BackgroundThe aim of this study was to characterize the nutritional status of Xavante Indian children less than 10 years of age in Central Brazil and to evaluate the hypothesis of an association between child nutrition and socioeconomic differentiation in this population.MethodsA cross-sectional study was conducted in July 2006 that included all children under the age of 10 from the Xavante village Pimentel Barbosa in Mato Grosso, Brazil. The data collected included weight, height, and sociodemographic information. Sociodemographic data were used to generate two indices ("income" and "wealth") and to determine the proportion of adults in each household. Descriptive analyses were performed for weight-for-age (W/A), height-for-age (H/A), and weight-for-height (W/H) using the NCHS and the WHO growth references. Univariate and multivariate analyses were conducted using H/A and W/A as a response variables.ResultsOf a total of 246 children under the age of ten residing in the village, 232 (94.3%) were evaluated. Following the NCHS reference, 5.6% of children under the age of ten presented low W/A and 14.7% presented low H/A. Among children under the age of five, deficit percentages for weight and height were 4.5% and 29.9%, respectively, following the WHO curves. Among children < 2 years of age, H/A index variability was found to be directly related to child's age and inversely related to the proportion of adults in the household. Maternal BMI was positively associated with growth for children from 2 to 4 years of age, explaining 11.5% of the z-score variability for the H/A index. For children 5 years of age and older, the wealth index and maternal height were positively associated with H/A. No significant associations were found using W/A as the dependent variable.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that undernutrition, in particular linear growth deficit, is a notable health issue for Xavante children. These findings contrast with the nutritional profile observed among Brazilian children nationally, which is characterized by a sharp decline in child undernutrition in recent decades, even in the poorest regions of the country. This discrepancy calls attention to the persistent health disparities that exist between indigenous and non-indigenous people in Brazil.

INTRODUÇÃOApesar da reconhecida importância em termos de saúde pública, são poucos os trabalhos que incluem informações sobre o estado nutricional de populações indígenas brasileiras (cf. Dufour, 1991). Dentre esses, a maior parte foi

No abstract

This paper presents an assessment of enamel defects (hypoplasias) in the permanent anterior teeth of three Tupí-Mondé-speaking groups from the Brazilian Amazonia: the Gavião, Suruí, and Zoró. These are native societies that experienced the onset of permanent contact with Brazilian national society in different periods of the 20th century. Tupí-Mondé dentition is highly hypoplastic, which is possibly related to exposure to adverse health and nutritional conditions. Data for the Gavião, Suruí, and Zoró are in agreement with results from other populations that show that certain teeth, the maxillary central incisors and the mandibular canines in particular, tend to be more hypoplastic. Although all types of teeth show hypoplasia concentrations at some enamel zones, there is substantial intertooth variation in the age at which peaks occur. It is argued that hypoplasia concentrations at certain ages are unlikely to be related to postweaning stresses for the Tupí-Mondé. Statistically significant associations between presence of enamel defects and deficits in physical growth (height-for-age) were detected in children 7-11 years of age. Diachronic assessment of enamel defects, which rested upon the potential of enamel as "memory" of past periods of systemic physiological perturbation, allowed us to unravel aspects related to the dynamics of Tupí-Mondé life during the 20th century. Frequencies of enamel zones with defects peaked during the contact years of each of the Tupí-Mondé groups, attesting to the extreme social and biological hardships that characterized the contact experiences of these native societies with Brazilian national society.

Ineffective diagnosis procedures compromise the efficacy of existing TB prevention efforts and threaten to undermine otherwise favorable institutional and cultural conditions.

No abstract

Studies on hospital morbidity among Brazilian indigenous peoples are relatively recent, show limited coverage, and lack data sources capable of generating specific indicators according to ethnic group. The current study describes hospital morbidity in the indigenous population living in 83 Guarani villages in Southern and Southeastern Brazil (N=6,483), based on primary data obtained from a hospital admissions surveillance system implemented in 2007-2008, specifically for a case-control study on acute respiratory infections (ARI) in Guarani children. During the study period there were 666 hospitalizations in a total of 497 individuals, the majority under 5 years of age (71.9%). Respiratory illnesses were the main causes of hospitalization (64.6%), especially in children (<5 years: 77.6%; <1 year: 83.4%) and exceeded the proportions of hospital admissions from these causes in other indigenous groups. The overall hospitalization rate (per 100 person-years) was 8.8, or 71.4 under 1 year and 21.0 from 1 to 4 years of age. The ARI hospitalization rate (5.3) was 6.5 and 2.0 times higher than for diarrhea and other causes, respectively, while in children under 5 years of age (ARI=23.7) these differences were 7.4 and 5.4 times, respectively. The standardized Guarani hospitalization rate exceeded the standardized rates for the South and Southeast of Brazil by 40% and 210%, respectively. Hospitalization for primary care sensitive conditions and the high ARI rates indicate the need for studies to understand the epidemiology of ARI and investments to upgrade primary health care for the Guarani.

No abstract