Suau Sans, M. orcid.org/0000-0003-3607-0302, Manneh, M., Ceesay, I. et al. (7 more authors) (2024) Health-seeking behaviour and beliefs around sore throat in The Gambia: A qualitative study. PLOS Global Public Health, 4 (3). e0002257. ISSN 2767-3375
Abstract
Group A Streptococcus (Strep A) bacteria causes a broad spectrum of diseases. The most common manifestations of Strep A infection are sore throat and pus-producing skin infections such as impetigo. Complications of Strep A infection can lead to inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs causing acute rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease (RHD). In The Gambia, the RHD burden is thought to be very high. However, epidemiological data is minimal, and Strep A control programmes do not exist. This study aimed to explore common beliefs and practices related to sore throats among primary caregivers of children, and healthcare providers in a community with a high Strep A disease burden. Four informal conversations with providers and fifteen semi-structured interviews with caregivers were conducted in the peri-urban area of Sukuta, The Gambia. Sampling was purposive and gradual, beginning from households identified to have recently experienced sore throat through a parallel cohort study. Themes explored in qualitative analysis included: sore throat causal attributions and diagnoses, care practises, health-seeking behaviour, and perceived barriers to using the biomedical sector. We found that sore throats were typically perceived to affect one child in a family, disproportionately or exclusively. Sore throats were rarely perceived as life-threatening, and awareness of links between sore throat and ARF or RHD was not reported among caregivers or providers in this study population. Most cases of sore throat were initially managed at home using traditional medicine which delayed resort to antibiotics, though in two instances of severe pain with the presence of exudate, fear that the child’s life was at risk prompted care-seeking through the formal health system. Our findings can inform the development of tailored strategies to increase community knowledge of the potential long-term consequences of sore throats and appropriate care-seeking, alongside improvements in the health system, to prevent Strep A sequelae effectively.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Editors: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2024 Suau Sans et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. |
Keywords: | Biomedical and Clinical Sciences; Clinical Sciences; Health Sciences; Clinical Research; Arthritis; Infection; Good Health and Well Being |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 03 Apr 2024 11:48 |
Last Modified: | 03 Apr 2024 11:48 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1371/journal.pgph.0002257 |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:211099 |