Respiratory Illness

Digital stethoscope use by non-physician primary care health workers on children under five years of age in rural Bangladesh: a feasibility study

This study in rural Bangladesh tested whether trained community health workers could successfully record children’s breathing sounds using a digital stethoscope. After a short training, nine workers collected lung sound recordings from nearly 1,000 young children at local clinics. Most of the recordings were clear and usable, and they were usually completed within a few … [Read more...] about Digital stethoscope use by non-physician primary care health workers on children under five years of age in rural Bangladesh: a feasibility study

This study examined whether community health workers in Bangladesh can accurately count a child’s breathing rate to help diagnose pneumonia. They assessed 123 children with suspected pneumonia and compared the breathing counts recorded by community health workers with those reviewed by doctors using video recordings. The results showed that the community health workers measured … [Read more...] about Evaluating the performance of community health care providers in detecting fast breathing in children using a reference video expert panel in Bangladesh

This pilot program tested a 12-week Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) self-management intervention led by community health workers (CHWs) for nine Veterans. Participants found the program acceptable, appropriate, and feasible, and reported benefits from CHW-led education on COPD, breathing techniques, and inhaler use, as well as social support and access to … [Read more...] about Community health workers serving Veterans with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: a pilot intervention development and feasibility study

This study looked at whether community health workers’ knowledge about tuberculosis (TB) affected how they detect patients with respiratory symptoms in primary care in Brazil. Among 129 workers, mostly women aged 40–49, the study found no link between their TB knowledge and their attitudes or practices. This suggests that factors other than knowledge influence how workers carry … [Read more...] about Community health workers’ knowledge, attitudes and practices in the detection of respiratory symptomatic patients

Integrated community case management (iCCM) relies on village health workers (VHWs) to assess sick children and refer severe cases. A study in rural Uganda tested if measuring lactate levels, a marker of severe illness, could improve referrals. Among 204 children with fever and cough, 12% had elevated lactate levels, but these were often not linked to visible danger signs used … [Read more...] about A cross-sectional study of point-of-care lactate testing in integrated community care management (ICCM) for children with acute respiratory illness in rural uganda