Anidi Ifeoma, Bazargan Mohsen, James Frederick W
Department of Pediatrics, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science, King/Drew Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90059, USA.
Ambul Pediatr. 2002 May-Jun;2(3):201-6. doi: 10.1367/1539-4409(2002)002<0201:kamoda>2.0.co;2.
Dehydration resulting from diarrhea continues to be a cause of morbidity, mortality, and increased health care costs in the United States. This study assesses parental knowledge of the causes and signs of diarrhea and dehydration. It also examines parental-care practices during an episode of diarrhea.
A survey was given to 219 parents/caregivers of children less than 5 years of age who presented to a pediatric continuity clinic. A bilingual interviewer was used to administer the surveys to participants for assessing knowledge of causes, signs, and treatment of diarrhea; signs of dehydration; and care practices during an episode of diarrhea.
A wide variation in the level of awareness of signs, causes, and treatment of diarrhea was detected. General knowledge of diarrhea was related positively to accessibility of health information, level of education, ethnicity, and experience with dehydration. General knowledge of diarrhea, adjusted for level of education, was higher in African Americans than in Hispanics.
In children, dehydration from diarrhea may be prevented by increasing parents'/caregivers' general knowledge of diarrhea and dehydration and the appropriate usage of oral rehydration solutions. Intervention programs designed to increase parents'/caregivers' knowledge must be culturally sensitive and appropriate for diverse educational backgrounds and must assist in improving access to health-related information.
在美国，腹泻导致的脱水仍是发病、死亡及医疗费用增加的一个原因。本研究评估家长对腹泻和脱水的病因及体征的了解情况。同时还考察腹泻发作期间的家长护理行为。
对前往儿科连续性门诊就诊的219名5岁以下儿童的家长/照料者进行了一项调查。由一名双语访谈员向参与者发放调查问卷，以评估其对腹泻的病因、体征及治疗方法、脱水的体征以及腹泻发作期间护理行为的了解情况。
在对腹泻的体征、病因及治疗方法的认知水平上发现了很大差异。腹泻的一般知识与健康信息的可获取性、教育程度、种族以及脱水经历呈正相关。在调整了教育程度后，非裔美国人对腹泻的一般知识了解程度高于西班牙裔。
对于儿童，可通过增加家长/照料者对腹泻和脱水的一般知识以及口服补液溶液的正确使用来预防腹泻导致的脱水。旨在增加家长/照料者知识的干预项目必须具有文化敏感性，适合不同的教育背景，并且必须有助于改善健康相关信息的获取。
