BREASTFEEDING PRACTICES AMONG INFANTS PRESENTING WITH ACUTE DIARRHEA
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Abstract
Objectives: To determine the frequency of different feeding practices among infants presenting with acute diarrhea.
Material and Methods: This cross sectional study was carried out from October 2019 to March 2020 in the Paediatrics Out-Patient Department of Khyber Teaching Hospital, Peshawar. Infants with acute diarrhea were included in the study after meeting the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Sampling was done by consecutive (non-probability) sampling. Sample size was 141, under WHO sample size calculator.
Results: Out of 141 infants who presented with acute diarrhea in our study, 26(18.4%) were exclusively breastfed, 79(56%) were partially breastfed, while 36(25.5%) were non breastfed. Out of 141, 80(56.7%) were male and 61(43.3%) were female, with frequency of exclusive breastfeeding in males being 17.5% and in females being 19.7%. The mean age of the infant presenting with diarrhea was 3.25 months, while the mean age of the mother in the study was found to be 26.4 years. The rate of exclusive breastfeeding was 7.7% in working mothers compared to 19.5% in housewives.
Conclusion: The most common feeding practice among infants presenting with acute diarrhea is partial breastfeeding which is not as effective as exclusive breastfeeding in preventing and reducing morbidity from diarrheal diseases.
Key Words: Feeding practices, Exclusive breastfeeding, Partial breastfeeding, Non breastfeeding and Acute Diarrhea.
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