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Table 3 Factors associated with antibiotic use in pre-school children

From: Complementary or alternative? The use of homeopathic products and antibiotics amongst pre-school children

  

Unadjusted Antibiotic use

Adjusted OR

Factor (survey timepoint)

Categories

Yes

No

P value

 

Homeopathic use (54 months)

Yes

383 (66.1%)

196 (33.9%)

p = 0.024

0.84 (0.65, 1.09)

 

No

5619 (61.4%)

3525 (38.6%)

  

Mother has use of car (33 months)

Yes, own

4924 (61.9%)

3025 (38.1%)

p = 0.039

*

 

Yes, can borrow

120 (62.8%)

71 (37.2%)

  
 

No

305 (56.6%)

235 (43.5%)

  

Mum contacts GP when child ill (54 months)

Always

1026 (65.2%)

525 (33.8%)

p < 0.0001

1.00

 

Usually

1962 (66.7%)

978 (33.3%)

 

0.97 (0.85, 1.12)

 

Sometimes

2375 (57.2%)

1778 (42.8%)

 

0.69 (0.60, 0.78)

 

Never

57 (38.5%)

91 (61.5%)

 

0.35 (0.24, 0.50)

Mum asks chemist when child ill (54 months)

Always

15 (62.5%)

9 (37.5%)

p = 0.036

*

 

Usually

160 (59.0%)

111 (41.0%)

  
 

Sometimes

3427 (62.8%)

2028 (37.2%)

  
 

Never

1818 (59.8%)

1224 (40.2%)

  

What mum does with prescribed medicines (54 months)

Use all up

4346 (66.5%)

2194 (33.5%)

p < 0.0001

*

 

Use until better

597 (51.0%)

573 (49%)

  
 

Save some

63 (54.8%)

52 (45.2%)

  
 

Share it

10 (62.5%)

6 (37.5%)

  
 

Back to doctor

36 (70.6%)

15 (29.4%)

  
 

stopped

28 (57.1%)

21 (42.9%)

  

Maternal anxiety (47 months)

Yes

1380 (65.3%)

732 (34.7%)

p < 0.0001

1.15 (1.03, 1.29)

 

No

4078 (60.4%)

2672 (39.6%)

  

Child's general health (42 months)

Very healthy/mostly well

5289 (61.1%)

3368 (38.9%)

p < 0.0001

1.00

 

Sometimes ill/never well

234 (79.6%)

60 (20.0%)

 

1.18 (0.85, 1.65)

Child had vitamins since age 3 (54 months)

Yes

2365 (67.9%)

1118 (32.1%)

p < 0.0001

1.46 (1.33, 1.61)

 

No

3635 (58.6%)

2573 (41.4%)

  

Child had wheeze (42 months)

Yes

1018 (73.0%)

376 (27.0%)

p < 0.0001

1.65 (1.44, 1.89)

 

No

4558 (59.6%)

3084 (40.4%)

  

Child had earache (42 months)

Yes

2168 (76.9%)

650 (23.1%)

p < 0.0001

2.70 (2.41, 3.02)

 

No

3408 (54.8%)

2810 (45.2%)

  

Child had cough (42 months)

Yes

4988 (62.9%)

2944 (37.1%)

p < 0.0001

1.11 (0.82, 1.49)

 

No

588 (53.3%)

516 (46.7%)

  

Child had high temperature (42 months)

Yes

3812 (66.7%)

1901 (33.3%)

p < 0.0001

*

 

No

1764 (53.1%)

1559 (46.9%)

  

Child had food allergies (42 months)

Yes

5522(61.1%)

3513(38.9%)

p < 0.0001

*

 

No

480 (69.6%)

210 (30.4%)

  

Child had dry itchy rash (42 months)

Yes

1317 (64.3%)

730 (35.7%)

p = 0.006

*

 

No

4222 (61%)

2704 (39%)

  
  1. * = factor not included in final model as p > 0.05