Abstract
BackgroundShigellosis is recognized as a major global public health problem especially in developing countries particularly in children under-5 years of age. Therefore; the objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of Shigella among diarrheic children under-5 years of age attending at Mekelle health center, north Ethiopia.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted among diarrheic children under-5 years of age from March to May, 2012. Structured questionnaire was used to collect the data. Study participants were recruited by convenience sampling technique. Shigella was isolated and identified using standard bacteriological techniques.ResultsA total of 241 study participants were included in the study. The overall prevalence of Shigella in this study was 13.3 % (32/241). High prevalence of Shigella (22.6 %) was revealed from the age group of 12–23 months. No Shigella was isolated from the age group of 0–5 months. Majority of the isolates of Shigella were from bloody and mucoid diarrhea.ConclusionThere was high prevalence of Shigella infection in this study. Children among the age group of 12–23 months were highly affected. Therefore; responsible bodies should work hard on preventive measures to reduce or eradicate the problem occurred due to shigellosis.
Highlights
Shigellosis is recognized as a major global public health problem especially in developing countries in children under-5 years of age
This study tried to determine the prevalence of Shigella among children under-5 years of age attending at Mekelle health center, north Ethiopia
Characteristics of the study participants A total of 241 diarrheic children under-5 years of age were participated in this study
Summary
Shigellosis is recognized as a major global public health problem especially in developing countries in children under-5 years of age. Shigella was reported by the Multisite birth cohort study (MAL-ED) as one of the most causative agent of the second life of children in developing countries [6]. It was described by the Global Enteric Multi-central Study (GEMS) as one of the four contributing agents (rotavirus, Cryptosporidium, enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli—ST-ETEC) of moderate to severe diarrhea among children under-5 years in Sub Saharan Africa [7]
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