Eric Foote

All Publications

• Use, Acceptability, Performance, and Health Impact of Hollow Fiber Ultrafilters for Water Treatment in Rural Kenyan Households, 2009-2011. The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene Fagerli, K., Gieraltowski, L., Nygren, B., Foote, E., Gaines, J., Oremo, J., Odhiambo, A., Kim, S., Quick, R. 2020

  Abstract

  Diarrheal illness remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in children < 5 years in developing countries, and contaminated water contributes to diarrhea risk. To address this problem, a novel hollow fiber ultrafilter (HFU) was developed for household water treatment. To test its impact on water quality and infant health, we conducted a cluster-randomized longitudinal evaluation in 10 intervention and 10 comparison villages in Kenya, attempting to enroll all households with infants (< 12 months old). We conducted a baseline survey, distributed HFUs to intervention households, made biweekly home visits for 1 year to assess water treatment practices and diarrhea in infants, and tested water samples from both groups every 2 months for Escherichia coli. We enrolled 92 infants from intervention households and 74 from comparison households. During the 1-year study period, 45.7% of intervention households and 97.3% of comparison households had at least one stored water sample test positive for E. coli. Compared with comparison households, the odds of E. coli contamination in stored water was lower for intervention households (OR: 0.42, 95% CI: 0.24, 0.74), but there was no difference in the odds of reported diarrhea in infants, adjusting for covariates (OR: 1.19, 95% CI: 0.74, 1.90). Although nearly all water samples obtained from unprotected sources and filtered by the HFU were free of E. coli contamination, HFUs alone were not effective at reducing diarrhea in infants.

  View details for DOI 10.4269/ajtmh.19-0862

  View details for PubMedID 32274986

• Lower respiratory tract infection hospitalizations among American Indian/Alaska Native children and the general United States child population INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIRCUMPOLAR HEALTH Foote, E. M., Singleton, R. J., Holman, R. C., Seeman, S. M., Steiner, C. A., Bartholomew, M., Hennessy, T. W. 2015; 74

  Abstract

  The lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI)-associated hospitalization rate in American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) children aged <5 years declined during 1998-2008, yet remained 1.6 times higher than the general US child population in 2006-2008.Describe the change in LRTI-associated hospitalization rates for AI/AN children and for the general US child population aged <5 years.A retrospective analysis of hospitalizations with discharge ICD-9-CM codes for LRTI for AI/AN children and for the general US child population <5 years during 2009-2011 was conducted using Indian Health Service direct and contract care inpatient data and the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, respectively. We calculated hospitalization rates and made comparisons to previously published 1998-1999 rates prior to pneumococcal conjugate vaccine introduction.The average annual LRTI-associated hospitalization rate declined from 1998-1999 to 2009-2011 in AI/AN (35%, p<0.01) and the general US child population (19%, SE: 4.5%, p<0.01). The 2009-2011 AI/AN child average annual LRTI-associated hospitalization rate was 20.7 per 1,000, 1.5 times higher than the US child rate (13.7 95% CI: 12.6-14.8). The Alaska (38.9) and Southwest regions (27.3) had the highest rates. The disparity was greatest for infant (<1 year) pneumonia-associated and 2009-2010 H1N1 influenza-associated hospitalizations.Although the LRTI-associated hospitalization rate declined, the 2009-2011 AI/AN child rate remained higher than the US child rate, especially in the Alaska and Southwest regions. The residual disparity is likely multi-factorial and partly related to household crowding, indoor smoke exposure, lack of piped water and poverty. Implementation of interventions proven to reduce LRTI is needed among AI/AN children.

  View details for DOI 10.3402/ijch.v74.29256

  View details for Web of Science ID 000369579100001

  View details for PubMedID 26547082

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC4636865

• Determinants of Anemia among Preschool Children in Rural, Western Kenya AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND HYGIENE Foote, E. M., Sullivan, K. M., Ruth, L. J., Oremo, J., Sadumah, I., Williams, T. N., Suchdev, P. S. 2013; 88 (4): 757-764

  Abstract

  Although anemia in preschool children is most often attributed to iron deficiency, other nutritional, infectious, and genetic contributors are rarely concurrently measured. In a population-based, cross-sectional survey of 858 children 6-35 months of age in western Kenya, we measured hemoglobin, malaria, inflammation, sickle cell, α-thalassemia, iron deficiency, vitamin A deficiency, anthropometry, and socio-demographic characteristics. Anemia (Hb < 11 g/dL) and severe anemia (Hb < 7 g/dL) prevalence ratios (PRs) for each exposure were determined using multivariable modeling. Anemia (71.8%) and severe anemia (8.4%) were common. Characteristics most strongly associated with anemia were malaria (PR: 1.7; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5-1.9), iron deficiency (1.3; 1.2-1.4), and homozygous α-thalassemia (1.3; 1.1-1.4). Characteristics associated with severe anemia were malaria (10.2; 3.5-29.3), inflammation (6.7; 2.3-19.4), and stunting (1.6; 1.0-2.4). Overall 16.8% of anemia cases were associated with malaria, 8.3% with iron deficiency, and 6.1% with inflammation. Interventions should address malaria, iron deficiency, and non-malarial infections to decrease the burden of anemia in this population.

  View details for DOI 10.4269/ajtmh.12-0560

  View details for Web of Science ID 000317024700026

  View details for PubMedID 23382166

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC3617865

• Impact of Locally-Produced, Ceramic Cookstoves on Respiratory Disease in Children in Rural Western Kenya AMERICAN JOURNAL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AND HYGIENE Foote, E. M., Gieraltowski, L., Ayers, T., Sadumah, I., Faith, S. H., Silk, B. J., Cohen, A. L., Were, V., Hughes, J. M., Quick, R. E. 2013; 88 (1): 132-137

  Abstract

  Household air pollution is a risk factor for pneumonia, the leading cause of death among children < 5 years of age. From 2008 to 2010, a Kenyan organization sold ≈ 2,500 ceramic cookstoves (upesi jiko) that produce less visible household smoke than 3-stone firepits. During a year-long observational study, we made 25 biweekly visits to 200 homes to determine stove use and observe signs of acute respiratory infection in children < 3 years of age. Reported stove use included 3-stone firepit only (81.8%), upesi jiko only (15.7%), and both (2.3%). Lower, but not statistically significant, percentages of children in upesi jiko-using households than 3-stone firepit-using households had observed cough (1.3% versus 2.9%, rate ratio [RR] 0.48, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.22-1.03), pneumonia (0.9% versus 1.7%, RR 0.60, 95% CI: 0.24-1.48), and severe pneumonia (0.3% versus 0.6%, RR 0.66, 95% CI: 0.17-2.62). Upesi jiko use did not result in significantly lower pneumonia rates. Further research on the health impact of improved cookstoves is warranted.

  View details for DOI 10.4269/ajtmh.2012.12-0496

  View details for Web of Science ID 000313757500020

  View details for PubMedID 23243108

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC3541723