Prevalence of acute respiratory infections among children under five years of age attending rural health training centre of Era’s Lucknow Medical College and Hospital

Abstract

Background: Every year ARI in young children is responsible for an estimated 3.9 million deaths worldwide. About 90 percent deaths are due to Pneumonia which is usually bacterial in origin. By low-cost interventions such as hand washing, breast feeding, accessibility of rapid and attainable methods of early diagnosis of ARI, can help to reduce its burden. Improving the primary medical care services and developing better methods for early detection, treatment and where possible, prevention of acute respiratory infection is the best strategy to control ARI. The aim of the study was to estimate prevalence of ARI among children under-5 years of age attending Rural Health Training Centre of Era’s Lucknow Medical College and Hospital.Methods: The present study was carried out from Nov.2015 to April 2016 covering 305 children below 5 years from RHTC of Era’s Lucknow Medical College and Hospital. Children with acute respiratory infection (ARI) having symptoms like cough, running nose, sore throat, nasal congestion or breathing difficulty were included in the study.Results: Out of 305 children under 5 years, 43 (14%) were diagnosed with ARI. The overall prevalence of ARI was 14% with 95%CI (10.20-18.0). According to social class, prevalence of ARI was higher in low socioeconomic class 42.96%.Statistically no significance between social class and prevalence of ARI was seen with Chi sq test: 0.879, t= 0.928.Overcrowding were present in 33% of cases with 95% CI (17.2-48.80). Inadequate ventilation 48% with 95% CI (31.21-64.79), and uses of smoky chullah 49% with 95% CI (31.21-64.79). Prevalence of ARI was more prevalent in children with malnutrition 52.9%. Statistically high association was seen between ARI status and nutritional status, with Chi squre test:18.3, t≤0.001.Conclusions: The study concludes that malnutrition, low socioeconomic status, poor nutritional status, maternal illiteracy, overcrowding, and inadequate ventilation were the major social and demographic risk factors responsible for ARI in under five children. Minimizing these risk factors and by cost effective interventions one can significantly reduce the prevalence of ARI in the rural community.

Risk factors associated with Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) among children under 10-years in Rohingya refugee camp

“…One of the key-findings of this study was 13-60 months old children being the risk group and some other studies performed around this region supports that findings (Azad 2009;Asghar et al 2017;Cox et al 2013;Goel et al 2012). Another results that coincides with the previous studies done was number of people sharing room or overcrowding (Prajapati et al 2011;Asghar et al 2017;Goel et al 2012;). Even though the result found on overcrowding supports the claim in some other studies, the finding is very specific to number of people sharing room.…”

Prevalence and Determinants of Acute Respiratory Infections among Children under Five Years in Rural Settings of The Gambia: Evidence from a National Survey

“…Globally, ARIs are reportedly key contributing factors to childhood morbidities and deaths, with a higher impact on children less than the age of five years [4]. In low-income countries (LICs), there is evidence that each year, an estimated twelve million under-five children are admitted to hospitals owing to acute respiratory infections [5,6], and 1.3 million deaths associated with ARIs are recorded in this age group [7]. In these low-resource nations, children under the age of five years suffer an average of five ARI episodes annually [8].…”

“…The two major classifications of ARI are the upper respiratory infection (URI) and the lower respiratory infections (LRI) [12], with pneumonia being the commonest LRI and responsible for most morbidities in children [5]. ARIs are caused by viruses (Rhino, Adeno, Corona, Influenza) and bacteria (Klebsiella pneumonia, Haemophilus infuenzae, Streptococcus pyogenes, Staphylococcus aureus) which infect the upper and lower respiratory tracts, including the nose, vocal cords, bronchioles, alveoli, and trachea [2,6,12]. In most cases, these conditions may lead to further complications on vital parts of the body, including the membranes around the brain and the ear, and may increase the fatalities of ARI in children [13].…”

“…In most cases, these conditions may lead to further complications on vital parts of the body, including the membranes around the brain and the ear, and may increase the fatalities of ARI in children [13]. Research has shown that some conditions in children such as infections of the ear, sore throat, difficulties in breathing, and extreme cases as deafness, are traceable to episodes of ARIs that were not treated properly [2,6,13].…”

Impact of microbial air quality in preschools on paediatric respiratory health

“…Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are the leading cause of child mortality in developing countries accounting for 1.3 million deaths annually [17]. Worldwide, tropics hold significant percentage of cases: India-14% [18], Nepal-28.4%, Thailand-18.2% and Vietnam-27.9% in 2017 [19]. The scenario is reasonably similar in Sri Lanka; in 2015, respiratory diseases (most common being acute upper and lower respiratory infections (ALRI, AURI), asthma, bronchiolitis, pneumonia and tonsillitis) were the third commonest cause of hospitalization at all ages [20].…”