Tobacco consumption is a significant preventable cause of death worldwide. This study aimed to assess the prevalence and associated factors of tobacco consumption among Cambodian individuals aged 15–49, utilising data from the 2021–2022 Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey (CDHS).

Cross-sectional study based on secondary analysis of the 2021–2022 CDHS.

Nationwide household survey conducted across urban and rural areas of Cambodia.

A total of 28 321 respondents aged 15–49 years were included in the analysis.

Tobacco consumption categorised as no use, smoking tobacco, smokeless tobacco and dual use. Descriptive statistics, ² tests and multinomial logistic regression were used to assess associations between background characteristics and tobacco consumption, with ‘no consumption’ as the reference category. Statistical significance was set at p

Among the 28 321 respondents (68.8% female), 91.8% were non-users of tobacco (reference group), while 6.9% reported smoking (predominantly males; adjusted relative risk ratios (ARRR)=39.29, 95% CI 29.70 to 51.96, p

While Cambodia has made notable progress in reducing tobacco consumption, the persistent challenges highlighted by the prevalence of smoking, particularly among specific demographics, indicate the need for targeted public health interventions.

Bangladesh is highly prone to recurrent flooding that disrupts all four pillars of food security. This study aimed to explore the effect of household food insecurity on the underweight status of women in flood-affected areas of Bangladesh, which remains underexplored.

This is a cross-sectional analysis.

This study was conducted in eight sub-districts (upazilas) across eight districts in Bangladesh that experience severe to moderate river flooding, flash floods and substantial tidal surges.

A total of 532 women participated in the study. The inclusion criteria for participation were as follows: (1) being at least 18 years of age, (2) residing in the household for at least 1 year and (3) having experienced limited food access in the 4 weeks before data collection due to flood-related constraints.

Household food insecurity was measured using the U.S. Agency for International Development Household Food Insecurity Access Scale questionnaire. An underweight status was evaluated through anthropometric measurements of women. Adjusted prevalence ratios (aPRs) were estimated using robust log-linear models.

Moderate food insecurity was the most common (58.3%) among the participants. The prevalence of underweight was the highest (52.1%) in the severely food-insecure group and decreased significantly with improved food security. Severe household food insecurity was strongly associated with a higher prevalence of underweight individuals (aPR = 4.12; 95% CI, 1.60 to 10.60). An underweight status was also prevalent in women from moderately food-insecure households (aPR = 1.75; 95% CI, 0.68 to 4.55).

This study reveals a significant association between household food insecurity and underweight status, highlighting the major challenges faced by women living in flood-prone areas of Bangladesh. These findings emphasise the urgent need to address household food insecurity to improve nutritional outcomes for women in vulnerable communities.

Nipah virus (NiV) is a bat-transmitted paramyxovirus causing recurrent, high-mortality outbreaks in South and South-East Asia. As a WHO priority pathogen, efforts are underway to develop therapies like monoclonal antibodies and small-molecule antivirals, which require evaluation in clinical trials. However, trial design is challenging due to limited understanding of NiV’s clinical characteristics. Given the rarity of NiV infections, strategies targeting improved outcomes for the broader acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) patient population, including those with NiV, are essential for advancing therapeutic research. To address these gaps, we designed the Bangladesh AES cohort study to characterise the patient population, clinical features, treatment practices, common aetiologies and outcomes in patients presenting with AES, including NiV infection, as a clinical characterisation study to inform the design of clinical trials for NiV and AES more broadly.

This prospective cohort study will be conducted in Bangladesh, a NiV endemic country with annual outbreaks. In collaboration with the ongoing NiV surveillance programme in Bangladesh, we aim to enrol up to 2000 patients of all ages presenting with AES at three tertiary care hospitals within the Nipah belt. Patients who provide informed consent to participate will be monitored throughout their hospital stay until 90 days post enrolment. Data will be systematically collected through interviews and medical record reviews at several time points: on the day of enrolment, day 3, day 7, the day of critical care admission (if applicable), discharge day and 90 days post enrollment. Additionally, a portion of the cerebrospinal fluid collected under the concurrent NiV surveillance protocol will be tested for an array of viral and bacterial pathogens responsible for encephalitis at the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research Bangladesh (icddr,b) laboratory.

The study received ethical approval from the Oxford Tropical Research Ethics Committee, University of Oxford, UK (OxTREC Ref: 576–23) and the institutional review board of icddr,b, Bangladesh (icddr,b protocol number: 24016). By characterising the AES patient population, this study will generate essential evidence on key clinical parameters, which will be pivotal in optimising the design of clinical trials for potential interventions aimed at improving outcomes in patients with AES, including those with NiV disease. Findings will be shared with participating hospitals, patients and relevant government stakeholders. Results will also be disseminated through conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications.

Not applicable (this is an observational study).

Advanced maternal age (AMA), defined as giving birth at age 35 or older, is an increasingly significant public health concern worldwide. This study aimed to identify the socio-demographic and economic determinants of giving birth at AMA among women in Ethiopia and to explore the resulting health consequences for both mothers and children.

This study is a secondary analysis of data from 5517 women extracted from the 2019 Ethiopian Mini Demographic and Health Survey (EMDHS), a nationally representative cross-sectional survey. The data were cleaned, weighted using STATA V. 17 and analysed using ArcGIS 10.8 to map AMA. Global and local Moran’s Index methods were used to assess clustering and a multilevel binary logistic regression model was fitted to identify predictors of giving birth at AMA.

The prevalence of giving birth at AMA was 12.7%, with a Global Moran’s I of 0.9964, indicating significant clustering across Ethiopian zones (p

This study found a high prevalence of giving birth at AMA among women with a lifetime birth history, with a spatially non-random distribution, indicated by a positive Moran’s Index. Individual and community-level factors such as having a previous male child, small family size, being Catholic or Protestant and residing in Addis Ababa or the Amhara region were positively associated with AMA. Conversely, factors including lower education level (no or primary education), contraceptive use, media access, rural residence adherence to postnatal check-ups and residing in the Afar region were negatively associated with AMA. All community-level factors were significantly associated with the outcome.