Prevalence of neonatal near miss in Africa: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: Neonatal near miss (NNM) applies to cases where newborns almost died during the first 28 d of life but survived life-threatening conditions following birth. The most vulnerable time for infant survival is the neonatal stage, corresponding to almost 50% of deaths occurring at <5 y of age. No study indicates the overall pooled prevalence of NNM in Africa. Thus this review aimed to estimate the overall pooled prevalence of NNMs in Africa. METHODS: Articles were retrieved through a comprehensive search strategy using PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, Health InterNetwork Access to Research Initiative, Cochrane Library and Google Search. Data extraction was done independently by all authors. Forest plots and tables were used to represent the original data. The statistical heterogeneity was evaluated using I2 statistics. There was heterogeneity between the included articles. Therefore the authors used a meta-analysis of random effects to estimate the aggregate pooled prevalence of NNM in Africa. Funnel plot and Egger regression test methods were used to assess possible publication bias. R software version 3.5.3 and R studio version 1.2.5003 were used to analyse the data. The guideline of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses was used to publish this article. The review was registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (registration ID: CRD42021290223). RESULTS: Through an exhaustive search, we found 835 articles. However, we considered only eight full-text articles to be included in this meta-analysis. The analysis of included studies showed that the overall pooled prevalence of NNM in Africa was 30% (95% confidence interval [CI] 16 to 44). The subgroup analysis by study year showed that the prevalence of NNM from 2012-2015 and 2018-2019 was 36% (95% CI 23 to 49) and 20% (95% CI 1 to 39), respectively. CONCLUSION: This finding suggests that the pooled prevalence of NNM is high in Africa as compared with other studies. Therefore the government and other stakeholders working on maternal and child health should assist in the design of interventions and strategies for improving the quality of neonatal care.

Nearly One-Fourth of Eastern Ethiopian Adolescents are Current Psychoactive Substance Users: A School-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

Introduction: Psychoactive substance use is a growing health problem in both developing and developed countries. Despite adolescents being at high risk of practicing risky behaviors including substance use, there is no adequate information on the problem in the Harari Region, in the Eastern part of Ethiopia. Hence, the present study aimed to identify the burden of current substance use in high school adolescent students of Harari Region, Ethiopia, from 10th April to 10th May 2022. Methods: A school-based cross-sectional study was employed on a total of 1498 randomly selected adolescent students. Poisson regression was used for the assessment of substance use over the last three months among adolescent students. The substance use burden was reported by IRR (incidence rate ratio) at a 95% Confidence interval. The final model fitness was checked using Akaike information criterion (AIC) and Bayesian information criterion (BIC) reports. The variables that had less than 0.05 P-value were declared to be statistically significant. Results: The overall psychoactive substance use was 373 (24.9%, 95% Confidence Interval (CI); 22.8-27.1%). The substances included khat (21.6%, 95% CI; 18.6-23.6%), alcohol drinking (1.8%; 95% CI; 1.3-2.6%), and smoking (1.2%, 95% CI; 0.75-1.9%). Being male (IRR (Incidence Rate ratio) = 1.21, 95% CI; 1.11-1.38), availability of the substance (IRR (Incidence Rate ratio) = 2.02, 95%; 1.53-2.66), having substance user friends (IRR=1.60: 95% CI: 1.30-2.01), and being at a younger age (IRR = 1.21; 95% CI: 1.02-1.44) increased the psychoactive substance use rate in the adolescents. Conclusion and Recommendation: One out of four adolescents was a current psychoactive substance user. Being male, substance availability, having substance-user friends, and being at younger age increased the psychoactive substance use rate in school adolescents in Eastern Ethiopia. The intervention that involves the schools' community, students' families, and executive bodies should be strengthened to overcome the substance use-related burdens among high school adolescent students.

Predictors of surgical site infection among women following cesarean delivery in eastern Ethiopia: a prospective cohort study.

Despite the availability of prophylactic antibiotics prior to skin incisions, surgical site infection (SSI) following cesarean section (CS) remains an unresolved health issue. As a result, this study aimed to assess the incidence and predictors of SSI after a CS. Methods: The authors conducted a prospective cohort study in eastern Ethiopia. The women were serially enrolled until the desired sample size was reached. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data. Women were followed at the hospital during their weekly visits. Culture-based microbiological methods were used to identify causal agents. A binary logistic regression model was used to identify the predictors of SSI after CS. Results: Among serially enrolled women, 336 were followed for 30 days. The incidence of SSI was 7.74% (95% CI: 7.68-7.80). Rupture of the membrane before operation [adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=3.75, 95% CI: 1.85-16.6], labor duration greater than 24 h (AOR=4.04, 95% CI: 1.52-10.79), and postoperative hemoglobin less than 11 g/dl (AOR=3.42, 95% CI: 1.32-8.87) were all significantly associated with SSI. The most common isolated pathogen was Staphylococcus aureus, followed by Escherichia coli. Conclusions: Nearly one-tenth of the women developed SSIs. Factors such as rupture of the membrane before the operation, absence of antenatal care, labor duration greater than 24 h, a midline skin incision, and postoperative hemoglobin less than 11 g/dl were the predictors of SSI. To reduce the incidence of SSI, policymakers should consider the importance of high-quality antenatal care, shorten the duration of labor, and maintain women's hemodynamics in future SSI prevention bundles.