الفهرس 
AcknowledgementOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Diarrheal diseases are a major public health problem of world - wide distribution in most developing countries. It costs the nations billions of dollars annually in lost wages and medical treatment Diarrheal diseases are considered one of the major contributors to malnutrition and poor health of children. In many developing countries, diarrhea accounts for a third to half of admissions to pediatric wards and represents a serious drain on the very limited health resources. Analysis of several studies carried out in various parts of the globe suggests that, about one fourth of infant mortality in the developing countries is accounted for by diarrheal diseases Each year a child in the Third World has over two episodes of diarrhea, and those who survive, suffer from malnutrition and other disabilities. Diarrheal diseases , ln Egypt afflicts particularly children in the first two-years of life. Diarrhea is a symptom which means different things to different people, It was defined by mothers as, simply, any change from the usual in their child’s stools in consistency, frequency or color . Nevertheless, we may be satisfied with a definition that, diarrhea is a clinical picture resulting from a pathophysiological change of the gastrointestinal tract which might or not be associated with definite structural changes. And the characteristics features of diarrhea are frequent loose stool (25) . In developing countries dehydration and malnutrition are the most common illnesses following diarrhea, and they are the most frequent precipitating causes of death (34) . Dehydration can develop rapidly within a few hours, when the lack of water and salt through diarrhea is equal to one tenth of the body weigh, dehydration become severe and the person will die within one hour or two(8). In essence, the prevention and treatment of dehydration is the key to saving the lives of children with diarrhea(79). The literature on the relationships between breast feeding and diarrhea .is substantial and permits an assessment of breast f~eding promotion as an intervention ’. for the reduction of the morbidity and mortality in . f (45,69,70) ” d b f d ” h ln ants . Cont1nue reast ee 1ng 1S somew at not ~ easy for mother to accept, although, great number of authors recommended that it should not be stopped during diarrhea(74,75) Clinical management and advices given in cases of diarrhea in Egypt is almost only restricted to medical treatment and rehydration. Very little, if any, advice is given concerning feeding practices. In event such advice is given, stress is made on what food to stop rather than on what to give the baby(76) . The essential treatment for children with acute diarrhea is extra fluids. Fluid therapy alone suffices as a sole weapon in the face of dehydration and electrolyte disturbances diarrhea(50) . in the great majority of cases of infantile The actual treatment of acute diarrhea in children has been revolutionized by the discovery of oral rehydration therapy. Which will not only reduce mortality but also reduce the degree of malnutrition (15). There are many socio-economic and, cultural factors that may enhance the spread of diarrheal diseases These factors are the determinate of our study. The overall objective of the present study is to find an association between social economic and cultural factors and the problem of diarrheal diseases in under two years children in Egypt. While main the the focus of the study was children informations were collected from mothers in households. One thousand and twenty children were selected - using the cluster sampling technique - from two Egyptian governorates, Dakahleya and Sohag . Their selection was based on the incidence rate of diarrhea . as it was determined from the results of the proj ect ”Establishment And Implementation Of An Internal Evaluation System For The National Campaign Of Diarrheal Diseases Control”, which was a part of the ”National Diarrheal Diseases Control of Project According project’s results in the Egypt” to Dakahleya has a lower incidence of diarrhea while Sohag has higher incidence of diarrhea . Data was collected through an interview questionnaire. The questionnaire included data related to social, economic environmental and cultural condition.