Access to oral rehydration solution and zinc supplementation for treatment of childhood diarrhoeal diseases in Sudan

Abstract

Abstract Objectives The decline in diarrhoeal disease-related mortality globally has been attributed to the use of oral rehydration solution (ORS) and zinc supplementation. However, data on ORS and zinc supplementation in Sudan are scarce. We aimed to investigate the access to ORS and zinc treatments and the associated factors, through the analysis of the latest available data from Sudan-Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS)-2014 obtained from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). Results A total of 14,081 children were included in this analysis. During the 2 weeks preceding the survey, 29.3% of these children had a diarrhoeal disease. Only 18.9% and 14.8% of these children had received ORS and zinc supplements, respectively. Whereas children from the higher wealth index groups were more likely to receive ORS treatment (fourth group: AOR = 1.301; 95% CI 1.006–1.682), children from rural areas were less likely to receive ORS treatment (AOR = 0.666; 95% CI 0.552–0.803) and zinc supplements (AOR = 0.603; 95% CI 0.500–0.728). The results indicate the existence of unequal access to treatment of childhood diarrhoeal diseases among children under 5 years in Sudan.

Keywords

• Diarrhoea
• Children
• ORS
• Zinc
• Epidemiology
• MICS