Shams El Arifeen
Biographic Data
| ID | 2375122 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Shams El Arifeen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Shams |
| FAMILY NAME | El Arifeen |
| SIGNATURE | EL ARIFEEN S |
| AFFILIATIONS | International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-5372-5932 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 131 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 29 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 131 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2001 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
From hope to health
Background: Orphaned adolescent girls face critical barriers to accessing accurate sexual and reproductive health (SRH) knowledge, which predisposes them to risky sexual behaviours and their consequences. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the 'HopeBox' intervention in improving SRH knowledge among orphaned adolescent girls living in orphanages in Bangladesh. Methods: We adopted a pre- and post-test design to conduct the study from January…
Navigating maternal health challenges in Bangladesh
BACKGROUND: Bangladesh reports about 6500 maternal deaths annually, mainly due to haemorrhage and eclampsia. We assessed trends and determinants of three major complications and symptoms of preeclampsia, excessive bleeding, and convulsions, and related care-seeking practices. METHODS: We analysed data from the 2001, 2010, and 2016 Bangladesh Maternal Mortality and Health Care Surveys, conducted as nationally representative cross-sectional surveys…
Impact of cooking with liquefied petroleum gas compared with traditional cooking practices on perinatal and early neonatal mortality
Objective To determine whether liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) can reduce perinatal mortality in a setting with high reliance on biomass fuels for cooking. Design Community-based two-arm parallel cluster randomised controlled trial, in Sherpur, Bangladesh. Participants 4944 pregnant women were recruited, with 2472 in each group. Eligible women were pregnant between 40 and 120 days, aged 15–49 years, permanent residents and planning to give birth in…
Availability and readiness of health facilities to provide emergency obstetric care in eight low- and lower-middle-income countries
BACKGROUND: Despite progress in reducing global maternal mortality in recent decades, low- and lower-middle-income countries (LLMICs) continue to face major challenges. To reduce preventable maternal deaths, the WHO recommends emergency obstetric care (EmOC) in health facilities (HFs). However, up-to-date multi-country evidence on availability and readiness in LLMICs remains very limited. Hence, we analysed EmOC service availability and readiness…
Using DHIS2 routine data for health system preparedness in resource-limited settings
Health systems in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) like Bangladesh face persistent challenges in delivering timely and equitable care, often exacerbated by poor planning and inefficient resource allocation. Forecasting service utilization using routine health data can support more responsive and data-driven health system planning, yet such approaches remain under utilized in Bangladesh. By analyzing service utilization trends and projecti…
Clinical safety trial of a thermal jacket among preterm or low birthweight neonates for hypothermia management at a tertiary-level health facility in Bangladesh
Background: Hypothermia is a common and critical issue for preterm and low birthweight (LBW) neonates, who require effective thermal care management to survive. In a safety trial, we tested a thermal jacket comprising a reusable chemical warming pad and an insulating jacket designed for hypothermia management when skin-to-skin contact is not possible. We assessed its performance in maintaining neonates' body temperature within the euthermic range…
Implementation research on enhanced community case management of pneumonia in Bangladesh
Background: Previous trials in Africa and Asia, including Bangladesh, showed that community health workers can effectively treat young infants (7-59 days) with fast breathing and children (2-59 months) with chest indrawing pneumonia at home with oral amoxicillin using enhanced integrated community case management (iCCM) protocols. However, the Enhanced Management of Pneumonia in Community (EMPIC), its pneumonia-specific component, has not yet bee…
Effect of an integrated intervention on the availability and completeness of Robson ten group classification system-related data in district hospitals in Bangladesh
Background: The Government of Bangladesh's routine data capturing system of health care facilities doesn't adequately capture Robson ten group classification system (TGCS)-related variables required to monitor caesarean section rates. To address this gap, we developed an integrated intervention and assessed its impact on the Robson TGCS-related variables availability and completeness. Methods: We conducted implementation research in eight distric…
Stillbirths by maternal-obstetric characteristics and Robson classification system
Background: Understanding maternal-obstetric determinants is key to stillbirth prevention. The Robson classification system enables monitoring and identification of high-risk groups. This study examined the prevalence and distribution of antepartum and intrapartum stillbirths by maternal-obstetric characteristics and Robson groups in district hospitals of Bangladesh. Methods: tests. Results: Out of 15 529 deliveries, 3.9% were stillbirths (56.6% …
Assessing the feasibility and appropriateness of verbal autopsy using contact information of the deceased from burial records in urban Bangladesh
Background: Bangladesh faces significant challenges in accurately documenting causes of death (COD), largely due to incomplete vital registration systems, which lack COD reporting. A substantial number of deaths occur outside health facilities, often without medical certification, leading to further gaps in mortality data. Verbal autopsy (VA) has emerged as a viable method in low-resource settings to bridge this gap. We aimed to explore the feasi…
Pregnancy loss in rural Bangladesh
Background: Pregnancy loss, encompassing miscarriage/spontaneous and induced abortion, has substantial physical and mental health consequences for women. However, population-level evidence on its occurrence in Bangladesh remains limited, with most data derived from reports and small-scale community-based studies. Here we provide population-level estimates of pregnancy loss and examine associated factors in rural Bangladesh. Methods: We analysed d…
Tele-mental health for frail older adults in rural Bangladesh
Trends of childhood Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure prevalence, determinants and inequity in Bangladesh
Objective: The childhood Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure (CIAF) effectively identifies multiple anthropometric deficits among under-five children. This study aimed to analyse undernutrition among under-five children, as measured by childhood CIAF, to evaluate trends, determinants and disparities in Bangladesh between 2007 and 2022. Design: The study utilised data from five rounds of the nationally representative cross-sectional Banglade…
Social franchising in healthcare
Causes and risk factors for deaths in young infants in South Asia
INTRODUCTION: Strategies for reducing infant mortality require accurate, local, population-level data. We conducted a population-based observational study in three countries in South Asia to describe risk factors, causes and rates of mortality in young infants. METHODS: Pregnancies, births and pregnancy outcomes were determined through household surveillance, and cause of deaths was ascertained by verbal autopsy. Cox regression was used to identi…
Use of minimally invasive tissue sampling to determine the contribution of diarrheal diseases to under-five mortality and associated co-morbidities and co-infections in children with fatal diarrheal d…
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of reducing child mortality to Shigella /EIEC (14.0%), ST-ETEC (12.4%), rotavirus (26.4%), and adenovirus (non-40/41: 19.0%; 40/41: 5.0%). These pathogens were frequently identified as co-infections. Diarrheal disease accounted for a substantial share of child deaths across CHAMPS sites. Reducing mortality will require preventing diarrhea and addressing key contributors such as malnutrition and HIV
Setting stakeholder-led research priorities for advancing Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Bangladesh using CHNRI method
Background: Sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) are essential for individuals' health, well-being, survival, and economic development. A stakeholder-led approach to research prioritisation was essential to guide SRHR-related research in Bangladesh. Accordingly, we conducted a research prioritisation exercise to identify health research priorities related to SRHR in Bangladesh. Methods: We adopted the Child Health and Nutrition Resear…
Welcoming pregnant women
Background: Maternal mortality remains high in low- and middle-income countries like Bangladesh, driven by preventable causes such as inadequate health care access and delays in receiving care in health facilities, highlighting the need for improved support in health facilities. This study aimed to explore the opportunities and difficulties of introducing 'Welcome Persons', a hospital navigation and support cadre for pregnant women, from the pers…
Adolescent and young adult mortality in Bangladesh
Background: In 2021, over 1.5 million adolescents (aged 10-19 years) and young adults (aged 20-24 years) died globally, approximately 4500 deaths daily. However, research on causes and factors influencing deaths among adolescents and young adults in Bangladesh is limited. We aimed to address this gap by identifying the leading causes of mortality and the factors affecting adolescent and young adult deaths. Methods: We conducted two cross-sectiona…
Enhancing emergency obstetric care navigation through a ‘Welcome Person’ model
Background: Maternal mortality remains critical in Bangladesh, driven by delays in accessing timely care at health care facilities. Globally, a woman dies every two minutes from pregnancy or childbirth, often due to systemic inefficiencies in health care. In Bangladesh, high maternal mortality rates are worsened by overcrowded facilities, limited resources, and complex procedures. The 'three delays' model identifies barriers to care, with the thi…
Improving the provision for gynaecological health care in Bangladesh using Essential Gynaecological Skills implementation package
Background: Gynaecological health and its related service delivery have long been neglected in Bangladesh. In response to the high burden and improvements in the provision of gynaecological health care, the Essential Gynaecological Skills (EGS) implementation package was developed. It includes comprehensive in-service training for upskilling the non-specialised health care providers and introduces the first structured data recording system for gy…
Design, development and implementation of a digital burial record-keeping and management system in Bangladesh
Background: Digitalisation of death documentation in Bangladesh's graveyards is crucial for accurate mortality data and public health planning. Additionally, studying the usability, technology acceptance, and implementation aspects of the digital death record-keeping system, an innovative intervention that has not been previously explored, ensures the effectiveness, user adoption, and long-term sustainability. We designed, implemented, and evalua…
Excess mortality during Covid-19 and prediction of mortality in Bangladesh
Background: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted global mortality, underscoring the need for reliable data to guide public health policy. In low- and middle-income countries, graveyard-based death records can offer valuable insights into COVID-19-related mortality, yet they remain limited. Additionally, data on mortality beyond the pandemic remains scarce as we approach the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. We addressed this gap by usin…
Effect of involvement of midwives in maternal care on patient and provider satisfaction in secondary-level public health facilities in Bangladesh
Background: Maternity care satisfaction for pregnant women and recently delivered mothers is linked to both short- and long-term complications. For health care providers, dissatisfaction can lead to high turnover, reduced efficiency, and decreased service quality. Increased midwifery care coverage enhances satisfaction; however, the Government of Bangladesh-sanctioned midwife positions are limited to the primary health care level only, not extend…
Assessing health systems’ capacities to provide post-abortion care
Background: Abortion-related complications significantly contribute to maternal morbidity and mortality globally. Post-abortion care (PAC) services are essential to safeguarding women's rights by substantially mitigating the health risks associated with abortions - a step which is fundamental to achieving reproductive and maternal health-related Sustainable Development Goals. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of data from the nationally …
Context matters
Appropriate consideration of contextual factors is essential for ensuring internal and external validity of randomized and non-randomized evaluations. Contextual factors may confound the association between delivery of the intervention and its potential health impact. They may also modify the effect of the intervention or programme, thus affecting the generalizability of results. This is particularly true for large-scale health programmes, for wh…
Reducing Inequity in Urban Health
Bangladesh is undergoing a rapid urbanization process. About one-third of the population of major cities in the country live in slums, which are areas that exhibit pronounced concentrations of factors that negatively affect health and nutrition. People living in slums face greater challenge to improve their health than other parts of the country, which fuels the growing intra-urban health inequities. Two rounds of the Bangladesh Urban Health Surv…
What drives and constrains effective leadership in tackling child undernutrition? Findings from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India and Kenya
Strong leadership has been highlighted as a common element of success within countries that have made rapid progress in tackling child and maternal undernutrition. Yet little is known of what contributes to nutrition leaders’ success or lack of it in particular policy environments. This study of 89 individuals identified as influential within child and maternal undernutrition policy and programming in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya and India sheds l…
Childhood drowning in Matlab, Bangladesh
Child supervision practices for drowning prevention in rural Bangladesh
BACKGROUND: Injuries are an increasing child health concern and have become a leading cause of child mortality in the 1-4 years age group in many developing countries, including Bangladesh. METHODS: Household observations during 9 months of a community-based pilot of two supervision tools-a door barrier and a playpen-designed to assess their community acceptability in rural Bangladesh are reported in this article. RESULTS: Statistical analysis of…
Effects of integrated psychosocial stimulation (PS) and Unconditional Cash Transfer (UCT) on Children's development in rural Bangladesh
PS integrated into an UCT programme benefited children's neurodevelopment and UCT improved mother's self-esteem. UCT programme may be an important platform for child stimulation programmes for rural poor populations
Improving and sustaining quality of child health care through IMCI training and supervision
BACKGROUND: The Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) strategy includes guidelines for the management of sick children at first-level facilities. These guidelines intend to improve quality of care by ensuring a complete assessment of the child's health and by providing algorithms that combine presenting symptoms into a set of illness classifications for management by IMCI-trained service providers at first-level facilities. OBJECTIVES…
Prevalence of arsenic exposure and skin lesions. A population based survey in Matlab, Bangladesh
Study objective: To assess prevalence of arsenic exposure through drinking water and skin lesions, and their variation by geographical area, age, sex, and socioeconomic conditions. Design, setting, and participants: Skin lesion cases were identified by screening the entire population above 4 years of age (n = 166 934) living in Matlab, a rural area in Bangladesh, during January 2002 and August 2003. The process of case identification involved ini…
Exclusive Breastfeeding Reduces Acute Respiratory Infection and Diarrhea Deaths Among Infants in Dhaka Slums
OBJECTIVES: To describe breastfeeding practices and investigate the influence of exclusive breastfeeding in early infancy on the risk of infant deaths, especially those attributable to respiratory infections (ARI) and diarrhea. METHODS: A prospective observational study was conducted on a birth cohort of 1677 infants who were born in slum areas of Dhaka in Bangladesh and followed from birth to 12 months of age. After enrollment at birth, the infa…
Context matters
Appropriate consideration of contextual factors is essential for ensuring internal and external validity of randomized and non-randomized evaluations. Contextual factors may confound the association between delivery of the intervention and its potential health impact. They may also modify the effect of the intervention or programme, thus affecting the generalizability of results. This is particularly true for large-scale health programmes, for wh…
Prevalence of arsenic exposure and skin lesions. A population based survey in Matlab, Bangladesh
Study objective: To assess prevalence of arsenic exposure through drinking water and skin lesions, and their variation by geographical area, age, sex, and socioeconomic conditions. Design, setting, and participants: Skin lesion cases were identified by screening the entire population above 4 years of age (n = 166 934) living in Matlab, a rural area in Bangladesh, during January 2002 and August 2003. The process of case identification involved ini…
Setting Priorities in Global Child Health Research Investments
This article provides detailed guidelines for the implementation of systematic method for setting priorities in health research investments that was recently developed by Child Health and Nutrition Research Initiative (CHNRI). The target audience for the proposed method are international agencies, large research funding donors, and national governments and policy-makers. The process has the following steps: (i) selecting the managers of the proce…
Effect of community-based newborn-care intervention package implemented through two service-delivery strategies in Sylhet district, Bangladesh
Differentials in neonatal mortality in two adjacent rural areas of Bangladesh
A household survey, conducted in three rural sub-districts of northeastern Bangladesh, revealed a markedly lower neonatal mortality rate (NMR) in one sub-district compared to two adjacent sub-districts. This study examines the degree to which the differential in NMR can be explained by factors that could be improved by maternal and newborn health programmes, such as knowledge of danger signs and use of antenatal, delivery, and postnatal care. Use…
Household food security is associated with growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh
Objective Despite a strong relationship between household food security and the health and nutritional status of adults and older children, the association of household food security with the growth of infants and young children has not been adequately studied, particularly in developing countries. We examined the association between household food security and subsequent growth of infants and young children in rural Bangladesh. Design We followe…
Childhood drowning in Matlab, Bangladesh
Household surveillance of severe neonatal illness by community health workers in Mirzapur, Bangladesh
BACKGROUND: Effective and scalable community-based strategies are needed for identification and management of serious neonatal illness. METHODS: As part of a community-based, cluster-randomized controlled trial of the impact of a package of maternal-neonatal health care, community health workers (CHWs) were trained to conduct household surveillance and to identify and refer sick newborns according to a clinical algorithm. Assessments of newborns …
Child supervision practices for drowning prevention in rural Bangladesh
BACKGROUND: Injuries are an increasing child health concern and have become a leading cause of child mortality in the 1-4 years age group in many developing countries, including Bangladesh. METHODS: Household observations during 9 months of a community-based pilot of two supervision tools-a door barrier and a playpen-designed to assess their community acceptability in rural Bangladesh are reported in this article. RESULTS: Statistical analysis of…
Vulnerability of Newborns to Environmental Factors
Infection is the major cause of neonatal deaths. Home born newborns in rural Bangladeshi communities are exposed to environmental factors increasing their vulnerability to a number of disease agents that may compromise their health. The current analysis was conducted to assess the association of very severe disease (VSD) in newborns in rural communities with temperature, rainfall, and humidity. A total of 12,836 newborns from rural Sylhet and Mir…
Effectiveness of an integrated approach to reduce perinatal mortality
The continuum of care approach provided through the integration of service delivery modes decreased the perinatal mortality rate within a short period of time. Further testing of this model is warranted within the government health system in Bangladesh and other low-income countries
P2-388 Calcium in breast milk is associated with the underweight of infant at around 6 months age in a cohort of Bangladesh
Introduction Appropriate growth of infants is important for their health and further life. In Bangladesh, there are still many infants below the growth standards. Calcium (Ca) is a major component of skeleton and it plays an important role in building bones early in life. The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between Ca level in breast milk and subsequent infants growth in rural Bangladesh. Methods The MINIMat (“Maternal and…
SP1-44 Association between allergic diseases and nutritional status among children in Bangladesh
Introduction Interest has been arisen whether nutritional status is related to development of allergic diseases in children. Our aim was to investigate the association between nutritional status and serum IgE level in the developing country. Methods This cross-sectional study was nested into a large scale nutrition intervention trial among pregnant women in rural Bangladesh. In this follow-up study, we collected venous blood to measure serum tota…
Setting priorities for development of emerging interventions against childhood pneumonia, meningitis and influenza
A cute lower respiratory infections, which broadly include pneumonia and bronchiolitis, are still the leading cause of childhood mortality. ALRI contributed to 18% of all deaths in children younger than five years of age in 2008 [1], and the main pathogens responsible for high mortality were Streptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae and respiratory syncytial virus [2-4]. In addition, meningitis was estimated to contribute up to 200 000 dea…
Early invitation to food and/or multiple micronutrient supplementation in pregnancy does not affect body composition in offspring at 54 months
Growth patterns in early life are associated with later health. The effect of nutrition during in utero development on later body composition is unclear. We evaluated whether prenatal early invitation to food and/or multiple micronutrient supplementation (MMS) in pregnancy has an effect on offspring body composition at 54 months of age. In Maternal and Infant Nutrition Interventions in Matlab trial (ISRCTN16581394) in Bangladesh, 4436 pregnant wo…
Risk of childhood undernutrition related to small-for-gestational age and preterm birth in low- and middle-income countries
BACKGROUND: Low- and middle-income countries continue to experience a large burden of stunting; 148 million children were estimated to be stunted, around 30-40% of all children in 2011. In many of these countries, foetal growth restriction (FGR) is common, as is subsequent growth faltering in the first 2 years. Although there is agreement that stunting involves both prenatal and postnatal growth failure, the extent to which FGR contributes to stu…
Nutritional status and childhood wheezing in rural Bangladesh
Objective To investigate the association between current childhood nutritional status and current wheezing among pre-school children in rural Bangladesh. Design Cross-sectional study. Setting Matlab region, rural Bangladesh. Subjects Children ( n 912) aged 4·5 years. Anthropometric measurements of the mothers and their children were taken during a 1-year period from December 2007 to November 2008. Current wheezing was identified using the Interna…
Improving and sustaining quality of child health care through IMCI training and supervision
BACKGROUND: The Integrated Management of Childhood Illness (IMCI) strategy includes guidelines for the management of sick children at first-level facilities. These guidelines intend to improve quality of care by ensuring a complete assessment of the child's health and by providing algorithms that combine presenting symptoms into a set of illness classifications for management by IMCI-trained service providers at first-level facilities. OBJECTIVES…
Causes of adult female deaths in Bangladesh
The shift in the pattern of causes of adult female deaths is in agreement with the overall change in the disease pattern from communicable to non-communicable diseases in Bangladesh. Suicide and other violent deaths as the primary cause of deaths among teenage girls demands specific interventions to prevent such premature deaths. Prevention of deaths due to non-communicable diseases should also be a priority
How can formative research inform the design of an iron-folic acid supplementation intervention starting in first trimester of pregnancy in Bangladesh
Our study suggests that introduction of IFA supplementation early in pregnancy is feasible with support from CHWs. Promotion of IFA could benefit from efforts to include culturally sensitive reasons for usage; improvement of the CHW training modules; targeted home visits and counselling; and outreach to standardize messages
What drives and constrains effective leadership in tackling child undernutrition? Findings from Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India and Kenya
Strong leadership has been highlighted as a common element of success within countries that have made rapid progress in tackling child and maternal undernutrition. Yet little is known of what contributes to nutrition leaders’ success or lack of it in particular policy environments. This study of 89 individuals identified as influential within child and maternal undernutrition policy and programming in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Kenya and India sheds l…
Stillbirths
An estimated 2.6 million third trimester stillbirths occurred in 2015 (uncertainty range 2.4-3.0 million). The number of stillbirths has reduced more slowly than has maternal mortality or mortality in children younger than 5 years, which were explicitly targeted in the Millennium Development Goals. The Every Newborn Action Plan has the target of 12 or fewer stillbirths per 1000 births in every country by 2030. 94 mainly high-income countries and …
National, regional, and worldwide estimates of stillbirth rates in 2015, with trends from 2000
BACKGROUND: Previous estimates have highlighted a large global burden of stillbirths, with an absence of reliable data from regions where most stillbirths occur. The Every Newborn Action Plan (ENAP) targets national stillbirth rates (SBRs) of 12 or fewer stillbirths per 1000 births by 2030. We estimate SBRs and numbers for 195 countries, including trends from 2000 to 2015. METHODS: We collated SBR data meeting prespecified inclusion criteria from…
Cost of management of severe pneumonia in young children
BACKGROUND: Childhood pneumonia is a major cause of childhood illness and the second leading cause of child death globally. Understanding the costs associated with the management of childhood pneumonia is essential for resource allocation and priority setting for child health. METHODS: We conducted a systematic review to identify studies reporting data on the cost of management of pneumonia in children younger than 5 years old. We collected unpub…
Medicine (111 works) · Environmental health (86 works) · Global Maternal and Child Health (82 works) · Population (57 works) · Child Nutrition and Water Access (56 works) · Pediatrics (44 works) · Nursing (41 works) · Internal Medicine (36 works) · Pregnancy (34 works) · Demography (33 works)