Children with paralytic poliomyelitis: utilization of physiotherapy services in Zamfara State, Nigeria.

Physiotherapy is usually indicated for health promotion and the rehabilitation of individuals with paralytic poliomyelitis. The endemic nature of this condition in children in Zamfara State, Nigeria necessitated investigation into the utilization of physiotherapy services by parents or primary caregivers of children affected with polio in this sub-region. Parents and primary caregivers of children with paralytic poliomyelitis were recruited using a purposive multi-stage sampling procedure in a cross-sectional survey. Factors associated with the utilization of physiotherapy services were assessed based on questions extracted from a 4-part, 52-item structured questionnaire originally designed for a study which investigated knowledge, attitude, and beliefs of parents of children with paralytic poliomyelitis. A total of 217 participants were included in this study. The mean age was 32.29 ± 9.89 years and the mean knowledge of polio score was 62.0 ± 17.3%. The mean age of the children with paralytic poliomyelitis was 6.41 ± 2.50 years. Only 27.2% of the parents or primary caregivers had utilized physiotherapy service for their children at some point. No association existed between utilization of physiotherapy service and 'knowledge of paralytic poliomyelitis', 'employment status', and 'family income' of respondents. Explanations for low utilization of physiotherapy services for children with paralytic poliomyelitis by parents or primary caregivers are discussed.