Abstract:
Background: Trachoma is the leading cause of preventable blindness in developing countries. Each year, trachoma leads to thousands of people getting blind. Blindness leads to disability and loss of productivity within a country. Hence, this study helps to assess factors that contribute to the prevalence of active trachoma in the study area.
Objective: To assess the prevalence and associated factors of active trachoma among children age 1 to 9 years old in Rural and Urban Kebeles, Dera Woreda, Northwest Ethiopia.
Methods: A comparative cross-sectional study was conducted from March to April 2014. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to selecting a total of 671 children (age1-9 years) from 671 households. All children were examined for trachoma by Integrated Eye Care Workers who were experienced in using the WHO simplified grading scheme. Interviews and observations were used to assess risk factors for trachoma. EPI info version 7.1.1.14 and SPSS version 16 were used for data entry and analysis respectively. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the data in relation to relevant variables. Binary logistic regression analysis technique was carried out and odds ratio with 95% confidence intervals were computed.
Result: A total of 671 children (215 were urban and 456 were rural) from 671 households were participated in the study. The overall prevalence of active trachoma among children 1- 9 years was 15.6% (95%CI 12.8 – 18.3) (9.3% urban and 18.6% rural). Children with unclean face [AOR=4.04; 95%CI 2.11-7.73], discharge on face [AOR=5.31; 95%CI 2.71-10.37] and feces around the main house [AOR=2.7; 95%CI 1.53-4.78] were more likely to develop active trachoma.
Conclusion: This study revealed that the overall prevalence of active trachoma among children was high. The prevalence was high among children from rural residence as compared to children from urban areas. Unclean face, discharge on faces and feces around the main house were significant factors for the occurrence of active trachoma in both rural and urban areas of Dera woreda
