Abstract
Background and Objectives:Respiratory tract infections and diarrhea are two important causes of under 5-year-old mortalities. The third cause of under 5-year mortality rate in Iran is respiratory infections and the fourth is diarrhea. So determination of their incidence rates and risk factors in Iran is important to control the diseases.
Materials and Methods: A longitudinal study was carried out in Shiraz in 1996 in which 329 newborns selected randomly and followed for two years, at 0, 1.5, 3, 4.5, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15, 18, 21 and 24 months of age. Data were collected using a semistructured questionnaire and filled up by interview, observation and examination of infants. The incidence rates of respiratory tract infections and diarrhea measured for age intervals and their correlation with different variables were tested properly.
Results: The incidence rates of respiratory tract infections and diarrhea were 29.39 and 5.92 in the first year of life and 27.32% and 4.76% in the second. Father’s education and job, mother’s age and individual hygiene had significant relative risk with respiratory infections and individual hygiene and environmental hygiene had significant relative risk with diarrhea in different age intervals with logistic regression. The most attributable risk belonged to father’s under 9 years education (8.18%) that related to 5.46% of the incidence of respiratory infection in 1.5-6 months old infants. It takes one sixth of the incidence rate in this age interval.
Conclusion: Results show that cultural and socioeconomic factors have more correlation with respiratory tract infections in infants than individual factors. However, the majority of the respiratory tract infection control programs emphasize on promoting individual health factors. So it seems that socioeconomic health factors are so important that they should be taken into account in these programs.