Practices of the mothers of under-five children towards the prevention of diarrhea - A cross-sectional approach

In the globe, under-five children experience on a mean of 3.2 episodes of diarrhea per annum and consequently, million children will die from dehydration associated with diarrheal disease. And within developing countries, diarrheal disease among under-five children accounts for about 21% of all deaths. Therefore under-five children are vulnerable to diarrhea-related death if proper measures are not taken. In India up to a third of total pediatric admissions are due to diarrheal disease and up to 17% of all deaths in indoor pediatric patients are related to dehydration related to diarrhea. Thus the researchers wished to conduct a research study on practices among the mothers of under-five children on prevention of diarrhea in selected hospitals in Bengaluru. A total of 75 mothers were recruited randomly. A descriptive research design with cross - sectional approach was used. Practice questionnaire developed by the investigator which was used to collect data. The study findings showed that 35 mothers (46.7%) had a poor level of practice, 31 mothers (41.3%) had a moderate level and only 9 mothers (12.0%) had a good level of practice towards the prevention of diarrhea.