Effect of improved housing on illness in children under 5 years old in northern Malawi: cross sectional study.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effects of a Habitat for Humanity housing improvement programme in northern Malawi on the prevalence of childhood illnesses. DESIGN Household based cross sectional study. SETTING Rural communities centred near the small northern Malawi town of Ekwendeni. SUBJECTS 318 children under 5 years old. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Prevalence of respiratory, gastrointestinal, and malarial infections according to maternal recall, laboratory, or clinical data. RESULTS Children living in improved homes were less likely to have respiratory, gastrointestinal, or malarial illnesses (odds ratio 0.56, 95% confidence interval 0.35 to 0.91) after confounding factors were controlled for. The reductions in individual diseases were not significant. CONCLUSION Improved housing significantly reduced the burden of disease among children under 5 years old.