Prevalence and Correlates of Infectious Diarrhoea in Adults at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital, Zambia

Abstract

Diarrhoea – defined as loose or watery stools for more than three times per day, is a common clinical problem. Worldwide, diseases causing infectious diarrhoea remain a major public health threat. Infectious diarrhoea in adults has been a major concern in developing countries, including Zambia. No study was conducted so far to estimate the infectious diarrhoeal load in the southern province of Zambia. Hence, the study aimed to determine the prevalence and factors associated with infectious diarrhoea in adults at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital. This cross-section study was conducted from January 2019 to December 2020 using a structured data collection tool and random sampling technique to select participants for the research. Of the 4,977 participants that were recorded, 7.9% reported having episodes of diarrhoea. The prevalence of diarrhoea was significantly more in females (55.2%) compared to males (44.8%). Additionally, a slightly high prevalence of patients with diarrhoea did not know their HIV status (35.9%), and more of these patients were from the rural areas (52.7%), and a significantly higher prevalence had no other underlying medical conditions (81.2%). This study concluded that diarrheal diseases are significantly prevalent among adult patients reporting at Livingstone University Teaching Hospital. Age was highly associated with infectious diarrhoea.