Home management of malaria by care givers of under-five children in an urban area in Lagos, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND

One of the key interventions proposed under the Roll back malaria initiative is improvement of case management of malaria at the home and community levels to reduce malaria burden. This study was conducted to determine the practice and determinants of Home Management of Malaria (HMM) among care givers of children below 5 years old in an urban community in Lagos State, Nigeria.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study conducted in 2007. A multi-stage sampling method was used to select the 340 respondents who participated in this study. Data was collected using interviewer administered questionnaires and analysed with Epi-info software. A care giver was included in the study if he/she takes care of a child/children less than 5 years old.

RESULTS

The commonest treatment practice by caregivers for their young children with malaria was home treatment with antimalarial drugs [51.5%]. HMM was not significantly determined by care givers' age nor educational level. Most children were treated with chloroquine and only a few [4.2%] of the children were treated with the recommended drug [ACT]. Overall, only 1.24% received adequate treatment.

CONCLUSION

Few respondents correctly practice HMM. There is need to educate care givers of young children on the proper management of malaria at home.