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. 2021 Jul 20;21:1431. doi: 10.1186/s12889-021-11470-9

Table 2.

Factors associated with occurrence of diarrhoeal episodes in the household in the preceding two weeks

Diarrhoeal episode in the household
n/N (%) c
Univariate d Multivariate d, e
OR (95% CI) p-value OR (95% CI) p-value
Dwelling type
 Formal 56/74 (75.7) Referent
 Informal 18/74 (24.3) 1.6 (0.9–3.0) 0.135
Structure main material
 Brick 66/74 (89.2) Referent
 Metal sheets 8/74 (10.8) 1.1 (0.5–2.6) 0.765
Home ownership
 Owned by residents 38/74 (51.4) Referent
 Rented 27/74 (36.5) 1.7 (1.0–3.0) 0.071
 Government issued 9/74 (12.2) 0.9 (0.4–1.9) 0.718
Power source for cooking
 Electricity 74/74 (100.0) Omitted
 Paraffin 0/74 (0)
Toilet type
 Flush toilet in yard 22/74 (29.7) Referent Referent
 Flush toilet in house 52/74 (70.3) 1.8 (1.0–3.1) 0.038 1.7 (1.0–3.0) 0.057
 Ventilated pit latrine 0/74 (0)
International Wealth Index
 Median (IQR) 85.6 (79.1–92.1) 1.0 (1.0–1.0) 0.827
Number of people living in the household
 Median (IQR) 5 (3-7) 1.1 (1.0–1.2) 0.004
Children < 5 years in the household
 No 42/78 (53.9) Referent
 Yes 36/78 (46.1) 2.0 (1.2–3.4) 0.008
Children between 5 and 15 years in the household
 No 29/78 (37.2) Referent Referent
 Yes 49/78 (62.8) 2.3 (1.4–3.9) 0.002 2.3 (1.3–3.9) 0.002
Handwashing a
 Adequate 24/78 (30.8) Referent Referent
 Inadequate 54/78 (69.2) 1.8 (1.0–3.0) 0.039 1.7 (1.0–3.0) 0.064
Consume fresh fruit and vegetables b
 Never 3/77 (3.9) Referent
 Occasionally 24/77 (31.2) 0.5 (0.1–2.1) 0.307
 Often 50/77 (64.9) 0.4 (0.1–1.8) 0.236
Consume meat b
 Never 3/78 (3.9) Referent
 Occasionally 28/78 (35.9) 1.4 (0.4–5.2) 0.617
 Often 47/78 (60.3) 1.2 (0.3–4.2) 0.815
Consume dairy b
 Never 10/77 (13.0) Referent
 Occasionally 28/77 (36.4) 1.2 (0.5–2.8) 0.710
 Often 39/77 (50.7) 0.8 (0.3–1.7) 0.520
Consume eggs b
 Never 16/77 (20.8) Referent
 Occasionally 26/77 (33.8) 0.7 (0.4–1.5) 0.420
 Often 35/77 (45.5) 0.7 (0.3–1.3) 0.224
Consume ready-to-eat meat products b
 Never 21/77 (27.3) Referent
 Occasionally 28/77 (36.4) 1.4 (0.7–2.7) 0.341
 Often 28/77 (36.4) 1.4 (0.7–2.6) 0.391
Consume take-aways b
 Never 28/77 (36.4) Referent
 Occasionally 39/77 (50.7) 1.3 (0.8–2.3) 0.313
 Often 10/77 (13.0) 1.8 (0.8–4.1) 0.182
Eat at restaurants b
 Never 48/78 (61.5) Referent
 Occasionally 28/78 (35.9) 1.0 (0.6–1.7) 0.937
 Often 2/78 (2.6) 1.3 (0.2–6.5) 0.771
Purchase meat
 Informal 2/78 (2.6) Referent
 Commercial 76/78 (97.4) 1.9 (0.4–8.5) 0.408
Purchase fruit and vegetables
 Informal 39/76 (51.3) Referent
 Commercial 37/76 (48.7) 1.2 (0.7–2.0) 0.451
Fridge/freezer storage
 No 2/78 (2.6) Referent
 Yes 76/78 (97.4) 1.2 (0.3–5.7) 0.822
Separate raw and cooked food
 No 1/78 (1.3) Referent
 Yes 77/78 (98.7) 2.8 (0.4–22.0) 0.336
Treat drinking water
 No 67/78 (85.9) Referent
 Yes 11/78 (14.1) 1.6 (0.7–3.5) 0.251
Water storage
 None (straight from tap) 47/78 (60.3) Referent
 Closed container 29/78 (37.2) 1.1 (0.7–1.9) 0.658
 Open container 2/78 (2.6) 1.6 (0.3–8.3) 0.600
Interruptions to water supply in the past 2 weeks
 No 69/76 (90.8) Referent
 Yes 7/76 (9.2) 0.7 (0.3–1.7) 0.393

a Adequate defined as washing with soap and water at critical times (after using the toilet or changing diapers, and before preparing food, eating or feeding young children); b Occasionally defined as once/twice per week, and often defined as every day or every second day. c Denominator differs due to missing responses for some households (maximum of 78 households that experienced at least one episode of diarrhoea in the past two weeks); d Univariate and multivariate analysis using only the 355 households that could be matched to HDSS data. e The following variables were assessed in the multivariate model: number of people living in the household, dwelling type, home ownership, toilet type, children < 5 years in the household, children between 5 and 15 years in the household and handwashing. The following variables were retained in the model: toilet type, children between 5 and 15 years in the household and handwashing