Prevalence and associated factors of diarrhea among under-five children in Debre Berhan Town, Ethiopia 2018: A cross sectional study

Abstract Introduction Diarrhea is responsible for 525,000 under five children deaths and 1.7 billion cases in the world and the second leading cause of death among under-five children. It is the major public health problem in developing countries like Ethiopia. The main aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of diarrhea among under-five children in Debre Berhan Town, Ethiopia.Methods Community based cross-sectional study design was done among 420 children in Debre Behan Town. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to select the study participants. Data were collected by using pre-tested and structured questionnaire. Odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals were used to assess level of significance.Results The two week prevalence of diarrhea among under-five children was 16.4%. Age of children with 7-11 month years old (AOR: 4.2, 95%CI: 1.2 – 15.3), being the second children (AOR: 3.9, 95%CI: 1.8 – 8.5), not vaccinated against Rota virus (AOR: 10.3, 95%CI: 3.2 – 91.3) and feeding children by using hand (AOR: 2.5, 95%CI: 1.1 - 6.1) were significant predictors of under five children diarrhea.Conclusions This study revealed that the two weeks’ period prevalence of under-five diarrhea was relatively high. Age of children, vaccination against Rota virus and feeding children by using hand were associated with under-five children diarrhea. Education program on the important of vaccination against Rota virus and critical point of hand washing is recommended.