Indian pediatrics
-
Adolescents among the urban and rural poor have a high incidence of chronic energy deficiency (CED) and anemia, more so in girls than in boys. Adolescent pregnancies (15-19 years) contribute to 19% of total fertility in India and record the highest maternal mortality rates. ⋯ Low birth weight is the major adverse outcome for the infant and an important determinant of increased child mortality. There is a lack of data for long term follow up of infants of adolescent mothers versus mothers 20 years and above, and more specifically, in the urban poor setting, an emerging concern.
-
This study was conducted to evaluate the quality of neonatal research published in major Indian journals. Four indexed Indian journals were scanned for topics pertaining to neonatology and the manuscripts were evaluated for the most important morbidity studied and its relevance to the national need. The analytical studies were evaluated for their quality of research methodology. ⋯ Although aims of the studies were clearly defined in 81%, sample size estimation was done in only 11%, blinding in 15% and one or more category of bias was seen in 84% of the studies. We conclude that there is an urgent need for interventional and community based studies in neonatology, on issues of national interest. A need was felt for improvement in the quality of research in neonatology with special emphasis on training in clinical epidemiology.
-
Comparative Study
Can clinical symptoms or signs accurately predict hypoxemia in children with acute lower respiratory tract infections?
To determine clinical predictors of hypoxemia in children with acute lower respiratory tract infection (ALRI). ⋯ None of the clinical features either alone or in combination have desirable sensitivity and specificity to predict hypoxemia in children with acute lower respiratory tract infection.
-
To assess the intelligence, visuo-motor perception, motor competence and school performance of children with birth weight less than 2000 grams, at the age of 12 years. ⋯ The intelligence and academic performance of the children weighing less than 2000 grams is significantly lower than that of controls, though within normal limits. They also have poor visuo-motor perception, motor incompetence, reading and mathematics learning disability. The preterm SGA and VLBW children had the poorest cognitive abilities.