Factors associated with community-acquired pneumonia among children under five years attending Health Centre IVs in Uganda: a multi-facility cross-sectional study

<title>Abstract</title> <p> <bold>Background:</bold> Acute respiratory infections, in particular pneumonia constitutes the leading cause of morbidity and mortality among children under five years of age throughout the world. <bold>Methods</bold> : We employed a facility – based cross-sectional study in four selected Health Centre IVs in Uganda. A total of 1898 child-mother/caregiver pairs who were selected using systematic sampling technique were included. A pretested and validated self-administered questionnaire was used by trained data collectors to collect the data. SPSS version 20 software was used to examine the data. Binary logistic regression was used to identify significant risk factors associated with acquired pneumonia. An adjusted odds ratio with 95% confidence interval was used to declare statistically significant variables on the basis of p &lt; 0.05 in the multivariable logistic regression model. <bold>Results</bold> : Residing in a single room (aOR = 1.181; 95% CI: 1.050–1.320) and double room (aOR = 1.234; 95% CI: 1.020–1.480) had higher likelihood of acquiring pneumonia as compared to residing in more than three rooms. Having a member who smokes in the family had higher likelihood of acquiring pneumonia (aOR: 2.014; 95% CI: 1.150–3.520). <bold>Conclusions</bold> : The study recommends that interventions prioritize reducing household crowding, minimizing children’s exposure to second-hand smoke, and ensuring complete immunization coverage. <bold>Trial registration:</bold> Not applicable. This was a facility-based cross-sectional observational study and not a clinical trial </p>