Introducción. La pediculosis es una de las infestaciones crónicas más importante en escolares en el mundo. Objetivo. Estimar la prevalencia y describir la estacionalidad de la pediculosis durante siete meses en un jardín infantil y explorar su asociación con las variables socioeconómicas, las prácticas de higiene y las características del cabello. Materiales y métodos. Ciento setenta y ocho niños entre 3 y 60 meses de edad del jardín infantil de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia participaron en el estudio. En cada niño se exploró la presencia de Pediculus humanus mensualmente por siete meses y se midió el grosor y la longitud del cabello al comienzo del seguimiento. Se realizó una encuesta a los cuidadores de los sujetos de estudio sobre prácticas higiénicas y condiciones socioeconómicas. Se estimaron las razones de prevalencia con su respectivo IC95% para cada una de las asociaciones exploradas y, también, para describir las diferencias en las prevalencias por grupo de edad en cada uno de los periodos de corte. Resultados. Se encontraron mayores prevalencias en el grupo de edad entre 48 y 59 meses, al principio del año escolar. Estos resultados sugieren una asociación positiva entre la pediculosis y tener una longitud del cabello mayor de 11,5 cm [razón de prevalencia (RP)=2,0; intervalo de confianza (IC) del 95%: 0,82-4,8], el bañarse la cabeza menos de tres veces a la semana (RP=1,58; IC95% 0,58-4,7), el compartir implementos de aseo (RP=1,31; IC95% 0,38-4,46) y el vivir más de cinco personas en la casa (RP=2,04; IC95% 0,8-5,06). Dado el número limitado de la muestra estudiada, ninguna de las asociaciones fue estadísticamente significativa. Conclusión. La infestación por P. humanus capitis tiene altas prevalencias en los escolares del jardín. Esta infestación se encuentra asociada a las malas prácticas higiénicas, a convivir con más de cinco personas en la casa y a la longitud del cabello.Palabras clave: Pediculus, infestaciones por piojos/epidemiología, prevalencia, factores de riesgo, preescolar, condiciones sociales. Pediculosis prevalence and associated risk factors in a nursery school, Bogotá, ColombiaIntroduction. Pediculosis is one of the most important chronic infestations in schoolchildren worldwide. Infestations show a high prevalence among the poorest children in developing countries, and it is associated with substandard hygienic practices. Objective. The prevalence was estimated and seasonality described of a Pediculus infestation of seven months duration in a nursery school. Associations were explored among the standards of hygienic practices and hair characteristics. Materials and methods. One hundred and seventy-eight nursery school children between the ages of 3 months to 5 years, from the nursery school located at National University of Colombia, Bogotá, were participants in the study. The children were examined for presence of Pediculus humanus infestation each month for seven months. The lengths and thicknesses of hair were measured at the first examination. A survey requesting informati...
Introduction. The exposure to environmental tobacco smoke is a public health problem because of its potential risks for children. Objective. To determine the preventive actions taken by parents and/or caregivers of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers regarding environmental tobacco smoke exposure. Methods. Cross-sectional, analytical study in parents and caregivers of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers from Valdivia, Chile. A questionnaire on preventive measures regarding environmental tobacco smoke was administered. The questionnaire was analyzed with descriptive and association statistics using Fisher's exact test and logistic regression to calculate the odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) as an estimation of the risk for not taking preventive measures at home. Results. A total of 469 parents and caregivers participated. The prevalence of households with one member who smoked was 51.8%. Most of them smoked outside the house (92.2%). The most common measure taken outside the household was to avoid places where people smoked. In this setting, a significant difference was observed between men and women in relation to avoiding exposure (7.6% versus 2.2%; p= 0.040). A higher risk for not avoiding tobacco use inside or outside the housewas confirmed when a household member smoked (OR: 3.55; 95% CI: 2.05-6.14). Also, a lower risk was observed when there were two or more children in the household (OR: 0.46; 95% CI: 0.26-0.83). Conclusions. Most parents and caregivers ask others to smoke outside and avoid places where people smoke; however, the level of prevention is lower among households with smokers.
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