Prevalence and associated factors of diarrhea among under-five children in Debre Berhan Town, Ethiopia 2018: A cross sectional study
Abstract Background: Diarrhea is responsible for 525, 000 under-five children deaths and 1.7 billion cases in the world and the second leading cause of death among under-five children every year. It is the major public health problem in low income countries like Ethiopia. The main aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of diarrhea and associated risk factors among children under-five in Debre Berhan Town, Ethiopia. Methods: A community-based cross-sectional study design was conducted in 420 parent or caretaker/children pairs in Debre Behan town between 13-18 April 2018. A Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data were collected using pre-tested and structured questionnaires. Data were entered in Epi-info computer software version 3.5.1 and exported to SPSS Window Version-16 for analysis. Adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence intervals were used to assess the level of significance. Results: The two-week prevalence of diarrhea among children under-five was 16.4% (69/351). Children aged 7-11 months (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR): 4.2, 95% Confidence Interval (CI): 1.2 - 15.3), being the second-born children (AOR: 3.9, 95%CI: 1.8-8.5), not vaccinated against rotavirus (AOR: 10.3, 95%CI: 3.2 - 91.3), feeding children by hand (AOR: 2.5, 95%CI: 1.1 - 6.1) were significant predictors of diarrhea. Conclusions: This study revealed that the two weeks period prevalence of diarrhea among children under-five years was 16.4%. Education programs on the importance of vaccination against rotavirus, increasing breast feeding frequency with complementary food after six months and the critical point of hand washing are recommended.