The goal of a study published in BMC Research Notes was to assess the prevalence of oral rehydration therapy (ORT) use and associated factors among under-five children with diarrhea, in Dangure district, Ethiopia.

The present study enrolled 615 under-five children who suffered from diarrhea, two weeks prior; the response rate was 99%. Among these children, 31% were between 12 and 23 months. 

The findings showed that 84.8% of the mothers had access to oral rehydration therapy (ORT) and 85% had homes at less than 1 hour from the health facility. The prevalence of ORT was estimated as 51%. Overall, 43.8% mothers correctly described the importance of ORT—that is, to replace fluid, while 39.8% mothers stated that ORT is used to decrease diarrhea. Moreover, factors associated with oral rehydration therapy use were – mother’s educational status; monthly income; knowledge of ORT; previous experience; and seeking advice for treatment from health facilities

The findings suggested that caregivers who had previous experiences with ORT were 8.5 times more likely to use ORT than their counterparts. Thus, familiarity with ORT could be gained through experience. 

Source: BMC Research Notes. 2019 Jan;12: 67. doi: 10.1186/s13104-019-4078-6