Traditional practices versus modern healthcare: Determinants of traditional medicine use after potential dog bites among dog-owning households in Nigeria.

ABSTRACT: Canine rabies is endemic in Nigeria, with a low dog vaccination rate. Often, dog bite victims resort to traditional remedies, which can lead to fatalities. Our study investigated factors influencing decisions to seek traditional remedies in Nigeria. We conducted a cross-sectional study in 2022 involving 4,162 dog-owning households. A joint random effect Bayesian regression model was developed to examine the role of sociodemographic, socioeconomic, and infrastructural covariates. This model included a latent variable measuring a respondent's understanding of rabies risk based on literacy levels and responses to questions about rabies epidemiology. Our results indicated that 27% (95% Confidence Interval [Cl); 26-27) of respondents would preferably seek traditional remedies following a dog bi

SUBMITTER: Mshelbwala PP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11957387 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature