Simple and Safe "100-dollar-kitchen" to Prevent Low-birth-weight in a Rural Area in Bangladesh: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

Low-birth-weight (LBW) is a major adverse pregnancy outcome in resource-poor countries. About 28% of all neonatal deaths worldwide are directly attributed to LBW. Exposure to biomass fuel during cooking is associated with LBW. There is unlikely to be any significant change in the use of biomass fuels in the near future, therefore, interventions targeted to reduce the harmful effects on poor pregnancy outcomes is warranted. To address this need, the investigators proposed a locally-made inexpensive prefabricated model of the "100-dollar-kitchen"($100Kitchen) with an improved cookstove for resource-poor settings. The improved cookstove of the $100Kitchen ensure complete incineration of the biomass fuels and thus, provided safeguard to the pregnant women using these fuels. This study has been measured the impact of our '$100Kitchen and improved cookstove' intervention as to whether a pregnant woman residing in a household with a '$100Kitchen and improved cookstove' is less likely to give birth to a LBW newborn. A cluster-randomized controlled trial has been adopted in Shahjadpur sub-district in Bangladesh and 628 and 639 pregnant women at 8-12 weeks gestational age enrolled for each intervention and control area respectively and followed-up through 42-days post-delivery. Birth outcomes have been noted and the newborns have been weighted within 72-hrs of the delivery. Non-invasive maternal blood Carbon Monoxide Hemoglobin saturation (SpCO) level between the intervention and control groups have also been measured.