Determinants of the practice of traditional Uvulectomy as seen at Thika District Hospital: a survey on children below five years

Abstract

The aim of the study was to establish the determinants of uvulectomy, the indications and complications as well as establishing the methods the traditional surgeons use to clean and/or sterilize instruments. This was a cross sectional descriptive study in a rural district hospital, in this case Thika district. It involved children of 5yrs and below. The respondent was the child's guardian/parent and a questionnaire was used to direct and record information. A total of 311 guardians/parents responded to the questionnaire. In addition 3 uvulectomists were interviewed The results indicated that the mean age for uvulectomy was 9.7months with the youngest child being one week old. The main indication was vomiting after feeds (43%) while the main complication was infections. The methods used to clean and/or decontaminate equipments were not adequate to prevent cross-infections.