Flood and Its Impact on Children's Mortality and Morbidity: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Flood is the commonest natural disaster experienced by children especially in low- and middle-income countries causing direct and indirect consequences. This article aimed to provide systematic evidence on the mortality and morbidity experienced by children affected by floods. Systematic review of literatures was conducted using PRISMA. Eligible articles from 2020 to 2022 were retrieved from PUBMED and SCOPUS which discusses the morbidity and mortality experienced by flood affected children. The initial search yielded 82360 articles which were subsequently screened for eligibility according to the inclusion criteria. The final synthesis included three systemic review and meta-analysis, three cross sectionals, one scoping review, one retrospective and one case control. Except for one study, the other articles were from low and middle income countries. Only one study addressed flood-related mortality. Emerging morbidity issues reported from recent studies were of nutrition, gastrointestinal infections and psychological disorder post flood disaster. A multidisciplinary approach is essential in managing children affected by floods.   Keywords: Flood, children, mortality, morbidity