M. S. Laskar

Factors associated with contraceptive practices of married women in Bangladesh with respect to their employment status

Objective There might be a difference between non-working and working women in their perception of rights and privileges which may influence their contraceptive behavior. The purpose of this study was to examine contraceptive behavior among non-working and working women in Bangladesh determining associated factors. Method Analysis was based on data from the 1999–2000 Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey which employs nationally representative sample. Results The prevalence of current contraceptive use (any method) was 58.2% among non-working women and 65.5% among working women. Both rates are still low for the country. Some factors, such as discussed family planning with husband, husband approves family planning, desire for more children, and husband lives together, were influential determinants of lower contraceptive prevalence among the non-working women. Conclusion The results indicate a necessity for social activities promoting husband–wife communication and womens participation in employment to enhance the use of contraceptives among Bangladeshi women, especially non-working women.

Quality of life of arsenicosis patients in an arsenic-affected rural area in Bangladesh.

ABSTRACT The objective of this cross-sectional comparative study was to assess quality of life (QOL) of arsenicosis patients. A total of 104 arsenicosis patients, 104 arsenic-exposed individuals without arsenicosis (nonpatients), and 104 individuals not exposed to arsenic (controls) were interviewed based on a questionnaire constructed based on the WHOQOL-BREF instrument. The facets of life considered for assessing QOL were physical health domain, psychological domain, social relationships domain, and environment domain. All the domain-wise QOL scores of the arsenicosis patients were significantly smaller than those of the controls as well as of the nonpatients. The findings of the study assessing QOL of arsenicosis patients might be helpful to understand the condition and justify for the policy makers to adopt adequate measures to alleviate the sufferings through prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation.

Effect of room temperature on percentage finger systolic blood pressure response to finger cooling

Percentage finger systolic blood pressure (%FSBP) in response to finger cooling is used to assess vascular components of the hand-arm vibration syndrome and the measurement method is under discussion for standardization. It has been suggested that measurement circumstances including room temperature may affect %FSBP. We investigated the effect of room temperature on %FSBP response to finger cooling in healthy subjects. Six healthy male subjects who were medical students volunteered for the study. Multi-channel plethysmograph was used for simultaneous multi-finger FSBP measurements. The examination room was kept at 21±1°C and 25±1°C, and the subjects were randomly assigned. Percentage finger systolic blood pressures for the index, middle, ring and little fingers at 15°C and 10°C cuff-water temperatures were calculated. Four-way analysis of variance was performed to determine the independent effect of subject, room temperature, finger and cuff-water temperature factors on %FSBP. The room temperature as an independent factor affecting %FSBP was statistically significant (P<0.01). From the results, it can be concluded that %FSBP response to finger cooling in healthy subjects may be affected by room temperature. Therefore, room temperature is expected to be controlled when assessing peripheral vascular components of the upper extremities using %FSBP response to finger cooling.