Abstract
Introduction
Diarrhea is one of the main diseases causing mortality among children, particularly in low- and low-middle-income countries. Globally, in 2013, 6.3 million children died before reaching their five-year birthday; approximately 3.2 million children died due to infectious diseases, of which 500,000 children died due to diarrhea-related diseases. Moreover, diarrheal disease is critically a public health concern worldwide, leading to child mortality after respiratory infection. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence of children’s diarrheal disease and its contributing factors.
Methods
We used existing data from integrated maternal and child health and nutrition project evaluation in 2016 related to knowledge, attitudes and practices, WI Cambodia in Borei Chulsa, Takeo Province. Of the 405 eligible mothers with children under 24 months available, 214 samples were randomly selected for the study. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were performed.
Results
Overall, the prevalence of diarrhea in the past two weeks was 14.0%. Of the mothers with diarrheal children, approximately 13.3% were correctly knowledgeable and provided care properly for their children. Among 214 mothers, the proportion of correct and appropriate breast feeding was 17.3%. Furthermore, appropriate complementary feeding was only 16.8%, while 56.0% reported inappropriate complementary feeding and 27.1% did not. Maternal and child ages (? 6 months, 9.9% vs. > 6 months, 16.1%, p = 0.217), child sex, family income (poor, 9.1% vs. not poor, 15.7%, p = 0.222), appropriate feeding, and appropriate complementary feeding were not significantly associated with diarrhea.
Conclusion
Diarrheal disease among children under 24 months in Borei Chulsa district is still relatively high compared to the CDHS 2014 and other neighborhood countries. Maternal knowledge of proper care for children with diarrhea is still low. Additionally, appropriate breastfeeding and complementary feeding are critically low. Therefore, community health education should be encouraged for mothers with children under 24 months old, especially mothers with diarrheal children. Appropriate breastfeeding and complementary feeding should be improved through community interventions such as health education and health promotion.