Bayomy HE, Almatrafi HM, Alenazi SF, Madallah S Almatrafi R, Alenezi M, Alanazi WA. Knowledge and Behavioral Practice of Mothers About Childhood Diarrhea in Arar City, Saudi Arabia.
Cureus 2024;
16:e54221. [PMID:
38496099 PMCID:
PMC10943259 DOI:
10.7759/cureus.54221]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Diarrhea is the second most significant cause of child morbidity and mortality, especially in developing countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) advises that mothers and other caregivers be able to recognize the symptoms of dehydration. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the knowledge and behavioral practices regarding diarrhea among mothers in Arar City, Saudi Arabia.
METHODS
This cross-sectional survey used an anonymous online questionnaire distributed among mothers of children aged one to five years in Arar City. The snowball convenient sampling method was used to recruit the participants. Information on knowledge and behavioral practices regarding diarrhea was obtained from the mothers of children through an electronic questionnaire. The Chi-square test and Fisher's exact test were used to evaluate the relationship between studied variables, as appropriate with statistical significance at P<0.05.
RESULTS
A total of 479 mothers participated in this survey. Of these, 421 were included in the analysis. Most mothers fall within the age range of 20-40 years (71.1%). A large sector of the studied mothers had high education (72.4%) and was a housewife (40.4%). Most children were above one year old (77.7%). Most participants (69.6%) fell into the moderate knowledge category and 56.3% had moderate behavioral practice scores. Maternal education was significantly associated with knowledge. Furthermore, maternal education and behavioral practice levels were significantly correlated (P < 0.01).
CONCLUSION
The findings highlight the importance of targeted education programs and community-based interventions to improve mothers' knowledge and promote appropriate behavioral practices related to childhood diarrhea that ultimately will lead to improved health outcomes for children globally.
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