BackgroundThough tuberculosis (TB) is preventable and curable, its global burden remains enormous. Similarly, TB is one of the major public health problems in Ethiopia, particularly in geographically isolated areas like Shinile town. The people in Shinile town, Somali Regional State of Ethiopia, are underserved in all forms of health care and suffer from high burden of TB. Low level of knowledge about TB could affect the health-seeking behavior of patients and sustain the transmission of the disease within the community. Therefore, the current study was undertaken in Shinile town with the objective of assessing communities’ knowledge, attitude and practices towards TB.MethodsCommunity-based cross-sectional survey, involving 410 randomly selected individuals, was conducted in Shinile town from January to May, 2013. Data were analyzed using STATA V.11. Logistic regression technique was used to determine the association between socio-demographic characteristics and communities’ knowledge of TB.ResultsWhile 94.9% of the respondents said that they ever heard about TB, only 22.9% knew that TB is caused by bacteria. Eighty percent have awareness that TB can be transmitted from a patient to another person and 79.3% know that transmission of TB can be preventable. Persistence cough (72.4%) was the most commonly stated symptom of TB and modern drugs used in health institutions (68.1%) was the preferred choice of treatment. Two hundred and ninety one respondents (71.0%) said that they would seek treatment at health facility if they realized that they had symptoms related to TB. Two hundred and twenty seven respondents (55.4%) considered TB as a very serious disease and 284 (69.3%) would experience fear if they themselves had TB. Individuals with educational level of grade 8 up to grade 12 had increased odds of having good level of overall TB knowledge compared to illiterate individuals (OR = 2.3; 95% CI: 1.2 to 4.6).ConclusionThe communities in Shinile town have basic awareness about TB which is not translated into the knowledge about the cause of the disease. Therefore, health education directed towards bringing a significant change in the knowledge of TB must be stepped-up within the TB control program.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1471-2458-14-804) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background: Malnutrition among children remains common in many parts of the world, particularly in developing countries. In Ethiopia, it is one of the most important health and welfare problems among infants and young children. Ethiopian Somali regional state is one of the most underserved regions in terms of access to essential services and characterized by a high level of child malnutrition, food insecurity, and vulnerable livelihoods. Therefore, the current study was undertaken to assess the magnitude and factors associated with malnutrition among children aged 6-59 months in Shinille Woreda, Ethiopian Somali regional state. Methods: Community-based cross-sectional survey, involving 694 study participants selected by multistage sampling technique, was conducted in Shinile Woreda from February to March, 2014. Data were collected using structured questionnaire and anthropometric measurement. Anthropometric indices were calculated using ENA for SMART software 2011, and SPSS V.16 was used for data analysis. Associations were computed using the OR and 95 % CI. P-value less than 0.05 were considered as statistically significant. Results: The overall prevalence of stunting, underweight and wasting were 33.4 %, 24.5 % and 20 %, respectively. The main associated factors of stunting and wasting were family size, child's sex and monthly income of the households. Immunization status was the only variable associated with all forms of malnutrition. Non-immunized children were 2.5 times more likely become underweight than their counterparts. The prevalence of stunting was 3. 8 times higher in households with large family size. Female children were 1.5 times more likely become wasted than their counterparts. Conclusion: Prevalence of malnutrition among under five children in Shinile Woreda is still high. Our finding highlighted the importance of childhood vaccination, family planning and poverty alleviation as potential targets for intervention.

BackgroundIn Ethiopia, female genital mutilation (FGM) remains a serious concern and has affected 23.8 million women and girls, with the highest prevalence in Somali regional state. Even though FGM is reported to be associated with a range of obstetric complications, little is known about its effects on childbirth in the region. Therefore, the objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that FGM is a contributing factor to the increased risk of complication during childbirth.MethodsFacility based cohort study, involving 142 parturients with FGM and 139 parturients without FGM, was conducted in Jijiga town from October to December, 2014. The study participants were recruited by consecutive sampling technique. Data were collected using a structured interviewer administered questionnaire and observational checklists. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 16 and STATA version 11.ResultsThe existence of FGM was significantly associated with perinealtear [RR = 2.52 (95% CI 1.26–5.02)], postpartum blood loss [RR = 3.14 (95% CI 1.27–7.78)], outlet obstruction [RR = 1.83 (95% CI 1.19–2.79)] and emergency caesarean section [RR = 1.52 (95% CI 1.04–2.22)]. FGM type I and FGM type II did not demonstrate any association with prolonged 2nd stage of labour, emergency caesarean section, postpartum blood loss, and APGAR score < 7. FGM type III however was significantly associated with prolonged 2nd stage of labour [RR = 2.47 (95% CI 1.06–5.76)], emergency caesarean section [RR = 3.60 (95% CI 1.65–7.86)], postpartum blood loss [RR = 6.37 (95% CI 2.11–19.20] and APGAR score < 7 [RR = 4.41 (95% CI, 1.84–10.60)]. FGM type II and type III were significantly associated with perinealtear [RR = 2.45(95% CI 1.03–5.83)], [RR = 4.91(95% CI 2.46–9.77)] and outlet obstruction [RR = 2.38(95% CI 1.39–4.08)], [RR = 2.94(95% CI 1.84–4.71)] respectively.ConclusionWomen with FGM are significantly more likely than those without FGM to have adverse obstetric outcomes. Risks seem to be greater with more extensive form of FGM. Adverse obstetric outcomes can therefore be added to the known harmful immediate and long-term effects of FGM.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s12884-018-1937-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

No abstract