The burden of and risk factors for active trachoma in the North and South Wollo Zones of Amhara Region, Ethiopia: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Trachoma is a disease of the eye, caused by the bacteria Chlamydia trachomatis, which can lead to blindness if left untreated. Ethiopia is one of the most trachoma-affected countries in the world. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of and associated risk factors for active trachoma among children in selected woredas of North and South Wollo Zones in Amhara Region, Ethiopia. METHODS: This study was a community-based, cross-sectional study, which was conducted from October to December 2014 among children aged 1–8. A four-stage random cluster sampling technique was employed to select the study areas and participants. From each selected household, one child was clinically assessed for active trachoma. A structured questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical data. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to analyze the association between predictor variables and active trachoma. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of active trachoma among 1358 children was found to be 21.6% (95% CI: 19.4–23.8%). When analyzed by the presence or absence of individual WHO simplified system signs of active trachoma, trachomatous inflammation-follicular cases constituted18% (95% CI: 15.9–20.2%), while 4.7% (95% CI: 3.6–5.8%) were trachomatous inflammation-intense cases. Ocular discharge (aOR = 5.2; 95% CI: 3.3–8.2), nasal discharge (aOR = 1.8; 95% CI: 1.2–2.7), time taken to fetch water (aOR = 0.02; 95% CI: 0.01–0.05), frequency of hand and face washing (aOR = 4.4; 95% CI: 1.1–17.8), and access to a latrine (aOR = 0.006; 95% CI: 0.001–0.030) were found to be independently associated with the presence of active trachoma. CONCLUSIONS: There is a high burden of active trachoma among children in the study areas. Lack of personal hygiene and limited access to a safe water supply and latrines were associated with increased prevalence of active trachoma. In order to reduce the burden of active trachoma, facial cleanliness and environmental improvement components of the SAFE strategy should be upgraded in the study areas. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s40249-017-0358-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.