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Assessment of the Communicable Disease Status of Children in Türkiye: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study
Mustafa Çakır1, Zehra Berrin Boydak1, Hatice İkiışık1
1Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul Medeniyet University, Uskudar, Turkey.
Insights
This study assessed infectious diseases in 7019 children (0-14 years) in Türkiye. Diarrhea and upper respiratory tract infections were most common in younger children, affecting one in three.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric infectious diseases
- Public health surveillance
- Epidemiology in Türkiye
Background:
- Effective assessment of children's communicable disease status is crucial for preventing child morbidity.
- Understanding the infectious disease landscape in children is vital for targeted public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the infectious disease status of children aged 0-14 years in Türkiye.
- To identify prevalent communicable diseases and risk factors in the pediatric population.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study utilizing the "Türkiye Health Survey 2022" microdataset.
- Analysis included 7,019 children aged 0-14 years.
- Data collected via household head interviews regarding communicable diseases in the preceding 6 months.
Main Results:
- 2.2% of children experienced vaccine-preventable infectious diseases in the last 6 months.
- Children aged 0-6 years had higher rates of upper respiratory tract infection, lower respiratory tract infection, urinary tract infection, and diarrhea compared to those aged 7-14.
- Urinary tract infections were more prevalent in girls, while respiratory infections, general communicable diseases, and diarrhea were more common in boys.
Conclusions:
- Diarrhea and upper respiratory tract infections affect approximately one in three children in the 0-6 age group.
- Findings highlight age-specific patterns and sex-based differences in common childhood infectious diseases in Türkiye.
Aim:
Assessment of children's communicable disease status is effective in preventing child morbidity. This study aims to evaluate the infectious disease status of children aged 0-14 in Türkiye.
Methods:
The research is a cross-sectional study conducted using the microdataset of the "Türkiye Health Survey 2022" obtained from the Turkish Statistical Institute. Seven thousand nineteen individuals aged 0-14 were included in the analysis. Data on communicable diseases of children aged 0-14 years in the 6-month period before the survey date was obtained by asking the household head.
Results:
In our research, the data of 7019 individuals aged 0-14 was evaluated. It was determined that 2.2% of children had a vaccine-preventable infectious disease in the last 6 months. It was observed that the frequency of upper respiratory tract infection, lower respiratory tract infection, urinary tract infection, and diarrhea in children was higher in the 0-6 age group than in the 7-14 age group. Urinary tract infections were more common in girls, whereas respiratory tract infections, communicable diseases, and diarrhea were more common in boys.
Conclusion:
It was determined that diarrhea and upper respiratory tract infections occur in approximately one out of every three children in the 0-6 age group.
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