Are contextual socioeconomic factors associated with diarrhea in Mozambique children under age 5?

Abstract

Abstract Background Diarrhea is still highly prevalent in Mozambique children under age 5, which leads to avoidable morbidity and mortality. Specific socio-economic variables may influence diarrhea prevalence. Methods Secondary data analysis with the application of multiple logistic regression models on the data of 10026 living children under age 5 from Mozambique's Demographic Health Survey (DHS) report from 2011. Data were collected from June 2011 to November 2011 and had a household sample size of 13919. RStudio 1.1.442 was chosen as the statistical software to conduct the multiple regression modeling and the graphic representation of the results. Results From the 10026 children under age 5, 10.6% of them (1064) had diarrhea in the last 2 weeks. The prevalence of diarrhea during that period was 1.25 times higher in the urban areas in comparison with the rural areas (adjusted OR [95% CI]: 1.25 [1.03-1.52]). Households with a higher number of children had 12% less risk, per children's group (adjusted OR [95% CI]: 0.88 [0.80-0.96]). No increased risk of diarrhea was found for other variables, including sanitation, source of drinking water and refrigerator presence. Conclusions Urban areas and Households with fewer children are more likely to have a higher diarrhea risk while adjusting for other variables. It is important to notice that WASH variables such as sanitation and source of drinking didn't seem to lower diarrhea risk in Mozambique's context. Further research should take into consideration a greater sample and identify other possible reasons that may explain the high prevalence of diarrhea. Key messages Several factors may influence the prevalence of diarrhea in Mozambique. Beside the existence of sanitation infrastructure, there maybe be the need to improve its quality.