Health care use patterns for diarrhea in children in low-income periurban communities of Karachi, Pakistan
Document Type
Article
Department
Paediatrics and Child Health
Abstract
Diarrhea causes 16% of all child deaths in Pakistan. We assessed patterns of healthcare use among caretakers of a randomly selected sample of 959 children ages 0-59 months in low-income periurban settlements of Karachi through a cross-sectional survey. A diarrheal episode was reported to have occurred in the previous 2 weeks among 298 (31.1%) children. Overall, 280 (80.3%) children sought care. Oral rehydration solution and zinc were used by 40.8% and 2%, respectively; 11% were admitted or received intravenous rehydration, and 29% sought care at health centers identified as sentinel centers for recruiting cases of diarrhea for a planned multicenter diarrheal etiology case-control study. Odds ratios for independent predictors of care-seeking behavior were lethargy, 4.14 (95% confidence interval = 1.45-11.77); fever, 2.67 (1.27-5.59); and stool frequency more than six per day, 2.29 (1.03-5.09). Perception of high cost of care and use of home antibiotics were associated with reduced care seeking: odds ratio = 0.28 (0.1-0.78) and 0.29 (0.11-0.82), respectively. There is a need for standardized, affordable, and accessible treatment of diarrhea as well as community education regarding appropriate care in areas with high diarrheal burden.
Publication (Name of Journal)
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Recommended Citation
Quadri, F.,
Nasrin, D.,
Khan, A.,
Bokhari, T.,
Tikmani, S. S.,
Nisar, M. I.,
Bhatti, Z.,
Kotloff, K.,
Levine, M. M.,
Zaidi, A. K.
(2013). Health care use patterns for diarrhea in children in low-income periurban communities of Karachi, Pakistan. The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 89(1 Suppl), 49-55.
Available at:
https://ecommons.aku.edu/pakistan_fhs_mc_women_childhealth_paediatr/506