Individual and contextual determinants of the duration of diarrhoeal episodes in preschool children: a longitudinal study in an urban setting

This study investigated individual and contextual factors associated with the duration of diarrhoeal episodes in 693 young children living in a large Brazilian city who were followed-up for at least 3 months. The outcome is analysed as a continuous variable, by means of a hierarchical conceptual model organizing the factors in meaningful blocks. A total of 2397 episodes were recorded (median duration 2 days, interquartile range 1–3 days). Low percentage of households connected to the sewerage system in the neighbourhood, low family purchasing power, high agglomeration, mother aged