Maternal Behavioural Risk Factors for Severe Childhood Diarrhoeal Disease in Kinshasa, Zaire

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between severe diarrhoeal disease and maternal knowledge and behaviours related to hygiene and sanitation. Some 107 paediatric cases admitted to two hospitals in Kinshasa, Zaire in 1988 were matched on age and nearest-neighbour status to 107 controls. Personal interviews and observational methods were used to assess knowledge and behaviours related to hygiene and sanitation. Cases and controls had equivalent socioeconomic status, demographic profiles and access to water and sanitation facilities. However, cases generally exhibited lower levels of knowledge and less sanguine sanitary practices than did controls. Of particular interest was the finding that very specific behavioural items distinguished cases from controls. The disposal of the child faeces and household garbage and mother's knowledge that poor caretaker cleanliness was a cause of diarrhoea in children showed the strongest associations with risk of diarrhoea. There was an exponential relationship between the number of these items a mother answered incorrectly and the odds of diarrhoeal disease. The risk attributable to these three variables was as high as 70%. These findings provide further support for the view that focused educational interventions may have a substantial impact on the occurrence of severe diarrhoeal disease in low-income countries.

Prevalence of diarrhea disease and risk factors in Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

“…[18] The risk of having diarrhea was also found to be higher in children whose mothers had no formal education. This is similar to reports by Dikassa et al [14] in Congo and Ekanem et al [6] in Lagos, Nigeria. Both studies were case control and demonstrated a strong association between the risk of having diarrhea and low or no education in mothers.…”

“…This enlightenment might have succeeded in empowering the mothers with skills for home management of diarrhea, and thus reducing the number of children necessitating hospital care for the same. [13][14][15] This study also found more boys than girls presenting with diarrhea. This is in contrast with the higher number of girls reported by Kolahi et al in Iran [11] Shah et al in Pakistan, [12] and Gascon [16] in Tanzania.…”

Risk Factors for Diarrhea in Children Under Five Years of Age Residing in Peri-urban Communities in Cochabamba, Bolivia

“…There was also a significant protective relationship in this study between knowledge of proper disposal of feces to prevent diarrhea and diarrhea prevalence. These finding are consistent with Dikassa and others and Bertrand and others, 30,31 which found that children of mothers that were less aware of the importance of child caretaker cleanliness and proper sanitary practices were at significantly higher risk of severe diarrheal disease. Intriguingly, the association between knowledge of proper feces disposal and reduced diarrhea prevalence was only found in the filter group, perhaps suggesting that once exposure through microbial contamination of drinking water is removed the transmission route through direct fecal oral contamination becomes more important.…”

“…24,[26][27][28] Despite these findings, there have only been a handful of published studies that have assessed the relationship between caregiver knowledge of diarrhea prevention and child diarrhea outcomes. [29][30][31] In Dikassa and others 30 there was a significant association found between caregiver knowledge of transmission routes of diarrheal disease such as feces and poor hygiene and decreased odds of childhood diarrhea episodes. Consistent with this finding, in Bertrand and others 31 a significant association was found between diarrhea prevalence and mother's general knowledge of causes of diarrhea and prevention.…”

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices of the Population of the District of Ahomadégbé (Municipality of Lalo) in Benin on Methods of Water Treatment at Home

“…More than 32.6% of the population conserves drinking water for more than 3 days. They know that:" The duration of the storage of the water must not exceed seven (7) days;" and, "The water can be contaminated if it stays too much (1 week) in the bucket or jar. We must then replace it.…”