Objective The aim of this study was to assess the risk factors for malnutrition among children aged 0–59 months in Ethiopia. The analyzed data were obtained from the 2016 EDHS and 9495 under-5 years’ children were considered in this analysis. The data was extracted, edited and analyzed by using SPSS Version 23.0. Both bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression model was used to identify the determinants of children malnutrition. Results The prevalence of stunting, wasting, and underweight were 38.3%, 10.1%, and 23.3%, respectively. About 19.47% of children were both stunted and underweighted, and only 3.87% of children had all the three conditions. Among the factors that considered in this study, age of a child, residence region, mothers’ education level, mothers’ BMI, household wealth index, sex of a child, family size, water and toilet facility were significantly associated with malnutrition in Ethiopia. The authors concluded that malnutrition among under-five children was one of the public health problems in Ethiopia. Therefore, the influence of these factors should be considered to develop strategies for reducing malnutrition in Ethiopia. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s13104-019-4444-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background: The first 28 days of life, the neonatal period, are the most vulnerable time for a child’s survival. Neonatal mortality accounts for about 38% of under-five deaths in low and middle income countries. This study aimed to identify the determinants of neonatal mortality in Ethiopia. Methods: The study used data from the nationally representative 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS). Once the data were extracted; editing, coding and cleaning were done by using SAS 9.4.Sampling weights was applied to en- sure the representativeness of the sample in this study. Both bivariate and multivariable logistic regression statistical analysis was used to identify determinants of neonatal mortality in Ethiopia. Results: A total of 11,023 weighted live-born neonates born within five years preceding the 2016 EDHS were included this in this study. Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that multiple birth neonates (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR)=6.38;95%- Confidence Interval (CI):4.42-9.21), large birth size (AOR=1.35; 95% CI: 0.28-1.62), neonates born to mothers who did not utilize ANC (AOR=1.41; 95% CI: 1.11-1.81), neonates from rural area (AOR=1.88; 95% CI: 1.15-3.05) and neonates born in Harari region (AOR=1.45; 95% CI: 0.61-3.45)had higher odds of neonatal mortality. On the other hand, female neonates (AOR=0.60; 95% CI: 0.47-0.75), neonates born within the interval of more than 36 months of the preceding birth (AOR=0.56; 95% CI: 0.43-0.75), neonates born to fathers with secondary and higher education level (AOR=0.51; 95%CI: 0.22-0.88) had lower odds of neonatal mortality in Ethiopia. Conclusion: To reduce neonatal mortality in Ethiopia, there is a need to implement sex specific public health intervention mainly focusing on male neonate during pregnancy, child birth and postnatal period. A relatively simple and cost-effective public health intervention should be implemented to make sure that all pregnant women are screened for multiple pregnancy and if positive, extra care should be given during pregnancy, child birth and postnatal. Keywords: Neonatal mortality; logistic regression; odds ratio; Ethiopia.

Tuberculosis (TB), a disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB), is the main cause of death. It disproportionally affects those living in the different regions of countries and within the region. The aim of this study was to examine spatial variation of mortality and the risk factor of death on multidrug-resistant tuberculosis patients treated in different MDR-TB hospitals of Amhara region. The data for this study was used from multidrug-resistant tuberculosis patients' record charts and analyzed using STATA software. The result of this study shows that 61 (29.47%) of the patients died, and the rest, 146 (70.53%), of the patients were censored at the time of the study. Out of 207 MDR-TB, 146 (70.53%) were males and 61 (29.5%) were females. This study revealed that there was no heterogeneity for death in patients treated in different hospitals. Older patients, therapeutic delay, alcohol use, any clinical complication previously not treated, HIV coinfection, and presence of any chronic disease were the risk factors that influenced the death of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis patients.

Background: Early Marriage is one of the global problems that undermine the personal development and the rights of women seriously. It is delicate among the developing countries such as Ethiopia. It has major consequences for public health, national security, social development, human rights, economic development, and gender equality. Methods: The analyzed data were obtained from the 2016 EDHS and 1120 samples were considered in this analysis. Both bivariate and multivariable binary logistic regression model were used to identify the determinants of early marriage practice. Results: The prevalence of early marriage practice was 48.57% in the study area. The odds of early marriage practice were 2.04(AOR=2.04, 95% CI: 1.88, 2.45) times higher among rural residents compared to urban. The odds of early marriage practice was 0.94(AOR=0.94, 95%CI: 0.57, 1.98) times lower among women who had primary education compared to un- educated women. Those who did not know the legal marital age were 1.61(AOR=1.61, 95%CI: 1.26, 2.07) times more likely to practice early marriage compared to parents who knew the legal marital age. Conclusion: Education level, family monthly income, residence, literacy level and knowledge of legal marital were signifi- cant determinants of early marriage practice. Keywords: Early Marriage; Female; Amhara Region; Ethiopia.

Anemia is one of the most widely spread public health problems, especially in developing countries including Ethiopia. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of anemia among children aged 6-59 months in Ethiopia. A community-based cross-sectional study (the Ethiopian Demography and Health Survey 2016) was used as a source of data. Participants were 8385 children aged from 6 to 59 months selected in a two-stage stratified cluster sampling. The level of hemoglobin was determined by HemoCue analyzer. The risk factors of anemia were computed by logistic regression (α=0.05). The result revealed that more than half (57.3%) of children aged 6-59 months were found anemic of which 3.1% had severe anemia, 29.2% had moderate and 25% mild anemia. The anemia status of the children’s mother (OR: 3.01, CI: 0.34, 6.75), living in Somali region (OR: 5.73, CI: 1.86, 17.71), living in rural areas (OR: 1.84, CI: 1.38, 2.83), age of study participants (OR: 0.82, CI: 0.29,1.45) among 24-42 months old children (OR: 0.53, CI: 0.16,1.08) among 43-59 months old children, rich and medium parents (OR: 0.29, CI: 0.20,0.73), smoker mother (OR: 0.02, CI: 0.00, 0.05) were the risk factors of anemia among Ethiopian children aged 6-59 months. The overall prevalence of anemia among Ethiopian children aged 6–59 months was high. It is argued that measures that prevent childhood illnesses and maternal anemia need to be put in place in order to reduce anemia among Ethiopian children.

Purpose: Trachoma is the leading infectious cause of blindness in the world. It is caused by conjunctival infection with the bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis . The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and risk factors of active trachoma among primary school children in Amhara region, Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from April to May 2018. Data on sociodemographic and health characteristics of a child were collected using a structured questionnaire and eye examination for this study. Bivariate and multiple logistic regression statistical analyses were used to determine the prevalence and risk factors of active trachoma among primary school children living in Amhara region, Northwest Ethiopia. Results: The prevalence of active trachoma among primary school children living in Amhara region was 10.3% in this study. The results of multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that children who wash their face at least two times per day (AOR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.14–0.97), children with no flies on their face (AOR = 0.12, 95% CI: 0.10–0.30) had significantly lower risk of being infected by trachoma and children of households who spend 30 min to 1 h to fetch water (AOR = 10.02, 95% CI: 1.10–93.53) had significantly higher risk of being infected by trachoma in the study area. Conclusion: The result of this study showed that risk factors: frequency of face washing per day, presence of flies on child's face during interview, and time required to fetch water for the household were found to be significantly associated with trachoma. Therefore, the study recommends that any concerned bodies directed at prevention and control of trachoma among primary school children living in Amhara region should give special attention to these factors. Implementing the World Health Organization (WHO) endorsed SAFE (Surgery, Antibiotics, Facial cleanliness, Environmental improvement) strategy was recommended for the effective prevention and control of trachoma in the study area since the prevalence of active trachoma, 10.3% was higher than the WHO recommended thresholds (>10% prevalence).

Background Infant mortality remains a public health challenge in Ethiopia. Exploring infant mortality will aid in tracking the progress toward achieving sustainable development goals. Objective The study aimed to explore the geographical variations and associated factors of infant mortality in Ethiopia. Method A total of 11,023 infants from the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) data were extracted and included in the analysis. EDHS used a two-stage cluster sampling design with a census enumeration area as the primary sampling unit and households as the secondary sampling unit. Arc GIS software was used for spatial analysis using clusters for exploring geographical variations in infant mortality. A binary logistic regression was employed using R software to identify the significant determinants of infant mortality. Results The study revealed that the spatial distribution of infant mortality was non-random in the country. Infants whose mothers not receiving ANC (AOR = 1.45; 95%CI: 1.17, 1.79), not breastfed status (AOR = 3.94; 95%CI: 3.19, 4.81), poor wealth index (AOR = 1.36; 95%CI: 1.04, 1.77), male infants (AOR = 1.59; 95%CI: 1.29, 1.95), birth order of six or above (AOR = 3.11; 95%CI: 2.08, 4.62), small birth size (AOR = 1.27; 95%CI: 1.26, 1.60), birth spacing [(≤ 24 months (AOR = 2.29; 95%CI: 1.79, 2.92), 25–36 months (AOR = 1.16; 95%CI: 1.12, 1.49)], multiple births (AOR = 6.82; 95%CI: 4.76, 10.81), rural residence (AOR = 1.63; 95%CI: 1.05, 2.77) and regions [Afar (AOR = 1.54; 95%CI: 1.01, 2.36), Harari (AOR = 1.56; 95%CI: 1.04, 2.56), and Somali (AOR = 1.52; 95%CI: 1.03, 2.39)] were the determinants of infant death in Ethiopia. Conclusions There is a great geographical disparity in infant mortality rates across regions. Afar, Harari, and Somali regions were verified as hot spot areas. ANC usage, breastfed status, wealth index, sex of the infant, birth order, birth size, birth spacing, birth type, residence, and region were the determinants of infant death in Ethiopia. Therefore, appropriate interventions need to be implemented in the hot spots to alleviate the risk factors for infant mortality.

Ethiopia is among the African countries with high maternal and child mortality rates, with a fastgrowing population. To prevent the fast growing population; availability, the stability of contraceptive method and identifying factors that affects the practice of modern contraceptives should be given a priority. Thus, this study aims to identify the practice of contraceptives focusing on women's empowerment and other gender-related factors among married women. Primary data were collected from 984 married women out of which 561 (57.01) were users of contraceptives in Amhara region. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and econometric models such as multiple and multilevel logistic regressions. The results showed that; zone, the educational status of the couple, the age of women, discussing family planning issues with a partner, decisions about how each partner's income would be used, the income of women, wife beating and sexual response were significant factors in family planning. The multilevel analysis found that the variance of the random component related to the intercept term was found to be statistically significant, implying differences in the prevalence of family planning among the zone. It also found that the educational status of the couple, the age of the women, discussing family planning issues with a partner, decisions making in income earnings, the income of women, wife beating and sexual response were significant determinants of varying proportions of family planning.