Laura H Kwong
Biographic Data
| ID | 6903870 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Laura H Kwong |
| GIVEN NAMES | Laura H |
| FAMILY NAME | Kwong |
| SIGNATURE | KWONG L H |
| AFFILIATIONS | Palo Alto Institute |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9776-9355 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 7 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2016 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
A pre-post pilot study with and without subsidy to promote improved backyard poultry-raising practices to reduce exposure to poultry and poultry feces in rural Bangladesh
Backyard poultry raising is common in rural Bangladesh and many households keep their poultry inside their houses at night. Compared to keeping poultry outside in sheds at night, this practice likely elevates children’s exposure to poultry and poultry feces and associated enteric pathogens. We conducted a two-arm (subsidy and non-subsidy) pre-post pilot study. Households in both arms received the behavior change communication and counseling inter…
Evaluating the impact of a low-cost food storage intervention on complementary food contamination and diarrheal disease in low-income urban households
Diarrheal diseases remain a leading cause of under-five mortality globally, yet large-scale water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions have shown limited effects on childhood diarrhea and growth, partly because foodborne transmission has been overlooked. In low-income urban settings, complementary foods for young children are often stored for several hours under unsafe conditions, increasing the risk of fecal contamination. This randomiz…
Associations between High Heat and Stillbirth, Preterm Birth, and Low Birth Weight in Low- and Middle- Income Countries
Background: Rising temperatures due to climate change are a growing threat to human health. Pregnant women and their fetuses face distinct risks. Though evidence links heat to adverse birth outcomes, most studies derive data from high-income countries. Risks may be greater in low-resource settings. This review synthesizes evidence on heat and birth outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. Methods: Searches covered PubMed, Embase, Web of Scie…
High-resolution data to detect meteorological sensitivity of health facilities’ electricity systems in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Reliable electricity is essential for healthcare delivery, particularly in resource-constrained settings vulnerable to weather extremes. This study investigated the associations between temperature extremes and precipitation anomalies and power quality and reliability (PQR) in 24 healthcare facilities across North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Using high-frequency sensor data and satellite-derived climate indices from May 2022 to Octobe…
Videography of pathways for enteric pathogen exposure among children in urban informal settlements in Fiji and Indonesia
Children in urban informal settlements are vulnerable to enteric pathogen exposures due to inadequate availability of clean water, sanitation, and wastewater treatment. These exposures can contribute to diarrhea, malabsorption, and poor growth. Understanding how children interact with their environments – particularly through mouthing behaviors – can help identify high-risk environmental sources, exposure pathways, and opportunities for intervent…
Evaluation of a multicomponent child development intervention delivered through the government health system
INTRODUCTION: Small efficacy trials have demonstrated that multicomponent interventions can improve early child development. We evaluated the large-scale delivery of a multicomponent intervention delivered by government health workers throughout a rural subdistrict in northwestern Bangladesh. METHODS: We evaluated a group-based, multicomponent intervention with a curriculum covering responsive parenting, caregivers' mental health, lead exposure p…
Who has sheds? Exploring practices and determinants of overnight housing for backyard poultry in rural Bangladesh to inform an intervention to limit exposure to poultry and poultry feces
Backyard poultry-rearing contributes to income and food security for rural households in low- and middle-income countries. However, poultry are often kept inside the household dwelling at night, posing health risks to the people raising them. Housing poultry separately from the dwelling overnight is a potential intervention to limit exposure to poultry. The aim of this study was to describe practices and determinants of overnight poultry housing …
Associations between weather extremes and faecal contamination along pathogen transmission pathways in rural Bangladeshi households
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institutes of Health, World Bank
Then electricity theft would end, nobody loves stealing”
Despite generally high rates of grid connectivity in African cities, electricity access among users in informal settlements remains heavily constrained. This study explores the challenges that restrict electricity access and use across 25 informal settlements in Kampala, Uganda using a mixed-methods participatory action research (PAR) approach conducted by an inter- and transdisciplinary team. We find that the high cost of electricity, a complex …
Impact of community masking on Covid-19
Persuading people to mask Even in places where it is obligatory, people tend to optimistically overstate their compliance for mask wearing. How then can we persuade more of the population at large to act for the greater good? Abaluck et al . undertook a large, cluster-randomized trial in Bangladesh involving hundreds of thousands of people (although mostly men) over a 2-month period. Colored masks of various construction were handed out free of c…
Environmental Persistence of the World's Most Burdensome Infectious and Parasitic Diseases
Humans live in complex socio-ecological systems where we interact with parasites and pathogens that spend time in abiotic and biotic environmental reservoirs (e.g., water, air, soil, other vertebrate hosts, vectors, intermediate hosts). Through a synthesis of published literature, we reviewed the life cycles and environmental persistence of 150 parasites and pathogens tracked by the World Health Organization's Global Burden of Disease study. We u…
A holistic approach to promoting early child development
INTRODUCTION: In low- and middle-income countries, children experience multiple risks for delayed development. We evaluated a multicomponent, group-based early child development intervention including behavioural recommendations on responsive stimulation, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene, mental health and lead exposure prevention. METHODS: We conducted a 9-month, parallel, multiarm, cluster-randomised controlled trial in 31 rural villages i…
Formative Research to Design a Child-Friendly Latrine in Bangladesh
In low- and middle-income countries, most latrines are not accessible to young children. We explored how to modify existing pit latrines to make them child friendly. We conducted four focus group discussions with mothers to explore barriers to child latrine use. We then enrolled 20 households with a child aged 3-7 years old to test six enabling technologies developed based on the identified barriers. Two to three weeks after installing the select…
Public health impacts of an imminent Red Sea oil spill
The possibility of a massive oil spill in the Red Sea is increasingly likely. The Safer , a deteriorating oil tanker containing 1.1 million barrels of oil, has been deserted near the coast of Yemen since 2015 and threatens environmental catastrophe to a country presently in a humanitarian crisis. Here, we model the immediate public health impacts of a simulated spill. We estimate that all of Yemen's imported fuel through its key Red Sea ports wou…
How to identify win–win interventions that benefit human health and conservation
Where Children Play
Globally, gastrointestinal (GI) infections by enteric pathogens are the second-leading cause of morbidity and mortality in children under five years of age (≤5 years). While GI pathogen exposure in households has been rigorously examined, there is little data about young children's exposure in public domains. Moreover, public areas in low-income settings are often used for other waste disposal practices in addition to human feces, such as trash d…
Hand- and Object-Mouthing of Rural Bangladeshi Children 3–18 Months Old
Children are exposed to environmental contaminants by placing contaminated hands or objects in their mouths. We quantified hand- and object-mouthing frequencies of Bangladeshi children and determined if they differ from those of U.S. children to evaluate the appropriateness of applying U.S. exposure models in other socio-cultural contexts. We conducted a five-hour structured observation of the mouthing behaviors of 148 rural Bangladeshi children …
How to identify win–win interventions that benefit human health and conservation
Public health impacts of an imminent Red Sea oil spill
The possibility of a massive oil spill in the Red Sea is increasingly likely. The Safer , a deteriorating oil tanker containing 1.1 million barrels of oil, has been deserted near the coast of Yemen since 2015 and threatens environmental catastrophe to a country presently in a humanitarian crisis. Here, we model the immediate public health impacts of a simulated spill. We estimate that all of Yemen's imported fuel through its key Red Sea ports wou…
Then electricity theft would end, nobody loves stealing”
Despite generally high rates of grid connectivity in African cities, electricity access among users in informal settlements remains heavily constrained. This study explores the challenges that restrict electricity access and use across 25 informal settlements in Kampala, Uganda using a mixed-methods participatory action research (PAR) approach conducted by an inter- and transdisciplinary team. We find that the high cost of electricity, a complex …
Hand- and Object-Mouthing of Rural Bangladeshi Children 3–18 Months Old
Children are exposed to environmental contaminants by placing contaminated hands or objects in their mouths. We quantified hand- and object-mouthing frequencies of Bangladeshi children and determined if they differ from those of U.S. children to evaluate the appropriateness of applying U.S. exposure models in other socio-cultural contexts. We conducted a five-hour structured observation of the mouthing behaviors of 148 rural Bangladeshi children …
Where Children Play
Globally, gastrointestinal (GI) infections by enteric pathogens are the second-leading cause of morbidity and mortality in children under five years of age (≤5 years). While GI pathogen exposure in households has been rigorously examined, there is little data about young children's exposure in public domains. Moreover, public areas in low-income settings are often used for other waste disposal practices in addition to human feces, such as trash d…
How to identify win–win interventions that benefit human health and conservation
A holistic approach to promoting early child development
INTRODUCTION: In low- and middle-income countries, children experience multiple risks for delayed development. We evaluated a multicomponent, group-based early child development intervention including behavioural recommendations on responsive stimulation, nutrition, water, sanitation, hygiene, mental health and lead exposure prevention. METHODS: We conducted a 9-month, parallel, multiarm, cluster-randomised controlled trial in 31 rural villages i…
Formative Research to Design a Child-Friendly Latrine in Bangladesh
In low- and middle-income countries, most latrines are not accessible to young children. We explored how to modify existing pit latrines to make them child friendly. We conducted four focus group discussions with mothers to explore barriers to child latrine use. We then enrolled 20 households with a child aged 3-7 years old to test six enabling technologies developed based on the identified barriers. Two to three weeks after installing the select…
Public health impacts of an imminent Red Sea oil spill
The possibility of a massive oil spill in the Red Sea is increasingly likely. The Safer , a deteriorating oil tanker containing 1.1 million barrels of oil, has been deserted near the coast of Yemen since 2015 and threatens environmental catastrophe to a country presently in a humanitarian crisis. Here, we model the immediate public health impacts of a simulated spill. We estimate that all of Yemen's imported fuel through its key Red Sea ports wou…
Impact of community masking on Covid-19
Persuading people to mask Even in places where it is obligatory, people tend to optimistically overstate their compliance for mask wearing. How then can we persuade more of the population at large to act for the greater good? Abaluck et al . undertook a large, cluster-randomized trial in Bangladesh involving hundreds of thousands of people (although mostly men) over a 2-month period. Colored masks of various construction were handed out free of c…
Environmental Persistence of the World's Most Burdensome Infectious and Parasitic Diseases
Humans live in complex socio-ecological systems where we interact with parasites and pathogens that spend time in abiotic and biotic environmental reservoirs (e.g., water, air, soil, other vertebrate hosts, vectors, intermediate hosts). Through a synthesis of published literature, we reviewed the life cycles and environmental persistence of 150 parasites and pathogens tracked by the World Health Organization's Global Burden of Disease study. We u…
Evaluation of a multicomponent child development intervention delivered through the government health system
INTRODUCTION: Small efficacy trials have demonstrated that multicomponent interventions can improve early child development. We evaluated the large-scale delivery of a multicomponent intervention delivered by government health workers throughout a rural subdistrict in northwestern Bangladesh. METHODS: We evaluated a group-based, multicomponent intervention with a curriculum covering responsive parenting, caregivers' mental health, lead exposure p…
Who has sheds? Exploring practices and determinants of overnight housing for backyard poultry in rural Bangladesh to inform an intervention to limit exposure to poultry and poultry feces
Backyard poultry-rearing contributes to income and food security for rural households in low- and middle-income countries. However, poultry are often kept inside the household dwelling at night, posing health risks to the people raising them. Housing poultry separately from the dwelling overnight is a potential intervention to limit exposure to poultry. The aim of this study was to describe practices and determinants of overnight poultry housing …
Associations between weather extremes and faecal contamination along pathogen transmission pathways in rural Bangladeshi households
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Institutes of Health, World Bank
Then electricity theft would end, nobody loves stealing”
Despite generally high rates of grid connectivity in African cities, electricity access among users in informal settlements remains heavily constrained. This study explores the challenges that restrict electricity access and use across 25 informal settlements in Kampala, Uganda using a mixed-methods participatory action research (PAR) approach conducted by an inter- and transdisciplinary team. We find that the high cost of electricity, a complex …
A pre-post pilot study with and without subsidy to promote improved backyard poultry-raising practices to reduce exposure to poultry and poultry feces in rural Bangladesh
Backyard poultry raising is common in rural Bangladesh and many households keep their poultry inside their houses at night. Compared to keeping poultry outside in sheds at night, this practice likely elevates children’s exposure to poultry and poultry feces and associated enteric pathogens. We conducted a two-arm (subsidy and non-subsidy) pre-post pilot study. Households in both arms received the behavior change communication and counseling inter…
Evaluating the impact of a low-cost food storage intervention on complementary food contamination and diarrheal disease in low-income urban households
Diarrheal diseases remain a leading cause of under-five mortality globally, yet large-scale water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions have shown limited effects on childhood diarrhea and growth, partly because foodborne transmission has been overlooked. In low-income urban settings, complementary foods for young children are often stored for several hours under unsafe conditions, increasing the risk of fecal contamination. This randomiz…
Associations between High Heat and Stillbirth, Preterm Birth, and Low Birth Weight in Low- and Middle- Income Countries
Background: Rising temperatures due to climate change are a growing threat to human health. Pregnant women and their fetuses face distinct risks. Though evidence links heat to adverse birth outcomes, most studies derive data from high-income countries. Risks may be greater in low-resource settings. This review synthesizes evidence on heat and birth outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. Methods: Searches covered PubMed, Embase, Web of Scie…
High-resolution data to detect meteorological sensitivity of health facilities’ electricity systems in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Reliable electricity is essential for healthcare delivery, particularly in resource-constrained settings vulnerable to weather extremes. This study investigated the associations between temperature extremes and precipitation anomalies and power quality and reliability (PQR) in 24 healthcare facilities across North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Using high-frequency sensor data and satellite-derived climate indices from May 2022 to Octobe…
Videography of pathways for enteric pathogen exposure among children in urban informal settlements in Fiji and Indonesia
Children in urban informal settlements are vulnerable to enteric pathogen exposures due to inadequate availability of clean water, sanitation, and wastewater treatment. These exposures can contribute to diarrhea, malabsorption, and poor growth. Understanding how children interact with their environments – particularly through mouthing behaviors – can help identify high-risk environmental sources, exposure pathways, and opportunities for intervent…
Child Nutrition and Water Access (11 works) · Medicine (9 works) · Environmental health (7 works) · Business (5 works) · Psychological intervention (5 works) · Climate Change and Health Impacts (4 works) · Geography (4 works) · Sanitation (4 works) · Biology (3 works) · COVID-19 epidemiological studies (3 works)