Conference abstract
Diarrhoea in children less than five years surveillance data in hohoe municipality 2010-2014
Pan African Medical Journal - Conference Proceedings. 2017:3(27).16
Oct 2017.
doi: 10.11604/pamj-cp.2017.3.27.121
Archived on: 16 Oct 2017
Contact the corresponding author
Keywords: Diarrhea, children less than five, surveillance data
Oral presentation
Diarrhoea in children less than five years surveillance data in hohoe municipality 2010-2014
Philip Nani-Tome1,2,&, Joyce Der-Saayeng1, Ernest Kenu1
1Ghana Field Epidemiology and Laboratory Training Program, Hohoe, Ghana, 2Ghana Health Service, Hohoe, Ghana
&Corresponding author
Philip Nani-Tome, Ghana Health Service, Ghana Health Service, Hohoe, Ghana
Introduction: diarrhea is the second leading cause of child mortality worldwide. It occurs in all age groups but is more common and severe in children particularly amongst bottle-fed children including those below five years. The effects of diarrhea in children are dehydration and malnutrition, which if not properly managed may culminate in death. A review of the communicable disease forms ranked diarrhea as one of the major health problem in the Hohoe municipality. We analyzed surveillance data on diarrheal diseases in children less than five years for the period 2010-2014 in the Hohoe Municipality.
Methods: the study was a secondary data analysis of diarrhea cases in children less than five years in Hohoe Municipality to determine distribution by person, place and time. Data was extracted from the DHIMS 2 database into MS Excel for analysis into frequencies and proportions. Data was presented as tables and graphs. Permission to use the data was sought from the Municipal Health Director of Health Service.
Results: the total number of diarrhea cases in children under five recorded from 2010 to 2014 was 8,049, of which 59% were males. The number of cases increased from 681 in 2010 to 3, 302 in 2014 being the highest number of cases contributing 41% of cases recorded) during the period under review. Comparing trends with the epidemic thresholds, there was an outbreak of diarrhea in children less than 5years between October and November 2013 but it went undetected. Children aged 1-4 years were mostly affected (70%) with Lolobi and Agumatsa sub-districts recorded the highest number of cases among the seven sub-districts.
Conclusion: diarrhea cases in children less than five years showed an increasing trend from 2010-2014 with males and those aged 1-4 years mostly affected. We recommend education of mothers on preventive measures for diarrhea in children.
