Our results suggest that TB in rural Bangladesh is caused primarily by reactivation of latent infections involving TbD1 intact strains, overlaid with the recent emergence of Beijing strain clusters that include multidrug-resistant isolates.

Background Underweight and overweight both have a long-lasting significant effect on human health at the individual and population levels. However, in the context of Timor-Leste, a country that achieved independence around two decades ago, there is a severe scarcity of evidence regarding the underweight and obesity burden. We conducted this study to find out the prevalence of underweight, overweight and obesity and their associated factors. Methods This study used the nationally representative data of Timor-Leste Demographic Health Survey 2016 data. We conducted descriptive analysis followed by multivariable logistic regression analysis to find out the prevalence and investigate the associated factors. Both crude and adjusted odds ratio of covariates were reported with 95% confidence interval (CI). Results This study analyzed the data from a weighted sample of 16,488 Timorese aged 15–49 years. The prevalence of normal weight, underweight, and overweight or obesity were found to be 55.2% (95% CI: 54.2%-56.2%), 25.5% (95% CI: 24.4%-26.7%), and 19.3% (95% CI: 18.3%-20.3%), respectively. For underweight, age, sex, type of settlement (urban/rural), township, and wealth, marital, and educational status were found to have a statistically significant relationship (p < 0.05) with Body Mass Index(BMI). After adjustment for the covariates in the logistic regression model age, sex, township, and wealth and marital status were found to be statistically significant correlates (p < .05) of underweight. For overweight and obesity, all the background characteristics included in this study (i.e, age, sex, type of settlement, township, and wealth, marital, and educational status) were found to be statistically significant correlates, after adjustment for the covariates. Conclusion This study concludes that Timor-Leste has a significant underweight and overweight burden which needs to be addressed through appropriate interventions. Further studies are also warranted to delve deeper into the complex interplay of factors associated with underweight and overweight.

Background BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), the largest NGO globally, implemented a community-based comprehensive social behavior communication intervention to increase community resilience through prevention, protection, and care for COVID-19. We conducted implementation research to assess fidelity and explore the barriers and facilitators of this intervention implementation. Methods We adopted a concurrent mixed-method triangulation design. We interviewed 666 members of 60 Community Corona Protection Committees (CCPCs) and 80 members of 60 Community Support Teams (CSTs) through multi-stage cluster sampling using a structured questionnaire. The qualitative components relied on 54 key informant interviews with BRAC implementers and government providers. Results The knowledge about wearing mask, keeping social distance, washing hands and COVID-19 symptoms were high (on average more than 70%) among CCPC and CST members. While 422 (63.4%) CCPC members reported they ‘always’ wear a mask while going out, 69 (86.3%) CST members reported the same practice. Only 247 (37.1%) CCPC members distributed masks, and 229 (34.4%) donated soap to the underprivileged population during the last two weeks preceding the survey. The key facilitators included influential community members in the CCPC, greater acceptability of the front-line health workers, free-of-cost materials, and telemedicine services. The important barriers identified were insufficient training, irregular participation of the CCPC members, favouritism of CCPC members in distributing essential COVID-19 preventive materials, disruption in supply and shortage of the COVID-19 preventative materials, improper use of handwashing station, the non-compliant attitude of the community people, challenges to ensure home quarantine, challenges regarding telemedicine with network interruptions, lack of coordination among stakeholders, the short duration of the project. Conclusions Engaging the community in combination with health services through a Government-NGO partnership is a sustainable strategy for implementing the COVID-19 prevention program. Engaging the community should be promoted as an integral component of any public health intervention for sustainability. Engagement structures should incorporate a systems perspective to facilitate the relationships, ensure the quality of the delivery program, and be mindful of the heterogeneity of different community members concerning capacity building. Finally, reaching out to the underprivileged through community engagement is also an effective mechanism to progress through universal health coverage.

Child marriage is a globally recognised human rights violation that disproportionately affects girls, especially in developing countries. It has serious negative consequences on girls’ physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health and rights. Although well-pronounced laws against child marriage were enacted in Bangladesh, the practice remains a significant challenge. Lack of law enforcement and persistent social norms ultimately allow child marriage to persist around the country. Social norms have an impact on the prevalent attitudes toward child marriage. Therefore, this mixed-method study aimed to explore the legal knowledge, perception, and practice of child marriage in Bangladesh. This study was part of a broader evaluation of a UNICEF media programme. Adolescent boys and girls aged between 10 and 19 years and their parents were interviewed in three Bangladeshi districts. All the respondents were aware of the legal age of marriage and knew that child marriage is punishable by law. This study illuminated the reasons, including early marriage among boys, poverty, dowry, and sexual harassment. Communities and policymakers need to be engaged to trigger larger structural and cultural changes to remedy the harmful social norm and its practice.

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ObjectivesTo assess the knowledge and practices related to COVID-19 among Bangladeshi mothers with children aged 2 years or less and adult males.DesignWe conducted a cross-sectional study to assess the knowledge and practices using a multistage cluster sampling technique.SettingsSix districts with high COVID-19 infection rates in Bangladesh.Participants2185 mothers of under-2 children and 657 adult males were surveyed in December 2020.Main outcome measuresWe constructed weighted composite knowledge and practice scores and examined associations between composite scores and background characteristics using linear regression models.ResultsKnowledge on possible routes of transmission of the novel coronavirus and the critical handwashing and mask-wearing etiquettes was poor. On a scale of 100, the mean composite knowledge scores of mothers and adult males were respectively 33.5 (SD=15; 95% CI 32.9 to 34.1) and 38.2 (SD=14.8; 95% CI 37.1 to 39.4). In contrast to knowledge, adult males obtained lower practice scores than mothers, primarily due to poor physical distancing practices. The mean practice scores of mothers and adult males were 63.0 (SD=18.1; 95% CI 62.3 to 63.8) and 53.4 (SD=17.5; 95% CI 52.0 to 54.7). Moreover, education, household income and access to television and the internet are significantly associated with knowledge. People residing proximal to a city revealed higher knowledge than the relatively distant ones. This was also the case for practice scores; however, the other factors associated with knowledge did not have a significant association with practices.ConclusionsIn general, both mothers and adult males presented with poor knowledge and practices related to COVID-19. While local, national and international institutions should design and implement educational interventions to help improve knowledge, our research shows that mere knowledge may not be enough to ensure practice. Hence, authorities could reinforce positive social norms by setting benchmarks and introducing rewards or sanctions to improve practices.

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Abstract This cross-sectional study investigated the factors associated with hypertension among Nepalese adults aged 18 years or above using data from the Nepal Demographic and Health Survey 2016. Prevalence ratios (PRs) and odds ratios (ORs) were obtained using log-binomial regression and logistic regression, respectively. Initially, unadjusted PRs and ORs were obtained. The variables that yielded a significance level below 0.2 in unadjusted analyses were included in the multivariable analysis. The overall prevalence of hypertension among the 13,393 participants (58% male and 61.2% urban) was 21.1% (n = 2827). In the adjusted analysis, those aged 30–49 years (adjusted PR [APR]: 3.1, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 2.6, 3.7; adjusted OR [AOR]: 3.6, 95% CI: 2.9, 4.5), 50–69 years (APR: 5.3, 95% CI: 4.4, 6.6; AOR: 8.2, 95% CI: 6.4, 10.4) and ≥70 years (APR: 7.3, 95% CI: 5.8, 9.2; AOR: 13.6, 95% CI: 10.1, 18.3) were more likely to be hypertensive than younger participants aged 18–29 years. Males (APR: 1.3, 95% CI: 1.2, 1.4; AOR: 1.5, 95% CI: 1.3, 1.7), overweight/obese participants (APR: 1.8, 95% CI: 1.7, 2.0; AOR: 2.4, 95% CI: 2.2, 2.8) and those in the richest wealth quintile (APR: 1.3, 95% CI: 1.1, 1.5; AOR: 1.5, 95% CI: 1.1, 1.9) had higher prevalences and odds of hypertension than their female, normal weight/underweight and poorest wealth quintile counterparts, respectively. Those residing in Province 4 (APR: 1.2, 95% CI: 1.0, 1.5; AOR: 1.4, 95% CI: 1.1, 1.8) and Province 5 (APR: 1.2, 95% CI: 1.0, 1.4; AOR: 1.3, 95% CI: 1.1, 1.7) were more likely to be hypertensive than those residing in Province 1. The point estimate was inflated more in magnitude by ORs than by PRs, but the direction of association remained the same. Public health programmes in Nepal aimed at preventing hypertension should raise awareness among the elderly, males, individuals in the richest wealth quintile and the residents of Provinces 4 and 5.