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Background and Aims: Organ donation is the last option for patients with end‐stage organ failure, but the number of people in need of transplantation outweighs the supply of donor organs. A thorough analysis of public understanding is required to design educational programs that increase public commitment to organ donation. Therefore, the present study aimed to explore Bangladeshi adults' understanding, attitudes, and willingness towards organ donation, while also investigating the sources of information, gender‐specific knowledge, intentions, and the factors influencing their decisions. Methods: A cross‐sectional survey was conducted between October 15 and November 25, 2021, using a non‐probability convenience sampling technique. Data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: Among 592 participants, only 35.8% were knowledgeable about organ donation. Internet/online sources were the most reported source of knowledge (37.8%), followed by social media (36%). Despite having limited knowledge, 63.7% had a positive attitude, with females demonstrating a more positive attitude than males (β = 0.09, p = 0.024). Males were significantly more likely than females to follow Bangladesh's specific organ donation laws (29.3% vs. 25%, p = 0.004). Besides, 48.6% of females, compared to 40.4% of males, believe that the health service related to organ donation in Bangladesh is ineffective (p = 0.016). More than one‐third (35.1%) of the participants indicated a willingness to donate their organs after death. The participants' significant barriers to organ donation were found to be family objections (40.4%), health complications (34.4%), fear of disfigurement (31.1%), and religious barriers (26.8%). Conclusion: Although Bangladeshi adults have a positive attitude regarding organ donation, they lack adequate knowledge, which renders them unlikely to be eager to donate organs. Therefore, it is crucial to update policy within a sociocultural framework to boost organ donation for transplantation. National education campaigns and awareness‐raising events should be held in Bangladesh to increase public knowledge of organ donation and transplants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Phubbing, a phenomenon of ignoring others in face-to-face conversations due to mobile phone use, can be assessed using a Phubbing Scale (PS). Recently, the PS has been shortened into an eight-item version, the PS-8. However, psychometric properties of the PS-8 among Iranian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani individuals remain understudied, especially using advanced psychometric testing, such as Rasch and network analyses. Methods: Participants residing in Iran, Bangladesh, and Pakistan (n = 1902; 50.4% females; mean age = 26.3 years) completed the PS-8 and the Internet Disorder Scale-Short Form (IDS9-SF) via an online survey. Network analysis was used to examine if PS-8 items were differentiated from IDS9-SF items; confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to examine the factor structure and measurement invariance of the PS-8; Rasch modeling was used to examine the dimensionality of the PS-8 and differential item functioning (DIF). Results: Network analysis showed that PS-8 items were clustered together with a distance to the IDS9-SF items. The CFA results supported a two-factor structure of the PS-8, and the two-factor structure was found to be invariant across countries and women and men. Rasch model results indicated that the two PS-8 subscales were both unidimensional and did not display DIF across countries and gender/sex. Conclusion: The PS-8 is a feasible and robust instrument for healthcare providers, especially mental health professionals, to quickly assess and evaluate individuals' phubbing behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Internet Disorder Scale–Short Form (IDS9-SF) is a validated instrument assessing internet disorder which modified the internet gaming disorder criteria proposed in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). However, the relationships between the nine items in the IDS9-SF are rarely investigated. The present study used network analysis to investigate the features of the IDS9-SF among three populations in Bangladesh, Iran, and Pakistan. Data were collected (N = 1901; 957 [50.3%] females; 666 [35.0%] Pakistani, 533 [28.1%] Bangladesh, and 702 [36.9%] Iranians) using an online survey platform (e.g., Google Forms). All the participants completed the IDS9-SF. The central-stability-coefficients of the nine IDS9-SF items were 0.71, 0.89, 0.96, 0.98, 0.98, 1.00, 0.67, 0.79, and 0.91, respectively. The node centrality was stable and interpretable in the network. The Network Comparison Test (NCT) showed that the network structure had no significant differences among Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Iranian participants (p-values = 0.172 to 0.371). Researchers may also use the IDS9-SF to estimate underlying internet addiction for their target participants and further explore and investigate the phenomenon related to internet addiction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although several studies have been conducted in Bangladesh regarding sleep problems during the COVID-19 pandemic, none have utilized a large nationwide sample or presented their findings based on nationwide geographical distribution. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to explore the total sleep duration, night-time sleep, and daily naptime and their associated factors as well as geographic information system (GIS) distribution. A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 9730 people in April 2020, including questions relating to socio-demographic variables, behavioral and health factors, lockdown, depression, suicidal ideation, night sleep duration, and naptime duration. Descriptive and inferential statistics, both linear and multivariate regression, and spatial distribution were performed using Microsoft Excel, SPSS, Stata, and ArcGIS software. The results indicated that 64.7% reported sleeping 7–9 h a night, while 29.6% slept less than 7 h nightly, and 5.7% slept more than 9 h nightly. 43.7% reported 30–60 min of daily nap duration, whereas 20.9% napped for more than 1 h daily. Significant predictors of total daily sleep duration were being aged 18–25 years, being unemployed, being married, self-isolating 4 days or more, economic hardship, and depression. For nap duration, being aged 18–25 years, retired, a smoker, and a social media user were at relatively higher risk. The GIS distribution showed that regional division areas with high COVID-19 exposure had higher rates of non-normal sleep duration. Sleep duration showed a regional heterogeneity across the regional divisions of the country that exhibited significant associations with a multitude of socioeconomic and health factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Students are one of the most vulnerable groups to suicide. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, a Bangladeshi study was conducted assessing their suicide patterns regarding gender-based associations. But how has the pandemic changed the Bangladeshi students' suicide patterns is not studied yet, which is investigated herein. Besides, for the first time, this study provides GIS-based distribution of suicide cases across the country's administrative district. Methods: As Bangladesh has no suicide surveillance system, this study utilized media reporting suicide cases following the prior studies. A total of 127 students' suicide cases from March 2020 to March 2021 were finally analyzed after eliminating the duplicate ones, and data were synthesized following the prior studies. Arc-GIS was also used to distribute the suicide cases across the administrative district. Results: Results revealed that female (72.4%; n = 92/127) was more prone to die by suicide than males. About 42.5% of the cases were aged between 14 and 18 years (mean age 16.44 ± 3.512 years). The most common method of suicide was hanging (79.5%; n = 101), whereas relationship complexities (15.7%), being emotional (12.6%), not getting the desired one (11%), conflict with a family member (9.4%), academic failure (9.4%), mental health problem (8.7%), sexual complexities (6.3%), scolded or forbidden by parents (3.9%) were the prominent suicide causalities. In respect to gender and suicide patterns, only the suicide stressor was significantly distributed, whereas the method of suicide was significantly associated with GIS-based distribution. However, a higher number of suicide cases was documented in the capital (i.e. Dhaka) and the northern region than in its surrounding districts. Conclusions: The findings reported herein are assumed to be helpful to identify the gender-based suicide patterns and suicide-prone regions in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic to initiate suicide prevention programs of the risky students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Aims: Infection with the hepatitis B virus is a serious public health problem that is growing all over the world. Therefore, in this context, there is no exception to public participation in disease burden reduction. Consequently, for the first time in Bangladesh, the current study aims to assess the level of vaccination status, knowledge, attitude, and practice of hepatitis B infection among general people. Methods: A cross‐sectional study was carried out between December 15, 2021, and January 17, 2022, including sociodemographic information as well as questions about vaccination status and knowledge, attitude, and practice related to hepatitis B. Data were analyzed using descriptive (frequency) and inferential statistics (Mann–Whitney U, Kruskal–Wallis H, χ2, binary logistic regression, and spearman's rho correlation coefficient). Results: Results indicated that about one‐third (37.9%) of the 807 participants had received hepatitis B vaccine, with an overall mean score of 11.506 ± 5.403 for knowledge, 5.435 ± 1.038 and 4.252 ± 1.776 for attitude and practice, respectively. Risk factors related to vaccination were age, religion, educational qualification, occupation, residence area, marital status, comorbidity, and family member suffering from hepatitis B. Higher level of knowledge was significantly found among the young people aged between 10 and 29; had higher secondary or tertiary education (median = 13); were employed (median = 13.5, interquartile range [IQR] = 8); living in divisional city (median = 13, IQR = 7); were single (media = 13, IQR = 7); and whose family members were suffering from hepatitis B. Besides, poor practice was observed among those aged between 50 and higher (p = 0.004), had no formal education [p < 0.001), a retired or housewife (p < 0.001), divorced or widowed (p < 0.001), absence of comorbidity (p = 0.02), and whose family members were not infected with hepatitis B (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The results exposed that vaccination rates and preventative behavior are unsatisfactory, which will hinder efforts to eradicate hepatitis B worldwide by the year 2030. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recently developed Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S) is a seven-item uni-dimensional scale that assesses the severity of fears of COVID-19. Given the rapid increase of COVID-19 cases in Bangladesh, we aimed to translate and validate the FCV-19S in Bangla. The forward-backward translation method was used to translate the English version of the questionnaire into Bangla. The reliability and validity properties of the Bangla FCV-19S were rigorously psychometrically evaluated (utilizing both confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis) in relation to socio-demographic variables, national lockdown variables, and response to the Bangla Health Patient Questionnaire. The sample comprised 8550 Bangladeshi participants. The Cronbach α value for the Bangla FCV-19S was 0.871 indicating very good internal reliability. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis showed that the uni-dimensional factor structure of the FCV-19S fitted well with the data. The FCV-19S was significantly correlated with the nine-item Bangla Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-90) (r = 0.406, p < 0.001). FCV-19S scores were significantly associated with higher worries concerning lockdown. Measurement invariance of the FCV-19S showed no differences with respect to age or gender. The Bangla version of FCV-19S is a valid and reliable tool with robust psychometric properties which will be useful for researchers carrying out studies among the Bangla speaking population in assessing the psychological impact of fear from COVID-19 infection during this pandemic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Facebook is a popular social networking site in themodern world. It has an adverse effect such as impairing daily health and psychological health and also interpersonal relationships when the use becomes problematic. Aims: To examine problematic Facebook use (PFU) and its predictors among Bangladeshi students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among 601 Bangladeshi students and collected data related to socio-demographic information, behavioral health, internet use behavior, depression, anxiety and problematic Facebook use [assessed using the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale (BFAS)]. The data were analyzed using descriptive (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics (independent sample t-tests, one-way ANOVAs, correlations, and multivariable linear regression). Results: The results indicated that 29.1% of participants were problematic Facebook users (using cutoff =18 out of 30). Medical college students had higher mean score on PFU than other students (p < 0.001). In addition, the mean score of PFU was significantly higher among the students who were in a relationship (p = 0.001), did not engage in physical activity (p < 0.001), used the internet more than 5 h per day (p < 0.001), used social media (p < 0.001), and had depression or anxiety symptoms (p < 0.001). PFU was significantly associated with depression and anxiety among the whole sample. Predictive factors for PFU included relationship status, daily internet use time, gaming, social media use, depression, and anxiety. The model predicted almost 33.2% variance for PFU. Conclusions: Findings suggest interventions should be implemented for students with a special focus on medical students who had higher score of PFU than other types of students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The present study is the first investigating unexplored psychological issues of university entrance test‐taking students in Bangladesh. Design and Methods: This cross‐sectional study investigates suicidal behaviors and their socio‐demographic, admission test‐related, and psychopathological risk factors among a total of 911‐Bangladeshi university entrance test‐takers. Findings: About 17.7% of the participants report suicidal thoughts, whereas it is 8.0% and 2.5% for suicide plans and suicide attempts, respectively. Significantly higher suicidal thought is observed in the repeat test‐taking students compared to the first‐time test‐takers (20.7% vs. 14.6%, χ2 = 5.669, p = 0.017), though the suicide plan and suicide attempt are not associated with student status. The suicidal thought risk factors include female gender, urban residence, satisfaction with the mock test, mental disorders etc. Practical Implications: The present findings warrant implementing initiatives for this suicide‐prone cohort, especially for the test‐failing students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Getting admission into a university is highly competitive globally and can be regarded as a mental stressor for some individuals. In Bangladesh, most of the universities allow students to repeat the test, whereas repeat test-taking students are supposed to suffer from psychological issues like burnout because of academic non-achievement in their first attempt. But there is no prior study assessing burnout to the population, which was investigated herein. A cross-sectional study was carried out among a total of 911 Bangladeshi university entrance test-taking students (i.e., 49.5% first-time test-takers). The survey measures included socio-demographics, admission-related issues, and mental health problems (depression, anxiety, and burnout). Of the mental health problems, depression, anxiety, and burnout were assessed by the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7), and Maslach Burnout Inventory—Student Survey (MBI–SS), respectively. In light of two-dimensional and three-dimensional cutoff schemes of the MBI—SS, about 43.7% and 17.3% of the test-taking students, respectively, were classified to be burnout in the total sample. Additionally, 48.1%, 71.4%, and 49.1% of the students in the total sample reported higher emotional exhaustion, higher cynicism, and lower academic efficacy, respectively. In respect to the student status, two-dimensional burnout (48.0% vs. 39.2%; χ2 = 7.164, p = 0.007), and emotional exhaustion (52.2% vs. 43.9%, χ2 = 6.789, p = 0.034) were significantly higher among the repeat test-taking students. Satisfaction with previous mock tests, depression, and anxiety were the associated factors of burnout in all three samples. Based on the present study, it can be concluded that the university entrance test appearing students are highly prevalent to burnout, and the rate increases with academic non-achievement. As the first study assessing burnout to the population, the findings are anticipated to be helpful for policymaking and further studies both inside and outside Bangladesh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Although depression has adverse effects on all aspects of university students' quality of life, fewer studies have been conducted in Bangladesh; which was investigated herein. Design and Methods: A cross‐sectional study was carried out among 1844 students enrolled at the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed to investigate the explanatory power of the variables predicting depression in this population. Findings: Depression prevalence was 28.7%; and female gender, first‐year student status, substance use, past‐year physical and psychological illness, stressful life events, family psychiatric history, and personal suicidal behaviors were the main risk factors. The final model considering all the studied variables explained 23.5% of the variance in depression. Practical Implications: Effective psychological help services, awareness and intervention programs, and so on, should be implemented to reduce students' psychological burdens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Substance abuse is a major concern worldwide and is increasing rapidly in Bangladesh. However, there are no prior studies concerning lifestyle-related factors that influence adolescents' substance use behavior. Therefore, the present study investigated the prevalence of substance use and its associated sociodemographic and lifestyle-related risk factors among a total of 424 Bangladeshi high school-going adolescents through a structured questionnaire interview study. The survey questionnaire consisted of socio-demographics, lifestyle-related information, and substance use-related questions. For data analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were performed using SPSS (Statistical Package for Social Science) version 22.0, and a p-value of <0.05 determined statistical significance. Results showed that 21.2%, 14.4%, and 15.1% of the participants reported smoking, using a drug, and consuming alcohol, respectively, at least once during their lifespan; whereas the current (i.e., past-month) rates were reported to be 10.4%, 2.8%, and 3.1%, respectively. Overall, the current substance use risk factors were identified as being male, not being from science academic background, having less family influence on personal life, irregular teeth brushing, being smartphone users, using a smartphone for a longer time, and being late-night sleepers. From the list of identified risk factors of substance use, those that are modifiable may be targeted to evolve a prevention program to manage this problem in Bangladeshi adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessing individuals' knowledge and preventive behaviors towards the Coronavirus Disease of 2019 (COVID-19) is essential for the related public health surveillance strategies. Although some of the studies were conducted in Bangladesh, none of these studies considered the geographical distribution of knowledge and preventive behaviors towards COVID-19. Therefore, the present nationwide cross-sectional study with 10,067 samples for the first-time aims to assess the knowledge gap by presenting the geographical distribution of the COVID-19 knowledge and preventive behaviors across all administrative districts of Bangladesh. The measures included socio-demographics and questions about knowledge and preventive behaviors related to COVID-19. One-way ANOVA, independent t-test, and multiple linear regression were used to analyze the data. In addition, GIS-based mapping identified district-wise distribution of the outcomes. Results indicated that the overall mean score of knowledge related to COVID-19 was 14.363 ± 3.073, whereas 16.95 ± 2.89 was for preventive behaviors. Participants' being male, being divorced or widowed, consuming alcohol, smoking cigarettes, living in villages, and having no formal education reported lower performing preventive COVID-19 behaviors. Those participants with higher knowledge scores reported higher preventive COVID-19 behaviors (β = 0.053, p<0.001). However, the model predicted only 13.2% of the variation in preventive COVID-19 behaviors while the overall model being significant. The findings suggest that the Bangladeshi government should initiate appropriate far-reaching program of health education focusing on knowledge and preventive behaviors towards COVID-19 at a community level. After all, the strategies to combat COVID-19 will require individuals' involvement to control and prevent the disease outbreak, for which education is essential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bangladeshi flood survivors are reported with such higher mental disorders that are not ever observed in any other cohorts. Although there are a few studies that assessed mental disorders, suicide or suicidal behaviors are not investigated yet. Hence, the present study for the first time investigated suicidal behaviors and its relationship with socio-demographics, flood effects and psychopathology. Methods: A cross-sectional interview study was carried out between November and December 2019, after 4/5 months of the flood occurrence. Two completely affected villages from two districts residing in two parts of the country were randomly selected (whereas Manikganj district was less affected by the recent flood compared to Kurigram), and a total of 348 flood survivors were interviewed (45.53 ± 14.85 years). Questions related to basic socio-demographics, flood effects, psychological impacts, and suicidal behaviors were asked in the interviews. Results: In the total sample, 57.5% of flood survivors reported having suicidal ideation, whereas 5.7% and 2.0% madea suicide plan and suicide attempt, respectively. Within two study sites, participants belonging to Kurigram reported significantly higher suicidal ideation compared to Manikganj (84.8% vs 33.2%, χ2 = 94.475, p< 0.001). Belonging to a lower-class family, having less education, and less earning members in the family, being affected severely by the flood, suffering from depression, anxiety, and PTSD, and experiencing financial threat, and economic hardship were suicidal behavior risk factors in the total sample. Conclusion: Considering the present findings (ie, suicidality commensurately increases with flood effects), a multi-sectoral policy and its effective implementation should be adopted for alleviating the flood-related psychological burdens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In a densely populated country like Bangladesh, mental health-related burden and associated adverse outcomes are quite prevalent. However, exploration of sleep-related issues in general, and more specifically of insomnia during the COVID-19 pandemic has been scarce and restricted to a single location. The present study investigated the prevalence of insomnia and its predictive factors in the general population, and included Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis to identify regional heterogeneities of insomnia in Bangladesh.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted during the early period of the COVID-19 pandemic. Information related to socio-demographics, knowledge of COVID-19, behaviors related to COVID-19, fear of COVID-19, and insomnia were included in a questionnaire, and coupled with GIS-based spatial analysis to identify regional susceptibility to insomnia.Results: Approximately 30.4%, 13.1% and 2.8% of participants reported sub-threshold, moderate, and severe forms of insomnia, respectively. Independent predictive risk factors of insomnia symptoms included female gender, college education, urban residence, presence of comorbidities, using social media, taking naps during daytime, and fear of COVID-19. District-wide variations in the spatial distribution of fear of COVID-19 and insomnia were significantly associated.Conclusion: Insomnia is frequently present during a pandemic, and exhibits regional variability along with multifactorial determinants. These analytic approaches should enable improved detection and targeting of at-risk sectors of the population, and enable implementation of appropriate measures to ensure improved sleep quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Allele frequencies and haplotype diversity of 17 Y-chromosomal short tandem repeat (STR) loci included in Y-filer™ PCR amplification kit were studied in 120 Garo and 139 Santal male individuals residing in two distinct regions of Bangladesh. A total of 99 different haplotypes from Garo and 129 different haplotypes from Santal individuals were observed with a corresponding discrimination capacity (DC) of 0.825 and 0.928, respectively. A comparison of the studied data with the published data from Y-STR haplotype reference database (YHRD) based on AMOVA revealed that the Garo population is closely related to Tripuri population from Tripura, India and Santal population moderately close to Munda population from Jharkhand, India. The mainstream Bengali population resides at a significant genetic distance from these two studied populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: As with other countries worldwide, lockdown measures during the COVID-19 outbreak in Bangladesh were sudden and unexpected, and have the capacity to elicit serious psychological consequences. The present study examined the psychological consequences of COVID-19 in Bangladesh during the lockdown period.Methods: A nationwide online cross-sectional survey study recruited 10,067 individuals covering all 64 districts in Bangladesh via social media (April 1-10, 2020). The survey comprised questions concerning socio-demographics, knowledge of COVID-19, behavior towards COVID-19, fear of COVID-19, insomnia, depression, and suicidal ideation. Logistic regression and structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses were performed to identify the risk factors depression and suicidal ideation. Geographical information system (GIS)-based spatial analysis was used to identify district-wise susceptibility to depression and suicidal ideation.Findings: The prevalence rate of depression and suicidal ideation related to COVID-19 was 33% and 5%%. Common risk factors for suicidal ideation and depression included being young, being female, being a cigarette smoker, having comorbid diseases, having high scores on the Fear COVID-19 Scale, and having insomnia symptoms. GIS-based maps detected high depression and suicidal ideation in the capital of Bangladesh and the districts near the capital as well as coastal areas where COVID-19 prevalence was high, as compared with districts with no reported cases.Limitations: Self-reported scales and cross-sectional design of the study.Conclusion: COVID-19 is associated with major psychological impact across Bangladesh, underlining the need of strategically located psychological support measures and improved access to mental health services, especially among women and younger people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To evaluate the understanding, opinions and actions concerning COVID-19, referred to as knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP), among rural adolescents in Bangladesh. Additionally, the study aimed to identify the determinants that may influence adolescents' KAP., Design: An interview-based cross-sectional study., Setting: The study area was the Thakurgaon district, which was located in the northwestern region of Bangladesh., Participants: A total of 266 rural adolescents were selected using a non-probability (convenience sampling) technique., Main Outcome Measures: Sociodemographic characteristics, source of information, COVID-19-related KAP, and their associated factors., Results: The majority of the respondents were females and reported that mass media (eg, television channels and papers) was the main source of information to learn about COVID-19. The mean score for knowledge was 7.15±3, whereas the scores were 10.5±2.8, and 8.78±2.66 for attitude and practice, respectively. Among the adolescents, only 11% had adequate knowledge, a positive attitude (27%) and good practices (31%). The predictive factors related to adolescents' knowledge and attitude were their religion, educational level and family income. Adolescents who were from the Islamic religion and who had secondary education were more knowledgeable and encompassed more positive attitudes. Besides, poor KAP towards COVID-19 was significantly higher among the participants with the lowest family income (less than 10 000 BDT). Moreover, their knowledge was significantly associated with their attitudes and practices., Conclusion: The study found that adolescents in rural areas lacked sufficient knowledge of COVID-19 and engaged in unsatisfactory preventative behaviour. Therefore, the development of effective health education programmes that incorporate consideration of KAP-modifying factors is needed. In addition, the result would be helpful for other similar types of pandemics., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2023. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

Background: Bangladeshi university students are considered to be highly suicide-prone compared to other populations and cohorts. However, no prior epidemiological studies have assessed the suicidality (i.e., past-year suicidal ideation [SI], lifetime suicide plan [SP], and lifetime suicide attempt [SA]) among Bangladeshi students, including the variables such as past-year stressful life events and family mental health history. This is arguably a major knowledge gap in the country. Therefore, the present study investigated the prevalence and associated risk factors for suicidal behaviors among Bangladeshi university students., Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted utilizing a convenience sampling method among a total of 1844 university students between October and November 2019. Data were collected based on the information related to socio-demographics, perceived health-related questions, past-year stressful life events, family mental health history, and suicidal behaviors (i.e., SI, SP, and SA). Chi-square tests and binary logistic regressions were used to analyze the data utilizing SPSS statistical software., Results: The prevalence of past-year suicidal ideation, lifetime suicide plans, and suicide attempts were 13.4%, 6.0%, and 4.4%, respectively. Females reported significantly higher suicidal behavior than males (i.e., 20.6% vs.10.2% SI; 9% vs. 4.6% SP; and 6.4% vs.3.6% SA). Risk factors for SI were being female, year of academic study, residing in an urban area, using psychoactive substances, experiencing both past year physical and mental illness, experiencing any type of stressful past-year life events, experiencing campus ragging (i.e., senior students abusing, humiliating and/or harassing freshers or more junior students), experiencing family mental illness history, and having family suicide attempt history. SP was associated with several factors including being female, year of academic study, using psychoactive substance, experiencing both past-year physical and mental illness, and experiencing any type of stressful past-year life events. Risk factors for SA were being female, year of academic study, using psychoactive substances, experiencing past-year mental illness, experiencing any type of stressful past-year life events, and having family suicide attempt history., Conclusions: University students appear to be a vulnerable group for experiencing suicidal behaviors. The present findings warrant rigorous action and early intervention programs such as counseling and other mental health professional services by university authorities. Longitudinal studies are highly recommended involving countrywide representative samples., Competing Interests: The authors of the research work do not have any conflict of interest.