An unexpectedly high incidence of acute childhood diarrhea in Koot-Abdollah, Ahwaz, Iran.

OBJECTIVES

Koot-Abdollah is a neighborhood in Ahwaz, in the southeast of Iran, susceptible to public health hazards due to a number of factors, including a low level of personal hygiene, inappropriate community sanitation, and a high level of environmental and water pollution. This study was designed to measure the incidence of acute childhood diarrhea in this neighborhood.

METHODS

This was a descriptive population-based study. Via multistage sampling, data were collected by interviewing the mothers in their homes. Reported 95% confidence intervals included a finite population correction factor and accounted for the cluster sampling design.

RESULTS

The study included 2016 children aged 6 to 60 months. Overall, 725 (36.0%) of the children studied had experienced an episode of acute diarrhea during the previous two weeks. In other words, the children demonstrated a rate of diarrhea per 100 person-years of 936 for the studied period, which was a time period expected to reveal the lowest possible incidence of diarrhea.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of diarrhea per two weeks in Koot-Abdollah is exceptionally high. The limitation of available drinking water, warm weather, illiteracy, poverty, and low incomes, in addition to the low level of sanitation and personal hygiene and extreme environmental pollution contribute to this high incidence.