¿Podemos enseñar la «cadena de supervivencia» jugando? Validación de la herramienta «Rescube»

PurposeTo validate the content and adequacy of the «Rescube» training material that includes adapted information from the chain of survival.Material and methodsThe study included three steps: (i) material development by 7 experts, following Delphi method; (ii) assessment of training material by 11 experts by means of a Likert score and calculation of content validity; and (iii) pilot study in two groups of 5 to 8 years-old: Rescube group (GR; n = 60) and Traditional group (GT; n = 60). GR was trained with Rescube and a Teddy bear, while GT was traditionally trained with a pediatric manikin. Participants were individually assessed at baseline, and one week and one month after training.ResultsAll content validity indexes calculated are above the recommended cut-off for analysis with more than 9 experts (≥ 0,80). Children's learning results were positive, with percentages equal or higher than 80% in all registered variables at the first (one week) evaluation and equal or higher than 67% when evaluated one month after training. No significant differences were detected between groups.ConclusionThe Rescube training tool based on infantile pictures is valid and useful to train young schoolchildren in the chain of survival.     

Socio-Urban Spatial Patterns Associated with Dyslipidemia among Schoolchildren in the City of San Luis Potosi,Mexico

The places where a child lives and attends to school are both major environmental and social determinants of its present and future health status. Noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) and some of their risk factors among child and adolescent populations are obesity and dyslipidemia, so finding the patterns of distribution of these risk factors by gender, type of school, area, and margination level is important to do health intervention focusing in their necessities to prevent diseases at younger ages. Because of that, a cross-sectional study was performed among elementary and junior high school students from public and private schools in six of the seven areas of the metropolitan zone of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Biochemical dyslipidemia indicators (triglycerides, total cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein) and anthropometric data (weight and height) were obtained. Seventeen public schools and five private schools with a total of 383 students were included. More than half of the studied population (53.0 %) had elevated triglyceride levels. A total of 330 students (86.2 %) had normal levels of total cholesterol with a mean value of 141.7 mg/dl, and 202 schoolchildren (52.8 %) had lower than acceptable levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) with a mean value of 43.9 mg/dl. There were differences in the levels of high-density protein between the areas and the type of school where they had been studied. Finally, a total of 150 students (39.4 %) had at least one altered lipid value and 103 participants (26.9 %) had two altered values. Several students, despite their young age, showed a high prevalence of risk factors, so it is important to design programs according to their necessities.     

Age-related prevalence and features of migraine headache in Hungarian schoolchildren and adolescents

BackgroundDifferences occur in certain features of childhood and adult migraine, such as the duration and location. However, few studies have been reported of the changes in other symptoms during childhood.AimsThe aims of this study were to establish the prevalence of migraine headache in children in Hungary, and to investigate the changes in prevalence of migraine and migraine symptoms in a wide paediatric age range.MethodsWe conducted a school-based study with the use of a questionnaire.Results7361 7–18-year-old students participated. The 1-year prevalence of migraine was 12.5% (9.2% in boys and 15.4% in girls). With the criterion of a headache duration of 4 h for 15–18-year-olds and of 1 h below the age of 15, the overall prevalence decreased to 9.1%. The prevalence of migraine increased steadily from young childhood to late adolescence in both boys and girls. The frequency and duration of headache increased, whereas vomiting and nausea became less prevalent with advancing age in both genders. The prevalence of uni/bilaterality, photophobia and phonophobia increased only in girls, while that of a pulsating character did so only in boys.ConclusionsThe migraine characteristics displayed by the studied population proved similar to those experienced in other countries. The duration of headache applied in the diagnosis of migraine exerts a great impact on the prevalence data. The features of migraine change with advancing age, a situation demanding consideration in studies on migraine in children of different ages.     

Prevalence of beta hemolytic streptococci carrier rate among schoolchildren in Salem

A preliminary study was conducted to identify the carriers of beta hemolytic streptococci (BHS) among school children. BHS were identified, grouped by latex agglutination test and tested for susceptibility to penicillin, erythromycin and cefazolin from their throat swabs. Prevalence of BHS was found to be 21.6% with group G (43.2%) as the predominant group followed by group A (28.8%). All the isolates were sensitive to the antibiotics tested. Health cards were issued to the carriers of group A beta hemolytic streptococci.     

Salivary distribution of streptococcus mutans in schoolchildren from Rome (Italy)

Five-hundred-seventy-seven, 6-year-old schoolchildren from Rome were examined. 67.4% of them harboured 1 × 10⁵ or more Streptococcus mutans CFU per milliliter of saliva. This value was higher than values reported by other Authors. However, the caries prevalence of the subjects in this study was lower than values shown by some of the other study- populations, suggesting that different S. mutans distributions of different populations are not entirely explained by the differences in caries prevalence and, in order for the comparison to be possible, the other factors affecting mutans distributions should be considered.     

Prevalence of Pediculus capitis in schoolchildren in Battambang,Cambodia

Background/PurposePediculus capitis is the most common human ectoparasite. When it feeds on the blood through the scalp of its host, the anticoagulant in its saliva causes scalp inflammation and itching, and consequent scratching by the host causes further inflammation from bacterial infection. P. capitis infestation is currently a common parasitic dermatosis and a critical public health concern in underdeveloped countries.MethodsThrough naked eye inspection of P. capitis on or in the hair from 323 school children in Cambodia.ResultsA total of 143 children (44.3%) were found to have P. capitis infestation. Univariate analysis revealed that girls had a significantly higher infection rate than boys. Overall, young aged schoolchildren (10 yrs old ≤) showed significantly higher infection rate than old aged schoolchildren (>10 yrs old). Groups stratified by time revealed that schoolchildren studied at the afternoon classes than morning classes in Tuol Prum Muoy Primary School had a significantly higher risk in acquisition of P. capitis infestation. Multivariate analysis results indicated that relative to the boys, the girls were at a significantly higher risk of contracting P. capitis infection. When stratified by inspection time with the Tuol Prum Muoy Primary School morning classes as the reference, the Tuol Prum Muoy Primary School afternoon classes exhibited a significantly higher risk of P. capitis infection.ConclusionPrimary school children in Cambodia have a high P. capitis infection rate and thus require effective treatment and prevention measures to treat symptoms and lower the infection rate.     

Allergic rhinitis and impairment issues in schoolchildren: a consensus report

SUMMARY

Background: Allergic rhinitis (AR) can have a substantial negative impact on children. Most notably, it can impede learning during the school-age years. Other consequences include adverse behavioral and psychosocial effects, poor quality of life, and potential impact on serious comorbidities, such as asthma.

Consensus panel: In February 2004, in a conference sponsored by Aventis Pharmaceuticals, a multidisciplinary group convened to review relevant clinical data for the purposes of developing consensus recommendations for the management of AR in children. The consensus panel consisted of academic, school health, and medical providers, who were identified based on previous work and publications.

Consensus findings: The focus of discussions was to assess the degree of impact of AR in schoolchildren and, based on this information, to determine how to improve screening, diagnosis, prevention, and treatment, to help ensure quality of life and maximal school performance in this population. The group considered the most critical factor in successful management to be communication and collaboration among parents, educators, and healthcare professionals. Knowledge of the common signs and symptoms of AR in children can help to ensure early diagnosis, appropriate intervention, and clinically favorable outcomes. Importantly, both uncontrolled symptoms of AR, as well as adverse effects from medications, can diminish cognitive function and learning. When choosing treatment for children with AR, consideration must be given to the side effects of medications. All first-generation and some second-generation antihistamines can be associated with adverse effects on cognitive function and learning, as a result of their sedative properties. Treatment with a non-sedating second-generation antihistamine has been shown to improve learning potential and is an ideal choice for treatment in this population.

Conclusion: Existing data indicate that further studies using objective measures of impairment in children taking antihistamine medications should be conducted to evaluate the impact of disease and treatment.     

A six-year follow-up of schoolchildren for urinary and intestinal schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis in Northern Tanzania

Two cross-sectional studies with a 6-year interval were undertaken in two primary schools in neighbouring villages in Mwanga District, Tanzania, to determine the prevalence of schistosome and soil-transmitted helminth infections before and 6 years after treatment. Within this interval, health-related interventions such as one mass treatment of the villagers, health education, improvement of sanitation and access to safe water were undertaken in the villages. In 1996, urinary schistosomiasis occurred in Kileo (n=284) and Kivulini (n=350) in 37.0 and 86.3% of the schoolchildren. Intestinal schistosomiasis was found in 22.9 and 43.5% of the children. The infection with soil-transmitted helminths ranged between 2.7 and 18.1% in both villages. After 6 years, the prevalence of urinary schistosomiasis in schoolchildren remained nearly constant in Kileo (33.5%; n=544), but dropped from 86.3% to 70.0% in Kivulini (n=514). In the latter village the proportion of children heavily infected with Schistosoma haematobium (> or = 50 eggs/10 ml urine) decreased from 53.8% to 34.4%. With the exception of hookworm infection, soil-transmitted helminthiasis and intestinal schistosomiasis were significantly less seen in 2002 compared to the baseline. The previous chemotherapy of schoolchildren and villagers in 1996 and 1998, respectively, might have led to a reduced transmission of schistosomiasis in the following years. However, the reduction of prevalence of soil-transmitted helminthiasis is more likely to be the result of health-related interventions.