Epidemiology of diarrhea in urban slums.

Findings are presented from an assessment of the impact of potable water supply, mother's literacy, toilet type, socioeconomic status, family size, housing, hygienic practices, and malnutrition upon the frequency of diarrheal episodes among children of low socioeconomic status living in the urban slums of East Delhi, India. The mothers of 450 consecutive children with acute diarrhea attending the UCMS and GTB Hospital's Diarrhea Treatment-cum-Training Unit (DTTU) clinic were included in the study. The mothers were 17-40 years old, of mean age 25.8 years, while their children were 1-98 months old, of mean age 18 months. The 450 children in the study experienced 726 episodes of diarrhea during the preceding month, with 205 of the children having more than 1 episode. Multivariate logistics analysis determined that malnutrition and poor hygienic practices were important, significant factors increasing children's risk of multiple bouts of diarrhea.