RESUMO
Background: Acute diarrhoeal diseases are one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the developing countries and a major contribution of malnutrition especially among infants and children under 5 years of age. Approximately two-thirds of the world population live in the developing countries characterized by a lack of potable drinking water, improper means of disposal of human faecal waste, intense crowding in houses and often primitive standards of personal hygiene. In India, diarrhoeal diseases are a major public health problem among children under 5 years. The objective of the study was to estimate number of episodes of diarrhoea in children under five years in a rural area.Methods: Community based longitudinal study conducted among 622 children.Results: The overall incidence of diarrhoeal disease was found to be 2.11 episode/child/year. It was observed that the diarrhoeal disease morbidity decreased with the increasing age of the child. Diarrhoeal disease morbidity increased in children from lower socioeconomic status 2.32 episodes/child/year.Conclusions: The lower incidence rate has been found in those children who were better nourished, had received immunization and had been breast fed. Hence there is a need to make efforts to still further improve and sustain immunization coverage, give importance to the nutrition of the children, encourage the mothers to breast feed their children for at least 2 years.