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Eau potable, assainissement et risque de maladies diarrhéiques dans la Communauté Urbaine de Nouakchott, Mauritanie

2017; Volume: Vol. 29; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.3917/spub.175.0741

2104-3841

Ibrahima Sy, Doulo Traoré, Aminata Niang Diène, Brama Koné, Baïdy Lô, Ousmane Faye, Jürg Utzinger, Guéladio Cissé, Marcel Tanner,

Global Maternal and Child Health

Drinking water and sanitation are two factors of inter-linked inextricably public health especially in the city of Nouakchott where the low availability of these services leads to a multitude of use and hygiene practices involving a complex socio-ecological system with an increased risk of waterborne diseases transmission (diarrhea, cholera, etc.).Thus, this contribution analyzes the impact of socio-ecological system on the development of diarrheal diseases by using socio-environmental and epidemiological data from various sources (national surveys and registries consultation).Overall, the results show that only 25.6% of households have access to drinking water sources while 69.8% of the populations dispose improved latrines. Hence, the weakness in environmental sanitation conditions explains the level of diarrheal morbidity averring 12.8% at the urban level, with an unequal spatial distribution showing less affected communes such as Tevragh Zeina (9.1%) and municipalities more affected like Sebkha (19.1%). The distribution according to the age categories shows that children under 5 years are the most affected with 51.7% followed by people aged over 14 with 34.2%. The correlation analysis between socio-economic, environmental and epidemiological variables reveals a number of significant associations: untreated water consumption and diarrhea (R = 0.429); collection of wastewater and occurrence of diarrhea ; existence of improved latrine and reduction of diarrheal risk (R = 0.402).Therefore, exposure to diarrheal diseases through the prism of water and sanitation is a real public health problem that requires a systemic and integrated approach to improving environmental health.