Work

Reducing Diarrhea Through the Use of Household-based Ceramic Water Filters: a Randomized, Controlled Trial in Rural Bolivia

Year: 2004

Type: article

Study designs: Randomized Controlled Trial, Clinical Trial

Abstract: Ceramic water filters have been identified as one of the most promising and accessible technologies for treating water at the household level. In a six-month trial, water filters were distributed randomly to half of the 50 participating households in a rural community in Bolivia; the remaining households continued to use customary water handling practices and served as controls. In four rounds of sampling following distribution of the filters, 100% of the 96 water samples from the filter households were free of thermotolerant coliforms compared with 15.5% of the control household samples. Diarrheal disease risk for individuals in intervention households was 70% lower than for controls (95% confidence interval [CI] = 53-80%; P < 0.001). For children less than five years old, the reduction in risk was 83% (95% CI = 51-94%; P < 0.001). These results show that affordable ceramic water filters enable low-income households to treat and maintain the microbiologic quality of their drinking water.

Source: American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.2004.70.651

Authors: THOMAS F. CLASEN, JOSEPH BROWN, SIMON COLLIN, OSCAR SUNTURA, SANDY CAIRNCROSS

Institutions: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Bristol City Council, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

Language: English

Topic: Child Nutrition and Water Access

Subfield: Nutrition and Dietetics

Field: Nursing

Domain: Health Sciences

SDGs: Clean water and sanitation, Good health and well-being

Open Access status: bronze