Tariku Amare, Woldie Haile, Fekadu Abel, Adane Akilew Awoke, Ferede Ayanaw Tsega, Yitayew Segenet
Department of Human Nutrition, Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Institute of Public Health, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Arch Public Health. 2016 Apr 18;74:13. doi: 10.1186/s13690-016-0126-z. eCollection 2016.
Stunting has been the most pressing public health problem throughout the developing countries. It is the major causes of child mortality and global disease burden, where 80 % of this burden is found in developing countries. In the future, stunting alone would result in 22 % of loss in adult income. About 40 % of children under five-years were stunted in Ethiopia. In the country, about 28 % of child mortality is related to undernutrition. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and determinants of stunting among preschool children in Dembia district, Northwest Ethiopia.
A community based cross-sectional study was carried out in Dembia district, Northwest Ethiopia from January 01 to February 29, 2015. A multi-stage sampling followed by a systematic sampling technique was employed to reach 681 mother-child pairs. A pretested and structured questionnaire was used to collect data. After exporting anthropometric data to ENA/SMART software version 2012, nutritional status (stunting) of a child was determined using the WHO Multicenter Growth Reference Standard. In binary logistic regression, a multivariable analysis was carried out to identify determinants of stunting. The Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) with a 95 % confidence interval was computed to assess the strength of the association, and variables with a P-value of <0.05 in multivariable analysis were considered as statistically significant.
A total 681 of mother-child pairs were included in the study. The overall prevalence of stunting was 46 % [95 % CI: 38.7, 53.3 %]. In multivariable analysis, the odds of stunting was higher among children whose families had no latrine [AOR = 1.6, 95 % CI: 1.1, 2.2)]. Likewise, children living in household with more than four family size [AOR =1.4, 95 % CI: 1.1, 1.9)] were more likely to be stunted.
This study confirms that stunting is a very high public health problem in Dembia district. The family size and latrine availability were significantly associated with stunting. Hence, emphasis should be given to improve the latrine coverage and utilization of family planning in the district.
发育迟缓一直是所有发展中国家最紧迫的公共卫生问题。它是儿童死亡率和全球疾病负担的主要原因，其中80%的负担见于发展中国家。未来，仅发育迟缓一项就将导致成年人收入损失22%。在埃塞俄比亚，约40%的五岁以下儿童发育迟缓。在该国，约28%的儿童死亡与营养不良有关。因此，本研究的目的是确定埃塞俄比亚西北部登比亚区学龄前儿童发育迟缓的患病率及其决定因素。
2015年1月1日至2月29日在埃塞俄比亚西北部登比亚区开展了一项基于社区的横断面研究。采用多阶段抽样随后辅以系统抽样技术，选取了681对母婴。使用经过预测试的结构化问卷收集数据。将人体测量数据导出到2012版ENA/SMART软件后，根据世界卫生组织多中心生长参考标准确定儿童的营养状况（发育迟缓）。在二元逻辑回归分析中，进行多变量分析以确定发育迟缓的决定因素。计算调整后的优势比（AOR）及其95%置信区间以评估关联强度，多变量分析中P值<0.05的变量被视为具有统计学意义。
本研究共纳入681对母婴。发育迟缓的总体患病率为46%[95%CI：38.7，53.3%]。在多变量分析中，家庭没有厕所的儿童发育迟缓的几率更高[AOR = 1.6，95%CI：1.1，2.2]。同样，家庭人口超过四人的儿童[AOR = 1.4，95%CI：1.1，1.9]发育迟缓的可能性更大。
本研究证实发育迟缓在登比亚区是一个非常严重的公共卫生问题。家庭规模和厕所使用情况与发育迟缓显著相关。因此，应重视提高该区的厕所覆盖率和计划生育的利用率。
