The timing of a child's first acute lower respiratory infection (ALRI) is important because the younger a child is when he or she experiences ALRI, the greater the risk of death.

Acute lower respiratory infection is the leading cause of death in Bangladeshi children, and 30%–50% of all children under 2 years of age suffer from ALRI each year.

The greatest burden of child death in Bangladesh is among infants, the estimated mortality rate among   children under age 5 years in was 65 per 1,000 livebirths, but 90% of the burden (61 per 1,000) occurred among children under 12 months of age and 37% (37 per 1,000) occurred in neonates.

The type of stove and fuel used in the home, indoor cigarette smoking, the number of people residing in the house, and household wealth are all contributing risk factors to ALRI.

Typically, the place where the child slept and spent the vast majority of his or her time was also the primary living space for the family.