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ObjectivesThis study aimed to determine the prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) among pregnant women in Sri Lanka and examine the association between NCDs and maternal and fetal outcomes.DesignA hospital-based, descriptive cross-sectional study.SettingThe study was conducted in three tertiary care hospitals in the Western Province and one intermediate obstetrics care facility in the Southern Province of Sri Lanka, encompassing diverse, multiethnic populations, over 3 months.ParticipantsData from 1350 pregnant women were collected from discharged bed head tickets of the postnatal obstetric wards using a standardised checklist.Primary and secondary outcome measuresThe primary outcomes were the prevalence of NCDs. Secondary outcomes included associations between maternal NCDs and adverse fetal outcomes such as preterm births and neonatal complications.ResultsAmong the participants, 68.5% (n=926) had one or more NCDs, with anaemia (37.9%), obesity (18.1%), gestational diabetes mellitus (14.9%) and hypertensive disorders (13.6%) being the most prevalent. Women with NCDs were at significantly higher odds of adverse fetal outcomes, including preterm birth (OR=2.3, 95% CI: 1.5 to 3.4), neonatal sepsis (OR=2.5, 95% CI: 1.5 to 4.04) and hypoglycaemia (OR=3.5, 95% CI: 1.2 to 10.0). Maternal complications, including postpartum haemorrhage (3.3%) and placental abruption (0.7%), were also more frequent in this group.ConclusionsNCDs are highly prevalent among pregnant women in Sri Lanka and are significantly associated with adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. Enhanced screening and management strategies during antenatal care are essential to mitigate risks and improve health outcomes, aligning with global efforts to reduce maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality.

When non-Christians in Sri Lanka hear Christians talk about warfare and defeating the forces of evil, they do not understand it in the way the Bible intends it to be understood. The world must see people there as servants who die for others.

Fernando discusses Christianity's growth spurt in Sri Lanka. Evangelization has become a revived interest for many churches. He also discusses reasons for this interest.

A Sri Lankan Christian describes the challenges and opportunities for spreading the Christian religion in a pluralistic culture where Christians are in the minority. He stresses the importance of patience when working with non-Christians.

Nine evangelical leaders define the gospel in their own terms in 250- to 300-word statements. Nearly all said it was a tremendous challenge.

Several indigenous cattle breeds in Sweden are endangered. Conservation of their genetic diversity and genomic characterization is a priority. Whole-genome sequences (WGS) with a mean coverage of 25X, ranging from 14 to 41X were obtained for 30 individuals of the breeds Fjällko, Fjällnära, Bohuskulla, Rödkulla, Ringamåla, and Väneko. WGS-based genotyping revealed 22,548,028 variants in total, comprising 18,876,115 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 3,671,913 indels. Out of these, 1,154,779 SNPs and 304,467 indels were novel. Population stratification based on roughly 19 million SNPs showed two major groups of the breeds that correspond to northern and southern breeds. Overall, a higher genetic diversity was observed in the southern breeds compared to the northern breeds. While the population stratification was consistent with previous genome-wide SNP array-based analyses, the genealogy of the individuals inferred from WGS based estimates turned out to be more complex than expected from previous SNP-array based estimates. Polymorphisms and their predicted phenotypic consequences were associated with differences in the coat color phenotypes between the northern and southern breeds. Notably, these high-consequence polymorphisms were not represented in SNP arrays, which are used routinely for genotyping of cattle breeds. This study is the first WGS-based population genetic analysis of Swedish native cattle breeds. The genetic diversity of native breeds was found to be high. High-consequence polymorphisms were linked with desirable phenotypes using whole-genome genotyping, which highlights the pressing need for intensifying WGS-based characterization of the native breeds.