MOTHERS HEALTH-SEEKING BEHAVIOR IN ACUTE DIARRHEA IN TLAXCALA, MEXICO

This study, a cross-sectional survey, was conducted to assess how moth ers take care of their children with diarrhoea and to develop a model of health-care seeking behaviour. Multistage sampling was used. Mother s whose children aged less than five years had suffered from diarrhoea in the last fortnight were included. Nurses interviewed the mothers t o collect data. Variables included in the interview were: mothers' cha racteristics, children's characteristics, clinical data, treatment giv en by the mother, maternal health-seeking behaviour and mothers' infor mation about diarrhoea and dehydration. Variables corresponding to the clinical data were grouped to identify dehydration signs and the need for medical care. Dehydration was defined as the presence of two or m ore of the following reported signs: thirst, sunken eyes, sunken fonta nelle, or scanty urine. The need for medical care was defined as the p resence of one or more of the following characteristics: illness lasti ng more than three days, vomiting, fever, bloody diarrhoea or dehydrat ion. A sample of 747 mothers was obtained. Household treatments consis ted of herbal teas to stop diarrhoea (52.3%), liquids to prevent dehyd ration (92.2%), symptomatic drugs (35.2%) and changes in feeding patte rns (36.3%), which consisted in suppressing milk and dairy products an d interrupting breast feeding (12.2%). Mothers sought medical assistan ce when they perceived a worsening of clinical conditions. Clinical si gns statistically associated with their decision were: bloody diarrhoe a, vomiting, illness longer than three days, weight loss, and fever. T he signs of dehydration were not associated with health care-seeking b ecause the mother did not recognise them. It is concluded that materna l educational programmes should emphasise, besides the proper use of o ral rehydration therapy, teaching mothers to identify signs of dehydra tion as an indication to seek timely medical care.