Schoolchildren"s perceptions and practices on the causes, gravity and treatment of acute respiratory infection, Azuay, Ecuador, 2012.

Abstract

Objective: To identify the perceptions and practices of schoolchildren belonging to different social strata about the causes, severity, and treatment of acute respiratory infection in Azuay province, Ecuador in 2012. Methodology: A descriptive study was conducted in a convenience sample of 498 schoolchildren in the sixth and seventh year of primary school, from both urban and rural areas of Azuay. We talk with the responsible people for the schoolchildren care about the aim of the study, and the informed consent was obtained. For quality control we performed a pilot study in a different institution than this study. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 15, we used frequencies, percentages and measures of central tendency such as middle and standard deviation, and chi-square was used to find statistical significance. Result: The average age of participants was 10.8 years. Children came from both urban and rural regions, and belonged to low or middle social strata. Those of low social strata and of feminine gender more commonly used drugs in the home before receiving medical care (42.3% and 45.0%). A higher percentage of female children (41.9 %) were aware of antibiotics, while the males had better knowledge of bacterial resistance (26.3%). The health-care centers and school were the main source of information on antibiotics and bacterial resistance, although children’s access to information overall was low. The level of knowledge of the causes and the severity of acute respiratory infection was inadequate in a high proportion of both boys and girls. The majority of participating schoolchildren, independent of their status identified that "taking care in cold weather" is an appropriate measure of prevention and protection against ARI, but very low percentages of them considered rest, no smoking, healthy food, protection and nasal cleaning as self-care practices to prevent ARI. Conclusions: Only a limited percentage of boys and girls had appropriate knowledge and perceptions about the severity of acute respiratory infection, the use of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance. Programs to contain antibiotic resistance require multilateral and comprehensive approaches that involve the community with an emphasis on the school, children, parents and their families.