Children with disabilities are at an increased risk of experiencing child maltreatment (CM). We aimed to estimate the prevalence of different forms of CM among children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Bangladesh. We interviewed 45 randomly selected mothers of ASD children who attended a tertiary care hospital in Dhaka, Bangladesh, to treat their children. Data regarding CM was collected using a standard screening tool recommended by the International Society for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (ISPCAN). We asked mothers to report about their child-rearing practices to identify CM, including physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, and neglect, along with their non-violent disciplinary practices. The children's age range was 3 to 9 years, and approximately 82 percent were boys. All children were found to have experiences of physical and psychological abuse throughout their childhood. Seventy-three percent of children experienced neglect during the past year while 82 percent during their entire childhood. The reported prevalence of sexual abuse was 4.4 percent in the past year and 8.9 percent during their childhood. However, all parents followed non-violent disciplinary practices, and the prevalence of maltreatment did not differ between boys and girls. Higher instances of CM in Bangladesh, especially among ASD children, raise concern for its adverse social consequences and calls for appropriate mitigation practices as proclaimed by the United Nations Child Rights Charter.

BACKGROUND: Little is known regarding the effect of exposure to biomass fuel smoke inhalation on respiratory symptoms in the Bangladeshi population which is a major health hazard in most of the developing countries. This study aims to explore the association between respiratory symptoms and biomass fuel smoke exposure among children under 5 years of age. METHODS: Data were extracted from the Bangladesh Urban Health Survey conducted in 2013. A total of 10,575 mothers with at least one surviving children were selected. Respiratory symptoms among children under 5 years of age were considered as the primary outcome. Sequential multiple logistic regression models were used to observe the association between respiratory symptoms and biomass fuel smoke exposure adjusting the effect of residential factors and mother and child characteristics. RESULTS: Around 40% of the mothers exclusively used biomass fuel irrespective of the kitchen location and 54% of them were habituated in indoor cooking. The prevalence of respiratory symptoms of under-five children among in-house and outdoor biomass fuel users was 23.0% and 21.9%, respectively. Results of fitted multiple logistic regression models showed that the odds of having respiratory symptoms among children under 5 years of age were increased due to in-house biomass fuel use [OR = 1.18; 95% CI, 1.04-1.36] compared with the non-biomass user. An increased risk of respiratory symptoms was also significantly associated with mother's birth complication [OR = 1.51; 95% CI, 1.36-1.67], non-government organization (NGO) membership of mothers [OR = 1.32; 95% CI, 1.16-1.51], age of the child (6-23m) [OR = 1.29; 95% CI, 1.10-1.52], and nutritional status (stunting) [OR = 1.18; 95% CI, 1.06-1.31]. CONCLUSION This study found the use of in-house biomass fuel as a significant risk factor associated with respiratory symptoms of children under 5 years of age. More longitudinal studies should be designed to establish a causal relationship between HAP (household air pollution) and respiratory symptoms among children with more direct measures of HAP and clinical procedure.