Risk factors and case management of acquired pneumonia in children under five years at selected health centre IVs in Uganda

Abstract

Pneumonia is the second leading cause of death in children under five years of age in Uganda. Knowing the risk factors, diagnosis and treatment of pneumonia cases in children under five years is useful for prevention and intervention programs that are aimed at controlling the disease risk factors and disease prevalence. The objective of the study was to investigate and assess risk factors and case management of acquired pneumonia in children under five years at selected health centre IVs in Uganda, using a cross sectional design. Data was collected from close to 2,000 caretakers and 20 health workers using questionnaires. Binary logistic regression was used to identify significant risk factors associated with acquired pneumonia. Research findings indicate that, consumption of whole food for some days (OR: 1.567; 95% CI: 1.031 – 2.308), size of the house (OR: 0.530; 95% CI: 0.403 – 0.698), number of people in the family (OR: 2.130; 95% CI: 1.580 – 2.871), presence of a source of pollution in the neighbourhood (OR: 1.135; 95% CI: 1.005 – 1.282), presence of a member who smokes in the family (OR: 0.487; 95% CI: 0.309 – 0.770) and number of times the child received immunisation for pneumonia (OR: 0.585; 95% CI: 0.427 – 0.802), were the significant risk factors of acquired pneumonia. It was further found out that majority of the children received delayed diagnosis and treatment. While the most common clinical sign and symptom was rapid breathing, most health centre IVs lacked pneumonia diagnostic tools.