Diarrhoea among children in rural Somalia. Maternal perceptions, management and mortality.
Diarrhoea was the second most common symptom of disease in a longitudinal study of 431 children under 5 years of age in rural Somalia. Most mothers perceived diarrhoea as a condition in which oral rehydration therapy (ORT) and feeding were logical parts of its management. During 1 year of observation, ORT was used in the household in one-third of the episodes of diarrhoea, mostly by non-farming, young and literate mothers. Infants were treated more often than older children, as were also children in smaller households. In a 3-year demographic surveillance in the same area (1219 person years), the under-5 mortality from diarrhoea in children of literature and illiterate mothers was 43 per 1000 (95% CI 0-84) and 93 per 1000 (95% CI 60-101), respectively. The findings suggest that the use of ORT is associated with a mother's ability to allocate time to health care and her general position in the household.
Ibrahim
M M
MM
Department of Community Health, Medical Faculty, Somali National University, Mogadishu.
Aden
A S
AS
Omar
H M
HM
Wall
S
S
Persson
L A
LA
D000328:Adult; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003967:Diarrhea / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D005440:Fluid Therapy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007226:Infant Mortality; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008423:Maternal Age; D009035:Mothers / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012424:Rural Population; D012998:Somalia / Q000453:epidemiology; D013997:Time Factors; D016526:Workload