Chand Kanwal, Butt Muhammad Ismail, Tahir Hafiz Muhammad
Department of Paediatric Medicine, Central Hospital, Delhi, IND.
Department of Medicine, Tehsil Headquarter Hospital (THQ) Hospital, Pasrur, PAK.
Cureus. 2023 Jun 4;15(6):e39932. doi: 10.7759/cureus.39932. eCollection 2023 Jun.
The COVID-19 pandemic has raised knowledge of the proper antibiotic dosage for treating childhood upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs). In order to ensure proper antibiotic usage and prevent the establishment of illnesses that is antibiotic-resistant during the COVID-19 pandemic, parental attitudes, knowledge, and behaviour surrounding antibiotic use for URTIs in children are essential. The goal of this study was to find out the parental attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the usage of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic.
This cross-sectional was conducted in the Department of Paediatric Medicine, Central Hospital, Ganesh Nagar, New Delhi, India from September 2022 to February 2023. The study analysed a total of 500. All the children had URTIs. A structured questionnaire was randomly distributed among parents. Socio-demographic information like gender, age, occupation, monthly family income, and age of the children were noted at the time of enrollment. Outcomes were recorded in terms of responses to questions regarding attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the use of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic. Results: Of a total of 500 parents, 380 (76.0%) were male. The mean age was 39.9±8.3 years while 280 (56.0%) participants were aged between 31 to 45 years. Relatively older age (p<0.0001) and occupational status as unemployed (p<0.0001) were found to have a significant association with response to "virus being the cause of COVID-19". Females (p=0.0004) and increasing age (p<0.0001) were found to have significant associations with incorrect responses to "antibiotics are essential for managing the symptoms in children with COVID-19". Incorrect responses to "without the use of antibiotics, children usually suffer from greater periods of sickness" were associated with females and increasing age (p<0.0001). Incorrect responses to "not using antibiotics will prove beneficial for the children suffering from COVID-19" were significantly associated with female gender (p=0.0016) and increasing age (p<0.0001). The incorrect responses to "how often are antibiotics being prescribed to the COVID-19 children" was significantly linked with females and relatively older age (p<0.0001).
Parental attitude, knowledge, and practices regarding the usage of antibiotics for URTIs in children during the COVID-19 epidemic showed variations. Parental attitude, knowledge, and practices were associated with gender, age, and socio-economic status.
新冠疫情提高了人们对治疗儿童上呼吸道感染（URTIs）时适当抗生素剂量的认识。为了确保在新冠疫情期间正确使用抗生素并预防耐药性疾病的发生，了解家长对儿童上呼吸道感染使用抗生素的态度、知识和行为至关重要。本研究的目的是了解新冠疫情期间家长对儿童上呼吸道感染使用抗生素的态度、知识和做法。
本横断面研究于2022年9月至2023年2月在印度新德里甘尼什纳加尔中央医院儿科进行。该研究共分析了500名儿童。所有儿童均患有上呼吸道感染。向家长随机发放一份结构化问卷。在登记时记录社会人口统计学信息，如性别、年龄、职业、家庭月收入和儿童年龄。结果根据对关于新冠疫情期间儿童上呼吸道感染使用抗生素的态度、知识和做法问题的回答进行记录。结果：在总共500名家长中，380名（76.0%）为男性。平均年龄为39.9±8.3岁，其中280名（56.0%）参与者年龄在31至45岁之间。发现相对年长（p<0.0001）和失业的职业状况（p<0.0001）与对“病毒是新冠疫情的病因”的回答有显著关联。女性（p=0.0004）和年龄增长（p<0.0001）与对“抗生素对治疗新冠疫情儿童的症状至关重要”的错误回答有显著关联。对“不使用抗生素，儿童通常会患病更长时间”的错误回答与女性和年龄增长有关（p<0.0001）。对“不使用抗生素对患有新冠疫情的儿童有益”的错误回答与女性性别（p=0.0016）和年龄增长（p<0.0001）显著相关。对“给新冠疫情儿童开抗生素的频率有多高”的错误回答与女性和相对年长显著相关（p<0.0001）。
新冠疫情期间家长对儿童上呼吸道感染使用抗生素的态度、知识和做法存在差异。家长的态度、知识和做法与性别、年龄和社会经济地位有关。
