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Magdalene Akos Odikro

University of Ghana

65 publications · 269 citations · ORCID 0000-0002-2510-1719

Global Maternal and Child HealthCOVID-19 epidemiological studiesMaternal and Perinatal Health InterventionsChild Nutrition and Water AccessData-Driven Disease Surveillance

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How do specific policy frameworks regarding social protection and food systems in low-income countries moderate the projected increase in child wasting and maternal undernutrition caused by economic shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic?

Why this gap exists: While the retrieved literature confirms the projected increase in child wasting and maternal undernutrition due to COVID-19 disruptions [0] and explores general concepts of food system resilience [2] and social protection [3], no study directly quantifies how specific policy frameworks moderate these projected outcomes, leaving the core interaction unresolved.

Sources

  1. Early estimates of the indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal and child mortality in low-income and middle-income countries: a modelling studyThe Lancet Global Health, 2020
  2. Biofortification as a sustainable strategy to address micronutrient malnutrition in South Asia.Journal of health, population, and nutrition, 2025
  3. Resilience of local food systems and links to food security – A review of some important concepts in the context of COVID-19 and other shocksFood Security, 2020
  4. Resilience and Recovery in the Informal Economy: Social Networks, Social Protection, and Adaptive Strategies Among Post-COVID Workers in Bangladesh.Public health challenges, 2026
  5. Malnutrition at a Crossroads: The Impact of Pandemic, Climate Change, and War on Tigray’s Children Malnutrition2026
  6. Economic Shocks, Inequality and Poverty: The Need for Safety Nets1998
  7. Lessons from low-to middle-income countries on the development of child protection systemsThe Development of Child Protection Systems and Practice in Low- to Middle-Income Countries, 2025
  8. Drivers of Stunting Reduction in Yogyakarta, Indonesia: A Case Study.International journal of environmental research and public health, 2022
  9. Inequality, mobility and the financial accumulation process: A computational economic analysisJournal of Economic Interaction and Coordination (2020), online, 2019
  10. The Role of Agriculture in Ensuring Food Security in Developing Countries: Considerations in the Context of the Problem of Sustainable Food ProductionSustainability, 2020

What are the long-term developmental and health outcomes in children born to mothers who experienced COVID-19-related mental health stressors compared to those who did not, controlling for socioeconomic status?

Why this gap exists: While recent studies [0, 5, 6] link pandemic-related maternal distress to child neurodevelopmental issues, the retrieved evidence focuses on general pandemic exposure rather than specifically isolating COVID-19 mental health stressors while controlling for socioeconomic status, leaving the specific comparison unresolved.

Sources

  1. Disrupted beginnings: Neurodevelopmental outcomes of COVID-19 lockdowns in early childhood (Review).Experimental and therapeutic medicine, 2026
  2. Association of Birth During the COVID-19 Pandemic With Neurodevelopmental Status at 6 Months in Infants With and Without In Utero Exposure to Maternal SARS-CoV-2 InfectionJAMA Pediatrics, 2022
  3. Moms Are Not OK: COVID-19 and Maternal Mental HealthFrontiers in Global Women s Health, 2020
  4. Challenges and burden of the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic for child and adolescent mental health: a narrative review to highlight clinical and research needs in the acute phase and the long return to normalityChild and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health, 2020
  5. Parenting stress and risk of child maltreatment during the COVID-19 pandemic: A family stress theory-informed perspectiveDevelopmental Child Welfare, 2020
  6. Maternal internalizing symptoms as a mechanism linking pre- and postnatal COVID-19 pandemic exposure with preschool-aged children's neurodevelopment.Archives of women's mental health, 2026
  7. Maternal Distress Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic and Changes in Young Children's Behavior.Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBP, 2026
  8. Impact of the COVID‐19 Pandemic on Parent, Child, and Family FunctioningFamily Process, 2021
  9. Exploring factors influencing mother-infant interaction trajectories post-NICU discharge in low-birth-weight infants during COVID-19 in China: a longitudinal qualitative study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth, 2026
  10. An Efficient Mixture of Deep and Machine Learning Models for COVID-19 and Tuberculosis Detection Using X-Ray Images in Resource Limited SettingsArtificial Intelligence for COVID-19. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, vol 358. 2021, Springer, Cham, 2020

To what extent does maternal access to improved water and sanitation facilities mediate the relationship between maternal undernutrition and child developmental outcomes during the first 1,000 days?

Why this gap exists: While the retrieved papers confirm the individual importance of WASH access for child nutrition [0], maternal undernutrition for child development [5, 8], and the critical nature of the first 1,000 days [5], none of the provided abstracts directly analyze the specific mediating role of water and sanitation facilities in the relationship between maternal undernutrition and child developmental outcomes.

Sources

  1. Household water, sanitation, and hygiene access and its impact on nutritional outcomes in children under five: evidence from Pakistan.BMC public health, 2026
  2. Early childhood development and stunting: Findings from the MAL‐ED birth cohort study in BangladeshMaternal and Child Nutrition, 2019
  3. Policy and Structural Drivers of Malnutrition in Afghan Women: Evidence and Interventions.International journal of women's health, 2026
  4. COVID-19 pandemic and mitigation strategies: implications for maternal and child health and nutritionAmerican Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2020
  5. Maternal and child undernutrition 3: what works? Interventions for maternal and child undernutrition and survivalChild: Care, Health and Development, 2008
  6. Nutrition as the Foundation of Human Capital: Pathways to Holistic Development.Maternal & child nutrition, 2026
  7. The impacts of maternal iron deficiency and being overweight during pregnancy on neurodevelopment of the offspring.The British journal of nutrition, 2017
  8. Early estimates of the indirect effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on maternal and child mortality in low-income and middle-income countries: a modelling studyThe Lancet Global Health, 2020
  9. Prevalence of undernutrition and its associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal care service in public hospitals in Mogadishu, Somalia.PloS one, 2026
  10. Concurrent wasting and stunting among under‐five children in Niakhar, SenegalMaternal & Child Nutrition, 2018

How do specific maternal microbiota profiles (gut, oral, or vaginal) during gestation correlate with the development of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and subsequent long-term metabolic health in offspring?

Why this gap exists: While recent reviews [8] confirm GDM alters maternal gut microbiota and neonatal health, and older studies [0] note dysbiosis across maternal sites, the retrieved evidence lacks direct, longitudinal studies correlating specific gestational maternal microbiota profiles with the *long-term* metabolic health of offspring, leaving the core question unresolved.

To what extent do changes in the maternal microbiota (gut, oral, or vaginal) during pregnancy mediate the relationship between maternal perinatal anxiety/depression and the neurodevelopmental outcomes of the offspring?

Why this gap exists: While recent studies confirm associations between maternal mental health and microbiota composition (Abstract 5, 8) and suggest the microbiome-gut-brain axis influences neurodevelopment (Abstract 0, 2), the retrieved evidence does not contain studies that directly test the mediating role of maternal microbiota changes between perinatal anxiety/depression and offspring neurodevelopmental outcomes.

What is the comparative efficacy of digital or telehealth lactation support versus traditional face-to-face peer support on breastfeeding exclusivity rates during pandemic-related social restrictions?

Why this gap exists: While Abstract [3] confirms the general effectiveness of digital health interventions on breastfeeding practices and Abstract [0] notes the cancellation of face-to-face peer support during the pandemic, the retrieved evidence does not contain a direct comparative study between digital/telehealth lactation support and traditional face-to-face peer support specifically regarding exclusivity rates during social restrictions.

Publications