Objective: We aimed to describe the causes, types, and consequences of lower limb amputation and the demographics of subjects with such amputation who attended a tertiary rehabilitation center in ...Bangladesh, Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed.
Methods: Cross-sectional data were collected from subjects with lower limb amputation who attended a specialized rehabilitation center between January 2014 and August 2016. Telephone interviews were conducted using a structured questionnaire. Descriptive analysis, paired t-test, and Fisher's exact test were conducted as well as a regression analysis was performed.
Results: A total of 332 respondents, aged 5 to 76 years (mean 37.5± SD 13.8), with lower limb amputation participated in the study. Of the respondents, the majority were male (87.7%) and lived in rural areas (64.8%). Road traffic accidents were the leading cause (58.7%) of amputation followed by peripheral vascular diseases (7.5%) and hit by sharp objects (7.2%). Age (odds ratio: 0.9) and driving as occupation (odds ratio: 7.3) were found to be statistically significant covariates for amputation from road traffic accidents. The mean duration between having an amputation and receiving the first prosthetic fitting was 6.4 years (±8.9). Among the study participants, 30.7% lost their jobs after amputation and their mean monthly income reduced significantly (p < 0.01) from US$119.9 (±421.5) to US$45.8 (±63.1).
Conclusion: Majority of the lower limb amputations resulted from traumatic road traffic accidents. Younger males and drivers were found to be more prone to amputation from road traffic accidents. Lower limb amputation creates great health and economic disparity in the amputee's lives.
Implications for rehabilitation
Majority of the lower limb amputation cases in Bangladesh were attributable to road traffic accidents-a largely preventable cause.
The mean time between amputation and prosthetic fitting was more than 6 years which implies lack of awareness and inaccessibility of prosthetic management.
Policymakers, regulators, law enforcement, and traffic safety advocates should take urgent actions to prevent road traffic accidents and raise awareness about and improve availability of prosthetic rehabilitation in Bangladesh.
The COVID-19 outbreak resulted in preventative measures and restrictions for Bangladesh during the summer of 2020—these unstable and stressful times led to multiple social problems (e.g., domestic ...violence and divorce). Globally, researchers, policymakers, governments, and civil societies have been concerned about the increase in domestic violence against women and children during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. In Bangladesh, domestic violence against women and children has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, we investigated family violence among 511 families during the COVID-19 outbreak. Participants were given questionnaires to answer, for a period of over ten days; we predicted family violence using a machine learning-based model. To predict domestic violence from our data set, we applied random forest, logistic regression, and Naive Bayes machine learning algorithms to our model. We employed an oversampling strategy named the Synthetic Minority Oversampling Technique (SMOTE) and the chi-squared statistical test to, respectively, solve the imbalance problem and discover the feature importance of our data set. The performances of the machine learning algorithms were evaluated based on accuracy, precision, recall, and F-score criteria. Finally, the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) and confusion matrices were developed and analyzed for three algorithms. On average, our model, with the random forest, logistic regression, and Naive Bayes algorithms, predicted family violence with 77%, 69%, and 62% accuracy for our data set. The findings of this study indicate that domestic violence has increased and is highly related to two features: family income level during the COVID-19 pandemic and education level of the family members.
Water with adequate quality and quantity is very important for irrigation to ensure the crop yields. Salinity is common problem in the coastal waters in Bangladesh. The intensity of salinity in the ...coastal zone in Bangladesh is not same. It fluctuates over the year. Sodium is another hazard which may hamper permeability and ultimately affects the fertility. It can reduce the crop yields. Although surface water is available in the coastal zone of Bangladesh, but its quality for irrigation needs to be monitored over the year. This paper will investigate the overall quality of coastal surface waters. Thirty-three water samples from different rivers were collected both in wet period (October–December) and in dry period (February–April). Different physical and chemical parameters are considered for investigation of the adequacy of water with respect to international irrigation water quality standards and Bangladesh standards. A comparison between the dry and wet period coastal surface water quality in Bangladesh will also be drawn here. The analysis shows that coastal surface water in Bangladesh is overall suitable for irrigation during wet period, while it needs treatment (which will increase the irrigation cost) for using for irrigation during dry period. Adaptation to this situation can improve the scenario. An integrated plan should be taken to increase the water storing capacity in the coastal area to harvest water during wet period.
Rotavirus gastroenteritis is accountable for an estimated 128 500 deaths among children younger than 5 years worldwide, and the majority occur in low‐income countries. Although the clinical trials of ...rotavirus vaccines in Bangladesh revealed a significant reduction of severe rotavirus disease by around 50%, the vaccines are not yet included in the routine immunization program. The present study was designed to provide data on rotavirus diarrhea with clinical profiles and genotypes before (2017–2019) and during the COVID‐19 pandemic period (2020–2021). Fecal samples were collected from 2% of the diarrheal patients at icddr,b Dhaka hospital of all ages between January 2017 and December 2021 and were tested for VP6 rotavirus antigen using ELISA. The clinical manifestations such as fever, duration of diarrhea and hospitalization, number of stools, and dehydration and so on were collected from the surveillance database (n = 3127). Of the positive samples, 10% were randomly selected for genotyping using Sanger sequencing method. A total of 12 705 fecal samples were screened for rotavirus A antigen by enzyme immunoassay. Overall, 3369 (27%) were rotavirus antigen‐positive, of whom children <2 years had the highest prevalence (88.6%). The risk of rotavirus A infection was 4.2 times higher in winter than in summer. Overall, G3P8 was the most prominent genotype (45.3%), followed by G1P8 (32.1%), G9P8 (6.8%), and G2P4 (6.1%). The other unusual combinations, such as G1P4, G1P6, G2P6, G3P4, G3P6, and G9P6, were also present. Genetic analysis on Bangladeshi strains revealed that the selection pressure (dN/dS) was estimated as <1. The number of hospital visits showed a 37% drop during the COVID‐19 pandemic relative to the years before the pandemic. Conversely, there was a notable increase in the rate of rotavirus positivity during the pandemic (34%, p < 0.00) compared to the period before COVID‐19 (23%). Among the various clinical symptoms, only the occurrence of watery stool significantly increased during the pandemic. The G2P4 strain showed a sudden rise (19%) in 2020, which then declined in 2021. In the same year, G1P8 was more prevalent than G3P8 (40% vs. 38%, respectively). The remaining genotypes were negligible and did not exhibit much fluctuation. This study reveals that the rotavirus burden remained high during the COVID‐19 prepandemic and pandemic in Bangladesh. Considering the lack of antigenic variations between the circulating and vaccine‐targeted strains, integrating the vaccine into the national immunization program could reduce the prevalence of the disease, the number of hospitalizations, and the severity of cases.
Different socioecological factors were associated with childhood pneumonia in Bangladesh. However, previous studies did not assess spatial patterns, and socioecological factors and spatial variation ...have the potential to improve the accuracy and predictive ability of existing models.
The spatial random effects were present at the district level and were heterogeneous. Average temperature, temperature variation, and population density may influence the spatial pattern of childhood pneumonia in Bangladesh.
The study results will help policymakers and health managers to identify the vulnerable districts, plan further investigations, help to improve proper resource allocation, and improve health interventions.
Pneumonia is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in developing countries, particularly for children and elderly. The main objective of this review paper is to review the epidemiological ...evidence about the effects of sociodemographic and climatic variability on pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract infections. A detailed literature search was conducted in PubMed and Scopus following PRISMA guidelines. The articles, which considered the effect of only climatic or both climatic and sociodemographic factors on pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract infections, included in this review. A total thirty-four relevant articles were reviewed. Of 34 studies, only 14 articles (41%) examined the joint effects of sociodemographic and climate factors on pneumonia and other lower respiratory infections while most of them (59%) assessed climate factors separately. Among these fourteen, only three articles (8.8%) considered detailed sociodemographic factors. All of the reviewed articles suggested different degrees of positive or negative relationship of temperature with pneumonia or other lower respiratory tract infections. Fifteen (44%) articles suggested an association with relative humidity and 13 (38%) with rainfall. Only 3 articles (8.8%) found a relationship with wind speed. Three articles (8.8%) considered other risk factors such as particulate matter 2.5 (PM
2.5
) and particulate matter 10 (PM
10
). One study among the reviewed articles used spatial analysis methods but this study did not examine the joint effects. Among the reviewed articles, 18 (53%) articles used different time series models, one article (3%) used spatiotemporal time series model, 8 (23%) studies used other models and rest 7 (21%) studies used simple descriptive analysis. A total of 18 studies (53%) were conducted in Asia, most of them in China. There were 6 studies (17%) in Europe and 8 studies (23%) in America (South, North and Central). In Africa and Oceania, only one study was found for each region. The joint effect of climate and sociodemographic factors on pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract infections remain to be determined and further research is highly recommended for future prevention of this important and common disease.
The study aimed to identify the factors influencing the utilization of antenatal care (ANC) services among pregnant women to fulfill the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) for maternal mortality ...ratio (MMR) by 2030; we also investigated the consistency of these factors. We have used the Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) data from 29 developing countries for analysis. A binary logistic regression model was run using Demographic and Health Survey data from Bangladesh to determine the factors influencing ANC utilization in Bangladesh. In addition, a random-effects model estimation for meta-analysis was performed using DHS data from 29 developing to investigate the overall effects and consistency between covariates and the utilization of ANC services. Logistic regression revealed that residence (odds ratio OR 1.436; 95% confidence interval CI 1.238, 1.666), respondent’s education (OR 3.153; 95% CI 2.204, 4.509), husband’s education (OR 2.507; 95% CI 1.922, 3.271) wealth index (OR 1.485; 95% CI 1.256, 1.756), birth order (OR 0.786; 95% CI 0.684, 0.904), working status (OR 1.292; 95% CI 1.136, 1.470), and media access (OR 1.649; 95% CI 1.434, 1.896) were the main significant factors for Bangladesh. Meta-analysis showed that residence (OR 2.041; 95% CI 1.621, 2.570), respondent’s age (OR 1.260; 95% CI 1.106, 1.435), respondent’s education level (OR 2.808; 95% CI 2.353, 3.351), husband’s education (OR 2.267; 95% CI 1.911, 2.690), wealth index (OR 2.715; 95% CI 2.199, 3.352), birth order (OR 1.722; 95% CI 1.388, 2.137), and media access (OR 2.474; 95% CI 2.102, 2.913) were the most conclusive factors in a subjects decision to attend ANC. Our results support the augmentation of maternal education and media access in rural areas with ANC services. Particular focus is needed for women from Afghanistan since they have a lower level of ANC services.
There is a continuing academic debate on corporate social responsibility (CSR), its goals and practices, and its impact on business and society. Following this debate, this study has made a critical ...investigation of CSR practices of business enterprises with a view to examining their spirit, intentions and roles in terms of pristine business goals. After analyzing the contents of pertinent literature (126 articles, of which 89 are empirical) in both developed and developing country contexts, the study finds that corporate managers are still less concerned about the meaning and essence of pristine business goals and the true goals and role of CSR. They practice CSR largely in a voluntary philanthropic fashion to build public image and primarily enhance business profit, not necessarily for social wellbeing. Their CSR practices have been found to be more of a cosmetic and face‐saving marketing strategy, undermining the social wellbeing goal for sustainable development. The CSR movement, therefore, needs reformation.
The aim was to validate the Urdu version of General Medication Adherence Scale (GMAS) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis disease.
A 2-month (March-April 2019) cross-sectional study was conducted ...in randomly selected out-patients with rheumatoid arthritis. The sample size was calculated using item-subject ratio of 1:20. The scale was evaluated for factorial, concrete, concurrent, and known group validities. Concrete validity was established by correlating scores of EQ-5D quality of life scale and GMAS adherence score. Concurrent validity was established by correlating the GMAS adherence score with pill count. Analyses for sensitivity were also conducted. Cut-off value was determined through receiver operator curve (ROC), and test-retest method was used to analyze internal consistency and reliability. Data were analyzed through IBM SPSS, IBM AMOS, and MedCalc software. The Urdu version of EQ-5D quality of life questionnaire was used with permission from developers (#ID20884). The study was approved by an ethics committee (#NOV:15).
A total of 351 responses were analyzed. The response rate was 98%. Reliability was in acceptable range,
, Cronbach
= 0.797. Factorial validity was established by calculation of satisfactory fit indices. Correlation coefficients for concrete and concurrent validities were
= 0.687, p < 0.01 and
= 0.779, p < 0.01, respectively. Known group validity was established as significant association of adherence score with insurance and illness duration (p < 0.05) that were reported. Sensitivity of the scale was 94%. Most patients had high adherence (N = 159, 45.3%).
The Urdu version of GMAS demonstrated adequate internal consistency and was validated. These results indicate that it is an appropriate tool to measure medication adherence in Pakistani patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
•Selection of non-homologous and essential proteins as potential drug targets to minimize cross-reactivity.•Pathogen-specific proteins involved in unique metabolic pathways were ...prioritized.•dnaN-encoded Beta sliding clamp protein was identified as a promising drug target due to its high connectivity.•Molecular docking and MD simulation demonstrated stable complexes formation between the drug and the target protein.
Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae is a plant pathogen responsible for causing one of the most severe bacterial diseases in rice, known as bacterial leaf blight that poses a major threat to global rice production. Even though several experimental compounds and chemical agents have been tested against X. oryzae pv. oryzae, still no approved drug is available. In this study, a subtractive genomic approach was used to identify potential therapeutic targets and repurposible drug candidates that could control of bacterial leaf blight in rice plants.
The entire proteome of the pathogen underwent an extensive filtering process which involved removal of the paralogous proteins, rice homologs, non-essential proteins. Out of the 4382 proteins present in Xoo proteome, five hub proteins such as dnaA, dnaN, recJ, ruvA, and recR were identified for the druggability analysis. This analysis led to the identification of dnaN-encoded Beta sliding clamp protein as a potential therapeutic target and one experimental drug named (5R)-5-(2,3-dibromo-5-ethoxy-4hydroxybenzyl)-4-oxo-2-thioxo-1,3-thiazolidin-3-ylacetic acid that can be repurposed against it. Molecular docking and 100 ns long molecular dynamics simulation suggested that the drug can form stable complexes with the target protein over time.
Findings from our study indicated that the proposed drug showed potential effectiveness against bacterial leaf blight in rice caused by X. oryzae pv. oryzae. It is essential to keep in consideration that the procedure for developing novel drugs can be challenging and complicated. Even the most promising results from in silico studies should be validated through further in vitro and in vivo investigation before approval.
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