Stephen P. Luby, Mahbubur Rahman, Benjamin F. Arnold, Leanne Unicomb et al.
BACKGROUND: Diarrhoea and growth faltering in early childhood are associated with subsequent adverse outcomes. We aimed to assess whether water quality, sanitation, and handwashing interventions alone or combined with nutrition interventions reduced diarrhoea or growth faltering. METHODS: The WASH B...
Ayşe Ercümen, Amy J. Pickering, Laura H. Kwong, Benjamin F. Arnold et al.
in food (p < 0.05). E. coli in stored water and food increased with increasing E. coli in soil, ponds, source water and hands. We provide empirical evidence of fecal transmission in the domestic environment despite on-site sanitation. Animal feces contribute to fecal contamination, and fecal indicat...
Susana Vaz Nery, Amy J. Pickering, Ebba Abate, Abraham Asmare et al.
The transmission soil transmitted helminths (STH) occurs via ingestion of or contact with infective stages present in soil contaminated with human faeces. It follows therefore that efforts to reduce faecal contamination of the environment should help to reduce risk of parasite exposure and improveme...
Mahbubur Rahman, Mahbub‐Ul Alam, Sharmin Khan Luies, Abul Kamal et al.
Fresh produce, when consumed raw, can be a source of exposure to antimicrobial residues, antimicrobial-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) of clinical importance. This review aims to determine: (1) the presence and abundance of antimicrobial residues, ARB and ARGs in f...
Ayşe Ercümen, Abu Mohd Naser, Leanne Unicomb, Benjamin F. Arnold et al.
BACKGROUND: Shallow tubewells are the primary drinking water source for most rural Bangladeshis. Fecal contamination has been detected in tubewells, at low concentrations at the source and at higher levels at the point of use. We conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess whether improving th...
Amy J. Pickering, Ayşe Ercümen, Benjamin F. Arnold, Laura H. Kwong et al.
increase), while other pathways were not associated. In cross-sectional analysis, there were no associations between concurrently measured environmental contamination and diarrhea. Our findings suggest higher levels of E. coli on child hands are strongly associated with subsequent diarrheal illness ...
Audrie Lin, Ayşe Ercümen, Jade Benjamin‐Chung, Benjamin F. Arnold et al.
Background: We evaluated effects of individual and combined water, sanitation, handwashing (WSH), and nutritional interventions on protozoan infections in children. Methods: We randomized geographical clusters of pregnant women in rural Bangladesh into chlorinated drinking water, hygienic sanitation...
Alexandria B. Boehm, Dan Wang, Ayşe Ercümen, Meghan Shea et al.
We evaluated whether provision and promotion of improved sanitation hardware (toilets and child feces management tools) reduced rotavirus and human fecal contamination of drinking water, child hands, and soil among rural Bangladeshi compounds enrolled in a cluster-randomized trial. We also measured ...
Ayşe Ercümen, Amy J. Pickering, Laura H. Kwong, Andrew Mertens et al.
Sanitation improvements have had limited effectiveness in reducing the spread of fecal pathogens into the environment. We conducted environmental measurements within a randomized controlled trial in Bangladesh that implemented individual and combined water treatment, sanitation, handwashing (WSH) an...
Allan H. Smith, Mohammad Yunus, Md Alfazal Khan, Ayşe Ercümen et al.
BACKGROUND: Arsenic exposure via drinking water increases the risk of chronic respiratory disease in adults. However, information on pulmonary health effects in children after early life exposure is limited. METHODS: This population-based cohort study set in rural Matlab, Bangladesh, assessed lung f...
Lauren Steinbaum, Laura H. Kwong, Ayşe Ercümen, Makeda S. Negash et al.
Globally, about 1.5 billion people are infected with at least one species of soil-transmitted helminth (STH). Soil is a critical environmental reservoir of STH, yet there is no standard method for detecting STH eggs in soil. We developed a field method for enumerating STH eggs in soil and tested the...
Laura H. Kwong, Ayşe Ercümen, Amy J. Pickering, Leanne Unicomb et al.
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...
Erica R. Fuhrmeister, Ayşe Ercümen, Amy J. Pickering, Kaitlyn M. Jeanis et al.
increase in the concentration of the animal fecal marker (BacCow) on mothers' hands. Thus, domestic animals were important contributors to enteric pathogens in these households.
Ayşe Ercümen, Jade Benjamin‐Chung, Benjamin F. Arnold, Audrie Lin et al.
BACKGROUND: Soil transmitted helminths (STH) infect >1.5 billion people. Mass drug administration (MDA) effectively reduces infection; however, there is evidence for rapid reinfection and risk of potential drug resistance. We conducted a randomized controlled trial in Bangladesh (WASH Benefits, NCT0...
Christine P. Stewart, Kathryn G. Dewey, Audrie Lin, Amy J. Pickering et al.
Background: Anemia in young children is a global health problem. Risk factors include poor nutrient intake and poor water quality, sanitation, or hygiene. Objective: We evaluated the effects of water quality, sanitation, handwashing, and nutrition interventions on micronutrient status and anemia amo...