The prevalence of Bitot's spots (BS) is often used to quantify vitamin A deficiency burden in India, both before and after mega-dose vitamin A supplementation (MVAS) programmes. However, the ...proportion of BS cured following this intervention is unclear in contemporary times. The current study evaluated the responsiveness of BS over 1 year to MVAS administered as per the national programme in rural India.
Prospective, community-based, 1-year follow-up of a cohort.
Rural Uttar Pradesh, India.
Two hundred and sixty-two children with BS, aged between 1 and 5 years, administered 60 mg (retinol equivalent) of vitamin A on diagnosis and after 1 month. Cure or resolution was defined if there was no discernible BS in either eye.
During 1 year, only three children were lost to follow-up. At 6 months of follow-up (MVAS at baseline and 1 month later), 51·1 (95% CI 45·3, 57·3) % were classified as cured. The corresponding figure at 1 year (additional MVAS at 6 months) was 59·9 (95% CI 54·1, 65·9) %. Among those cured at 6 months, about half and three-quarters had resolved at 2 and 3 months, respectively. Apart from male gender, there were no significant sociodemographic or clinical predictors of response.
Substantial non-response to MVAS at 6 months (49%) and 1 year (40%) of follow-up suggests that presently in the Indian subcontinent, BS is a relatively crude indicator of severe current vitamin A deficiency. For programmatic decisions and evaluation, the public health burden of vitamin A deficiency should not be assessed solely through BS.
Abstract
Background: The prevalence of thinness has increased among Japanese children.
Aim: The purpose of this study was to examine the association between physical activity and body mass index ...(BMI) among Japanese pre-school children.
Subjects and methods: Subjects were 425 4-6-year-old Japanese girls and boys. Their weights were classified as normal, overweight or thin, based on Cole's international cut-offs for BMI. Physical activity was assessed using a triaxial accelerometer (ActivTracer, GMS) for 6 consecutive days.
Results: Physical activity in overweight children was comparable to that in normal-weight children after controlling for age and gender. However, thin children spent significantly greater time engaged in low-intensity activities (physical activity ratio < 2) and spent less time engaged in light-intensity physical activity (2 physical activity ratio < 3) and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (physical activity ratio 3) than normal-weight and overweight children, and less time engaged in higher-intensity physical activity (physical activity ratio 4) than normal-weight children. Moreover, thin children spent significantly less time engaged in locomotive physical activity than normal-weight or overweight children.
Conclusion: This study suggests that thinness, rather than excess weight, is associated with decreased light, moderate and high intensity physical activity in Japanese pre-school children.
Abstract
The purpose of this exploratory study is to examine rates of auxiliary is and are across dialect patterns produced by African American English with specific language impairment (AAE-SLI) ...children following language treatment. The following research question is asked: Do AAE-SLI children exhibit rates of auxiliary is and are across dialect patterns consistent with previous reports of typically developing children and adult AAE speakers? A pre-/post-test design was used to identify patterns in which auxiliary is and are were produced at significant levels. Individual performance was included to examine variable rates of use across patterns. Group and individual results suggest children used auxiliary is and are in dialect patterns at rates consistent with typically developing child and adult AAE speakers. We conclude that rates of use may contribute to evidence-based guidelines for morphological intervention with AAE-SLI children.
The present article analyzes the process of interpreting a metaphor by pre-school children. The study involved 88 participants, attending a kindergarten in Moscow, Russia. The preschoolers were given ...a basic set of metaphors created by the authors as well as the NEPSY-II tests as a part of diagnostic work.
The results show that metaphorical representation is an important form of the reflection of reality by children of pre-school age. Authors state that a metaphor acts as a tool of cognitive activity in the middle-age and senior-age groups of the pre-school age. The results demonstrate that there are two types of tasks that can be resolved using metaphorical representation: the first one is resolving the cognitive tasks, and the other is emotional regulation of cognitive activity. Also the dynamics of mastering metaphorical representation by pre-school age children has been determined.
The aim was to investigate whether oral hygiene habits and parent-related factors, recorded in early childhood, have a predictive value in relation to approximal caries experience (including initial ...caries lesions) at the age of 15 years (n = 568). Data were selected from examinations, interviews and questionnaires at 1 and 3 years and bitewing radiographs at 15 years. Four levels of cut-off points for the statistical analysis were used: DFa = 0, > 0, ≧4 and ≧8. In the final logistic regression analyses, mother’s self-estimation of her oral health care being less good remained statistically significant and predicted a caries experience of DFa > 0 at 15 years. The following four variables predicted DFa ≧4: (1) female gender, (2) plaque on maxillary incisors at 1 year, (3) mother’s self-estimation of her oral health care being less good and (4) father being less satisfied with his social situation. Two variables predicted DFa ≧8: (1) toothbrushing with fluoride toothpaste just once a day, and (2) father being less satisfied with his social situation. Furthermore, children who failed to attend the examination at 1 year of age had 6.95 ± 5.36 (mean ± SD) DFa at 15 years compared with 3.10 ± 3.85 for children who were examined at 1 year of age (p < 0.01). To conclude, factors explaining good dental health at 15 years of age pertained to both children and parents. Thus, it seems that good oral hygiene habits, established in early childhood, provide a foundation for a low experience of approximal caries in adolescents.
Background A total of 189 children without major impairments who needed neonatal intensive care (NIC) were followed up at ages 3 and 6.5 years.
Aim To determine the prevalence of different motor ...deviations at age 6.5 years and the co‐occurrence of attention deficits; also, to analyse the predictive ability of motor co‐ordination and attention assessments at age 3 years for motor deviations at 6.5 years.
Method A combined assessment of motor performance and behaviour (CAMPB) was used at the 3‐year examination. The Test of Motor Impairment (TOMI) and the Motor‐Perceptual Development (MPU) were used together with the criteria of the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (DSM‐IV‐TR) to define motor deviations.
Results At 6.5 years 64% of the children showed a motor deviation either as a delay according to MPU, a problem according to TOMI or Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) according to DSM‐IV‐TR. Higher proportions of children with attention deficit (50%) were found in the DCD group. The predictive ability of CAMPB was analysed in two ways: when all children with either a co‐ordination or attention deficit, or both, at 3 years were considered to be at risk for motor deviations at 6.5 years, the sensitivity reached 78% and the specificity was 42%. But when only the 3 year olds with a combined deficit were considered to be at risk, the sensitivity was 37% and the specificity 89%; however, a positive predictive value of 86% was reached.
Conclusion At 6.5 years of age a majority of NIC children with no major impairments showed motor deviations. To fulfil the DCD criteria in DSM‐IV‐TR, a strict definition of motor deviations is recommended. Attention deficits are more prevalent among children with DCD. Deficits in motor co‐ordination and/or attention in 3‐year‐old children are strong predictors of motor deviations and, especially, of DCD at 6.5 years of age.
The aim of this study was to assess child care providers' level of knowledge of first aid management and attitudes towards dental injuries among preschool-age children within Fairfield County, ...Connecticut and Boston, Massachusetts.
This descriptive cross-sectional study used a web-based, validated questionnaire adapted from several studies with permission from authors. A panel of 5 dental experts determined the relevance of the questions and overall content (I-CVI range 0.8-1; S-CVI = 0.95). The 28 question survey included demographics, level of knowledge, attitudes about traumatic dental injuries, emergency management, and 2 case study questions on management of luxation and tooth fracture. Survey data was coded and analyzed for associations and trends using STATA® statistics/data analysis software v. 11.2.
A total of 100 child care providers completed the online questionnaire. Eighty-four percent self-reported little to no knowledge about dental injury management. Sixty percent of child care providers agreed that they are responsible for managing dental injuries. Approximately two-thirds of child care providers reported not feeling adequately informed about dental injuries, with 77% expressing interest in receiving more information.
The majority of child care providers' do not have the knowledge to perform adequate first aid following a dental injury. Professional development on first aid for dental injuries is recommended among this workforce population.
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