Extended composite index of anthropometric failure in Argentinean preschool and school children.

OBJECTIVE: The Composite Index of Anthropometric Failure (CIAF) can only be applied to children under 5 years of age and does not contemplate obesity. The aim of this study was to propose an Extended CIAF (ECIAF) that combines the characterization of malnutrition due to undernutrition and excess weight, and apply it in six Argentine provinces. DESIGN: ECIAF excludes children not in anthropometric failure (group A) and was calculated from a percentage of children included in malnutrition categories B: wasting only; C: wasting and underweight; D: wasting, stunting and underweight; E: stunting and underweight; F: stunting only; Y: underweight only; G: only weight excess; and H: stunting and weight excess. SETTING: Cross-sectional study conducted in Buenos Aires, Catamarca, Chubut, Jujuy, Mendoza and Misiones (Argentina). PARTICIPANTS: 10 879 children of both sexes aged between 3 and 13·99. RESULTS: ECIAF in preschool children (3 to 4·99 years) was 15·1 %. The highest prevalence was registered in Mendoza (16·7 %) and the lowest in Misiones (12·0 %). In school children (5 to 13·99 years) ECIAF was 28·6 %. Mendoza also recorded the highest rate (30·7 %), while Catamarca and Chubut had the lowest values (27·0 %). In the whole sample, about 25 % of the malnutrition was caused by undernutrition and 75 % by excess weight. CONCLUSIONS: The ECIAF summarizes anthropometric failure by both deficiency and excess weight and it highlights that a quarter of the malnutrition in the Argentine population was caused by undernutrition, although there are differences between Provinces (P < 0·05). ECIAF estimates are higher than those of CIAF or under-nutrition.

Nutritional status, body composition, and intestinal parasitism among the Mbyá-Guaraní communities of Misiones, Argentina.

Indigenous communities in Argentina represent socially and economically neglected populations. They are living in extreme poverty and environmental degradation conditions. New information about health status and socio-environmental features is urgently needed to be applied in future sanitary policies. Present study describes the nutritional status, body composition, and intestinal parasitism among Mbyá-Guaraní children from three communities in the Misiones Province. Anthropometric parameters were analyzed for 178 individuals (aged 1-14). Data were transformed to z-scores using NHANES I and II. Stunting showed the greatest prevalence (44.9%). Children were found to have low arm circumference and low arm muscle area, although with tricipital skinfold value near to the reference. They also tend to have shorter than normal lower limbs. Fecal samples and anal brushes (for Enterobius vermicularis) were collected in 45 children (aged 1-13). Ritchie's sedimentation and Willis' flotation techniques were used to determine parasitoses. Ninety five percent of children were infected with at least one species and 81.4% were polyparasitized. The higher prevalences corresponded to Blastocystis hominis, hookworms (Ancylostoma duodenale/Necator americanus), and Entamoeba coli. Associations occurred between hookworms with B. hominis/E. coli and B. hominis with nonpathogenic amoebas. Thirty nine percent of the children with stunting presented B. hominis, Strongyloides, and hookworms. Our results indicate that this indigenous population is subjected to extreme poverty conditions and is one of the most marginalized in this country. Severe growth stunting and parasitic infection are still quite common among Mbyá children affecting about half of them along with significant changes in body composition and proportions.

A cross-sectional study of intestinal parasitoses in dogs and children of the periurban area of La Plata (Buenos Aires, Argentina): Zoonotic importance and implications in public health.

A cross-sectional study was performed between school term dates 2014 and 2015 to diagnose intestinal parasites in dogs and children living with them. The socio-environmental characteristics and hygiene practices of the children were also evaluated in terms of risk factors for parasitic infection of periurban neighbourhoods of La Plata (Buenos Aires, Argentina). Serial coproparasitological samples of 78 dogs and 211 children were analysed by means of concentration and flotation techniques. Socio-environmental variables and hygiene practices of children were evaluated through semi-structured questionnaires which were answered by every family. The study showed that 82.1% of dogs were parasitized. The specific richness was of 11 species; Ancylostoma caninum (69.2%), Uncinaria stenocephala (41.0%), Trichuris vulpis (28.2%) and Toxocara canis (21.8%) were the most prevalent. The study also revealed that 67.8% of children were positive. Also, 11 species were identified and the most prevalent were Blastocystis sp. (36.0%), Enterobius vermicularis (27.5%) and Giardia lamblia (21.3%). The risk for parasitosis was higher in 6-year-old children and older (OR = 1.9, 95% IC: 1.0-3.7) and in those who did not wash their hands or did it occasionally after playing with their pets (OR = 2.8, 95% IC: 1.4-5.5). Blastocystis sp. and Entamoeba coli infection risks were greater in children whose parents had a basic level of education (OR = 3.4, 95% IC: 1.3-8.7 and OR = 3.6, 95% IC: 0.8-15.9, respectively). In addition, the risk of infection for E. coli was higher in children who lived in floodable houses (OR = 4.4, 95% IC: 0.9-16.6). Likewise, the risk of infection for E. vermicularis was greater in children with onychophagia (OR = 1.6, 95% IC: 0.7-3.7) and in 6 year olds and older whose parents completed only primary studies (OR = 3.6, 95% IC: 1.4-9.1). The results obtained show the existence of a worrying epidemiological scenario that stresses the importance of zoonotic parasitosis as a serious problem of public health.