American journal of epidemiology
-
The etiology of acute diarrhea (less than or equal to 3 days duration) and persistent diarrhea (greater than or equal to 14 days duration) was determined in Cambodian children under age 5 years in a refugee camp on the Thai-Cambodian border between May and October 1989; potential risk factors associated with persistent diarrhea were examined in an age-matched case-control study. Specimens collected from children and environmental sources were examined by standard microbiologic methods; Escherichia coli isolates were examined for hybridization with specific DNA probes and in tissue culture adherence assays. ⋯ The most important risk factors identified for developing persistent diarrhea were living with other young children (odds ratio (OR) = 2.0, 95% confidence interval (Cl) 1.2-3.4) and being undernourished (OR = 2.6, 95% Cl 1.2-5.7). Persistent diarrhea in children in this camp was associated with several different agents rather than persistent infections with a single organism.