A Comparative Study to Assess the Effect on Respiratory Status of under Five Children with Lower Respiratory Tract Infection in Prone and Lateral Position in Selected Hospitals at Mysore

Introduction: Childhood is believed to be one of the most interesting, enjoyable and happiest period in one's life. As we all are human beings we cannot escape from diseases. Many kinds of diseases affect a child, starting from the time of birth1. Lower respiratory tract infection is considered as one of the major public health problems and it is recognized as the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in many developing countries. Under five children are prone to get respiratory tract infections2. The correct positioning will help to reduce the breathing difficulty to some extent. Aim: The aim of the study is to assess the effect on respiratory status of under five children with lower respiratory tract infection in prone and lateral position in selected hospitals at Mysore. Methods: In the study, pre-experimental two groups pre test post test design was used and non- probability purposive sampling technique was adopted to select 60 under five children with LRTI, both in group-1 and group-2. The pilot study was conducted, the tool and study design were found to be feasible. Rating scale was used to assess the respiratory status. An intervention, prone position was given to group-1 and lateral position was given to group-2. The data were collected and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The result of the study revealed that in group-1 and group-2, the significance of difference between the mean pre observation and post observation respiratory status score which was statistically tested using paired 't' test and was found to be highly significant at 0.05 level of significance. (In group-1, t₍₂₉₎ = 4.17, 12.57, 14.09, 20.61, 27.08, 29.27, 10.5, 7.34, 9.95, 6.96, 7.61 and 27.14 and in group-2, t₍₂₉₎ = 2.11, 5.95, 12.06, 15.11, 18.08, 18.47, 5.47, 8.93, 4.85, 12.04, 5.75 and 17.48). the significance of difference between the mean post observation respiratory status score in group-1 and group-2 which was statistically tested using independent 't' test. Except post observation 1 other values were found to be significant at 0.05 level of significance. The result shows that the respiratory status had no significant association with their personal variables. Conclusion: Therefore, the study concluded that prone and lateral positions were effective in improving the respiratory status of under five children with LRTI. The study findings also depicted that prone position was more effective than lateral position.