cancer is the fourth most common malignancy in women, with 90% of deaths in low- and middle-income countries. Integrating cervical cancer screening services into healthcare facilities is crucial for overcoming the disease. Thus, this review aims to map existing evidence and identify barriers and facilitators in low- and middle-income countries.

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Background: Short birth interval (SBI) has been linked to an increased risk of adverse maternal, perinatal, infant and child health outcomes. However, the prevalence and maternal and child health impacts of SBI in the Asia-Pacific region have not been well understood. This study aims to identify and summarise the existing evidence on SBI including its definition, measurement prevalence, determinants and association with adverse maternal and child health outcomes in the Asia-Pacific region.

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Background: In low to middle income countries (LMICs) with limited health care providers (HCPs) and health infrastructure, digital technologies are rapidly being adopted to help augment service delivery. In this sphere, sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services are increasingly leveraging mobile health (mHealth) technologies to improve service and information provision in rural areas. This systematic review aimed to identify HCPs perspectives on barriers to, and facilitators of, mobile phone based SRH services and information in rural areas of LMICs from current literature.

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Background: Studies assessing the association between short birth interval, a birth-to-birth interval of less than 33 months, and under-five undernutrition have produced inconclusive results. This study aimed to assess the relationship between short birth interval and outcomes of stunting, underweight, and wasting among children aged under-five in Ethiopia, and potential mediation of any associations by maternal anemia and baby birth size.

Method: Data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) was used.

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Objective: To assess the effect of short birth interval (SBI) on neonatal, infant, and under-five mortality in Ethiopia.

Design: A nationally representative cross-sectional survey.

Setting: This study used data from the Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey 2016.

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Objective: The aim of this study was to provide a comprehensive evidence on risk factors for transmission, disease severity and COVID-19 related deaths in Africa.

Design: A systematic review has been conducted to synthesise existing evidence on risk factors affecting COVID-19 outcomes across Africa.

Data Sources: Data were systematically searched from MEDLINE, Scopus, MedRxiv and BioRxiv.

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Article Synopsis
  • Short birth intervals (less than 33 months) negatively impact maternal and child health, and this study explores the socioeconomic factors behind these intervals in Ethiopia.
  • The research analyzed data from 8,448 women and found that short birth intervals are more common among poorer populations, with a significant negative concentration index indicating this inequality.
  • Key contributors to this inequality include wealth, administrative regions, and media exposure, suggesting that improving socioeconomic conditions could help reduce the frequency of short birth intervals.
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  • The study investigates the spatial distribution of short birth intervals (less than 33 months) in Ethiopia, as these intervals are linked to poor maternal and child health outcomes.
  • Using data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey, the research identifies significant hot spots of short birth intervals, especially in regions like Somali and Oromia, and correlates these hot spots with factors like education level and wealth status.
  • The findings suggest that educational attainment and household wealth influence the occurrence of short birth intervals, with the geographically weighted regression model explaining about 64% of this variation across regions.
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  • The World Health Organization recommends spacing pregnancies by at least 33 months to improve maternal and child health, but the factors influencing short birth intervals in Ethiopia remain unclear.
  • The study analyzed data from 8,448 women in the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey to identify individual- and community-level determinants of short birth intervals.
  • Key findings revealed that individual factors such as age at first marriage, education of the husband, employment status, wealth quintile, and child mortality, along with community factors like living in pastoralist regions, urban areas, high female illiteracy, and distance to health facilities, were linked to increased odds of shorter birth intervals.
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Objectives: To examine the association between unintended pregnancy and maternal healthcare services utilization in low- and lower-middle-income countries.

Methods: A systematic literature search of Medline, Cinahl, Embase, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Popline, Maternity and Infant Care, and Scopus databases published since the beginning of the Millennium Development Goals (i.e.

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Background: Peritoneal fistulization of a pyonephrosis is an extremely rare event which invariably leads to generalized peritonitis. This is a very rare case report on generalized peritonitis after spontaneous rupture of pyonephrosis.

Case Presentation: A 28-year-old male patient from the rural part of Bale zone, Ethiopia, was admitted to Goba Referral Hospital with high-grade fever, diffused abdominal pain and abdominal distension.

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