Prevalence of Diarrhoea in the Population of the Medical Care and Training District of Tucuma, Rio Branco, Acre State, Brazil, in 2003

The objective of this cross-sectional study was to determine the prevalence of diarrhea in a sample of the urban population of the Municipality of Rio Branco, Acre State, Brazil, including strata of all ages. After questionnaire validation by the pilot-study, a random sample of 159 people of 0-77 years of age was selected. The general prevalence of diarrhea on the day of the interview was 5.9%. In the last 15 days before the interview, the prevalence was 14.1%, of which 33.3% were cases occurred in subjects less that five years of age, and 10.5% of which occurred in subjects over four years of age (p<0.05). Gender, socioeconomic level, and household coverage by the Family Health Program were similar among the groups with and without diarrhea. In the group with diarrhea, the following characteristics were prevalent: household with large number of residents, residence made of wood, residence lack of piped water, and toilet outside the house or non-flushing toilet. The general prevalence found was high: in those under 5 years of age it was about three times the one described in the literature, and the prevalence found in adolescents and adults contributed to minimize the need for information in these age groups. The results of this work reinforce the necessity of deeper studies on this subject, specially associated with socio-economic and environmental precarious conditions, as well as public policies towards the prevention of health hazards.