The association of socio-demographic and environmental factors on childhood diarrhea in Cambodia

Abstract

Background:Diarrhea is still the leading cause of childhood death worldwide, as well as a major cause for concern in developing countries. This study was conducted to investigate the factors related to childhood diarrhea in Cambodia. Methods:A cross-sectional study of the secondary data from the Cambodia Demographic and Health Survey 2014 was conducted using the combined dataset of household data and children’s data. A generalized linear mixed model was used to analyze the determinant factors of childhood diarrhea. Results:The surveys included 2,828 children, aged 12 to 35 months. The prevalence of diarrhea in the last 2 weeks was 16.44% (95% CI: 14.72%-18.31%). Factors with statistically significant associations with childhood diarrhea in Cambodia were: maternal unemployment, compared with being in employment (AOR = 1.43; 95% CI: 1.14-1.78); the child being male (AOR = 1.25; 95%CI: 1.02-1.53); the presence of unimproved toilet facilities (AOR = 1.17; 95%CI: 1.05-1.31) compared with improved toilet facilities; and unhygienic disposal of children’s stools (AOR = 1.32; 95%CI: 1.06-1.64) compared with hygienic disposal of children’s stools when controlling for other covariates. Both maternal age (one year older; AOR = 0.85; 95%CI: 0.78– 0.93) and child age (one month older; AOR = 0.86; 95%CI: 0.78-0.94) had significant negative associations with the occurrence of childhood diarrhea. Conclusion:Childhood diarrhea remains a public health concern in Cambodia. The probability of diarrhea occurring is shown to be increased by maternal unemployment, the sex of the child being male, lack of provision of improved toilet facilities, and the unhygienic disposal of children’s stools; whereas increasing maternal age and child’s age were associated with a reduced chance of diarrhea occurring. On the basis of these results, we recommend provision of programs focusing on reducing diarrhea through the construction of improved toilet facilities and the promotion of behavior to improve hygiene, specifically targeting younger mothers.

Child diarrhea in Cambodia: A descriptive analysis of temporal and geospatial trends and logistic regression-based examination of factors associated with diarrhea in children under five years

“…The one exception was the interaction between child age by residence and survey years, which resulted in a statistically significant interaction that was visualized with predicted probabilities (see Fig 5 Children of mothers aged 25-34 years and 35-49 years have shown less occurrence of childhood diarrhea than young mothers. This is consistent with previous studies in Cambodia and India [9,16]. Likely, lower knowledge and experience of childcare and feeding among younger mothers can be a plausible causal explanation [9,[17][18][19].…”

“…Children of mothers aged 25–34 years and 35–49 years have shown less occurrence of childhood diarrhea than young mothers. This is consistent with previous studies in Cambodia and India [9,16]. Likely, lower knowledge and experience of childcare and feeding among younger mothers can be a plausible causal explanation [9,17–19].…”

“…Likely, lower knowledge and experience of childcare and feeding among younger mothers can be a plausible causal explanation [9,[17][18][19]. The odds of having diarrhea are lower among the children of working mothers, and similar findings have been identified in some recent studies in Cambodia, India, and Senegal [9,16,20]. Several studies document that the mother's employment status may have an education, which will improve a child's quality of living environment standards as well as improve hygienic practice, safe drinking water, and sanitation in the home during feeding and childcare [9,14,21,22].…”

“…It is still one of the top 10 causes of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) across all age groups and a substantial cause of death for children [2]. Many associated factors with diarrhea included the age of children, place of residence, maternal education, and household economic condition [8][9][10]. Children living in households using improved drinking water, improved toilet facilities, and safe waste disposal were associated with lower odds of diarrhea [8][9][10].…”

Factors Related to the Incidence of Diarrhea of Children Aged 24-59 Months in Karangkamulyan Village, Cihara District, Lebak Regency in 2020

“…Previous study in Cambodia indicate that there is a significant relationship between the mother's job and childhood diarrhea, with a p-value of 0.007 (11). Homemakers have more time to care for and attend to their children's needs, including ensuring proper nutrition, which can minimize the risk of diarrhea.…”