Epidemiology of Diarrhea among under-five Children in a Village in Sunderbans, South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, India

Abstract

Background: Though various studies have been carried out on the problem of diarrheal disease in under-five children in various parts of India, no comprehensive study has so far been done on this problem in deltaic region of West Bengal, the Sunderbans. Objectives: A study was undertaken in a prototype village, in Sunderban area to assess the prevalence of diarrheal disease in under-five children and to assess various factors which influence its occurrence. Methods: Information was collected from all households from village Hogolduri, in Sunderban area, South 24 Parganas regarding socioeconomic characteristics, water source, and sanitation status of the population. Frequency of occurrence of Diarrhea during last three months in each child under-five years of age was recorded and maternal characteristics and child’s nutrition were also noted. Results: Among the 5264 people residing in 1231 households in Hogolduri village, majority of the people were Muslims (79%). Majority (80.7%) of the families belonged to below-poverty-line (BPL). Out of 486 children living in the village, from which all the data were available, diarrhea occurred during last three months in 45.68% of children. Important contributing factors for such morbidity of children were found to be absence of toilets in households, non-use of soap for hand washing after defecation and after child’s stool cleaning by mothers, absence of vaccination against measles and low nutritional status of children. Conclusions: Multiple factors are responsible for high incidence of diarrheal disease in children in a prototype village in Sunderban area .