Mothers' knowledge and practices associated with managing malaria in children under five in Nigeria

Background: Malaria poses a major health risk for children under 5 in low resource settings. Building healthy practices for malaria management can prevent malaria-related deaths in children. Aim: The purpose of this study was to describe mothers' practices associated with malaria management in children under 5 in a suburban community in south-west Nigeria. Methodology: A community-based descriptive study was conducted among 160 mothers of children under 5 using a multistage sampling technique. Data were collected using a semi-structured, interviewer-administered questionnaire. Results: The majority (96.3%) of mothers had good knowledge of the causes and management of malaria; however, most (83.1%) did not adopt healthy practices in the management of malaria in children under 5. The majority (88.8%) of the mothers cited long waiting times to get treatment in health facilities as a major factor against uptake of hospital treatment for malaria. The use of antimalarial combination therapy for treatment of malaria was low among mothers (28.8%). Conclusions: Mothers' did not adopt healthy practices in malaria management for children under 5. It is essential to intensify efforts on health education programmes that can build mothers' capacity for healthy practices for malaria management.