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Epidemiological studies on gastroenteritis in children in the Bannu district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
1Elementary and Secondary Education Department, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pakistan.
Insights
Gastroenteritis is common in children under five in Bannu, especially males under six months. The study highlights April as the peak month for this digestive disorder, emphasizing the need for targeted preventive measures.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Epidemiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Gastroenteritis is a significant digestive disorder in children.
- Symptoms include abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and vomiting.
- High prevalence in children necessitates understanding local epidemiology.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of gastroenteritis in children in Bannu district in 2019.
- To identify high-risk age groups and seasonal patterns.
- To inform preventive strategies and reduce child mortality.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective study design.
- Data collected from official admission registers at Women and Children Hospital, Bannu.
- Analysis of patient records for gastroenteritis cases.
Main Results:
- 1456 children diagnosed with gastroenteritis in 2019.
- Highest prevalence in infants ≤6 months (37.8%) and those ≤1 year (35.5%).
- Peak incidence observed in April (17.7%), with significant cases also in May and November.
Conclusions:
- Gastroenteritis prevalence decreases with age, with 96.4% of cases in children ≤5 years.
- Male gender and age group ≤6 months are associated with higher prevalence.
- Further research is recommended to investigate cause-specific prevalence.
Aims:
Gastroenteritis is a digestive disorder among children with symptoms of abdominal cramps, diarrhoea, and vomiting. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of gastroenteritis in children in the Bannu district in 2019, and also contributed for adopting preventive measures to reduce mortality in children.
Subject And Methods:
A retrospective study was conducted to determine the prevalence of gastroenteritis in children in Bannu. The data were collected from official registers of admission maintained in the children wards in the Women and Children Hospital, Bannu. Patients with symptoms of gastroenteritis at the outpatient department were admitted to one of the children wards.
Results:
Overall, 1456 children-897 (61.4%) males and 559 (38.6%) females-suffered from gastroenteritis during the study period. The age group ≤6 months demonstrated the highest share (37.8%), followed by >6 m ≤ 1y (35.5%), >1y ≤ 2y (15.8%), >2y ≤ 5y (7.3%), >5 ≤ 10y (3.2%), and > 10y ≤ 15y (0.4%). Overall, 89.1% of cases were from children ≤2 years old and 96.4% of cases were attributed to children ≤ 5 years of age. April demonstrated the highest percentage of prevalence of 17.7, followed by May (13.5%), November (13%), June (11.7%), September (10.4%), October (9.8%), July (9.5%), August (8.4%), March (3.4%), and February (2.6%). The age group ≤6 m was the dominant group during February through May and was replaced by the age group >6 m ≤ 1y during August through November.
Conclusion:
Gastroenteritis showed a reduced prevalence when shifted from lower to higher age groups. Being male and age group ≤6 m showed the highest prevalence of gastroenteritis with the peak of disease in April. Further research is needed to determine the cause-based prevalence of different gastroenteritis cases in the study area.
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