Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41314021›Full record

Trial reportInternational journal of hygiene and environmental health2026

Effect of water, sanitation, and hygiene on childhood growth in Ethiopia: a cluster-randomized trial.

Tahvi Frank, Isabel J B Thompson, Solomon Aragie, Dionna M Wittberg, Wondyifraw Tadesse, Adane Dagnew, Dagnachew Hailu, Jason S Melo, Taye Zeru, Zerihun Tadesse and 7 more

Registry-linked trialAbstract readClinical Trial, Phase IIIRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in International journal of hygiene and environmental health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02754583 (Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in Face-washing for Trachoma I/II), which is not on this map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT02754583 phase3completednot on this map

Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in Face-washing for Trachoma I/II

TypeinterventionalSponsorUniversity of California, San FranciscoRan2015 to 2024Enrolled47,605ConditionsTrachomaArmsWater, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) intervention, Standard of care WASH intervention, Azithromycin, Tetracycline, Control
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Tahvi FrankFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Isabel J B ThompsonFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Solomon AragieFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; The Carter Center Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Dionna M WittbergFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Wondyifraw TadesseCatholic Relief Services, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Adane DagnewThe Carter Center Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Dagnachew HailuThe Carter Center Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Jason S MeloFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Taye ZeruAmhara Public Health Institute, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia.
Zerihun TadesseThe Carter Center Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Benjamin F ArnoldFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Francisco, USA; Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Matthew C FreemanGangarosa Department of Environmental Health, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Scott D NashThe Carter Center, Atlanta, GA, USA.
E Kelly CallahanThe Carter Center, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Travis C PorcoFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Thomas M LietmanFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California San Francisco, USA; Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California San Francisco, USA.
Jeremy D KeenanFrancis I. Proctor Foundation, University of California San Francisco, USA; Department of Ophthalmology, University of California San Francisco, USA. Electronic address: jeremy.keenan@ucsf.edu.

Funding

Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in face-washing for trachoma II (SWIFT II)UG1EY023939 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI KEENAN, JEREMY DAVID · 2019 to 2023
$4.1M
Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in Face-washing for TrachomaU10EY023939 · NEI · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · PI KEENAN, JEREMY DAVID · 2014 to 2018
$2.7M
NEI NIH HHS U10 EY023939NEI NIH HHS UG1 EY023939
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundChild growth faltering contributes significantly to global morbidity and mortality, with a disproportionate impact on low- and middle-income countries. Poor quality water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) has been identified as a risk factor, though prior studies have found mixed evidence for the effectiveness of WASH interventions.

methodsThe WASH Upgrades for Health in Amhara (WUHA) trial was a two-arm, parallel-group, cluster-randomized trial carried out in three districts of the Wag Hemra Zone of Amhara from 2016 to 2019 (ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT02754583). The intervention consisted of hygiene infrastructure improvements and hygiene promotion at the household, community, and school level. Height and weight were pre-specified secondary outcomes that were measured annually in the longitudinal cohort of children aged 0-5 years at baseline.

resultsTwenty communities were randomized to the WASH intervention and 20 to the control (delayed WASH) arm. Anthropometric measurements were done at baseline for a random sample of 613 children in the WASH intervention arm and 644 children in the control arm. There was no statistically significant difference over the 3-year study period for either height (0.1 cm lower in the WASH arm, 95 %CI -0.5 to 0.2, P = 0.45) or weight (0.02 kg higher in the WASH arm, 95 %CI -0.06 to 0.10, P = 0.64).

conclusionsA comprehensive WASH intervention implemented for three years in rural Ethiopia did not improve growth among children 0-5 years old.

Indexed as

Child DevelopmentHygieneSanitationWater SupplyBody HeightChild, PreschoolEthiopiaFemaleHumansInfantInfant, NewbornMaleAnthropometryBody heightBody weightHygieneSanitationSoapsWater

Identifiers

PMID41314021
PMCPMC13577930

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.