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Tsegazeab Ayele,1 Abinet Gebremickael,1 Mathewos Alemu Gebremichael,2 Mala George,3 Habtamu Wondmagegn,1 Habtamu Esubalew,2 Zekarias Bukala,1 Simeon Meskele,1 Getachew Abebe,1 Alehegn Bekele1 1Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia; 2Department of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia; 3Department of Biochemistry, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Habtamu Wondmagegn P.O. Box No: 21, Arba Minch, EthiopiaTel +251 913028959Fax +251 468810279Email habtamuwondmagegn@gmail.com; habtamu.wondmagegn@amu.edu.etBackground: Measuring portal vein diameter (PVD) is a feasible method of detecting portal vein hypertension, which is a primary and fatal complication of chronic liver disease (CLD) and is usually diagnosed very late. However, there is a paucity of morphometric information on portal vein diameter in the Ethiopian population. Hence, it is important to determine the portal vein diameter among adults with and without chronic liver disease.Purpose: The study aimed to identify how PVD is affected by age, sex, and anthropometric measurements in patients with and without CLD.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 220 participants (110 CLD patients and 110 controls) who have visited the radiology unit at selected Hospitals. Patients with CLD were selected consecutively as they present while controls were selected by a systematic sampling technique. A structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Correlation and independent t-test were used to assess the relations. A statistically significant association was declared at P-value < 0.05.Results: Mean portal vein diameter for CLD patients was 17.03± 1.97 mm with a range of 12.8− 20.8mm and 10.79± 1.27mm with a range of 7.70– 13.25mm for the control group. Age, weight, and body mass index had a positive correlation with portal vein diameter in both groups. The mean portal vein diameter increased by 21.34% during deep inspiration in the control group.Conclusion: The mean portal vein diameter among patients with CLD was higher than that of the control group. A significant gender-based difference was recorded in the portal vein diameter of the control group only. Ultrasonography is a non-invasive, readily available diagnostic tool for portal vein pathology.Recommendation: It is recommended for clinicians to take into consideration age, sex and anthropometric measurements while measuring PVD.Keywords: portal vein diameter, portal hypertension, chronic liver disease, Ethiopia

Simeon Meskele,1 Abay Mulu,2 Abinet GebreMickael,1 Lankamo Ena3 1Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia; 2Department of Anatomy, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; 3School of Nursing, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Simeon Meskele P.O. Box: 21, Arba Minch, EthiopiaTel +251916127305; +251992255711Email simeonmeskele@gmail.comBackground: The placenta and umbilical cord have been considered as significant contributors to the perinatal outcome and have contributed to some degree to neonatal mortality. The placenta has a very crucial role in normal fetal development. After about four weeks of gestation, the only link of the fetus to the placenta is the umbilical cord. Very little is known about placental and umbilical indices in Ethiopia. This study was aimed to determine placental and umbilical cord indices and their association with fetal distress in Hadiya zone public hospitals, southern Ethiopia.Methods: This study included 249 placentae with the attached umbilical cord from normal singleton live birth with known gestational age. Bivariable and multivariable logistic regression was used, and variables with p < 0.25 in the bivariable analysis were entered into a multivariable logistic regression to identify the independent factors for the outcome variable. Odds ratios with 95% confidence were computed, and statistical significance was declared at p-value < 0.05.Results: Three-fourth (75.9%) of diameter of studied placenta was in normal range and 18.1%, 6.0% below and above normal range, respectively. About one-third (32.9%) of umbilical cords were short, 61.8% normal, and 5.2% long. Newborns with thin placenta [AOR = 3.43; 95% CI: 1.25, 9.40], short cord length [AOR = 3.43; 95% CI: 1.66, 7.09] and long cord length [AOR = 7.55; 95% CI: 2.07, 27.53] were significantly associated with fetal distress.Conclusion: In this study, deviation of umbilical cord length from the normal range and placental thickness were significantly associated with fetal distress. In addition, fetal distress was also associated with gestation age and sex of the newborn.Keywords: placenta, umbilical cord, fetal distress, Hadiya, Ethiopia