Feeding practices of infants and children in rural and urban areas of Himachal Pradesh.

PIP: Feeding practices in rural and urban areas of Himachal Pradesh were studied. Almost all children were given breastfeeding and administration of colostrom was not considered harmful for the child's health. The supplementary foods were diluted and urban women tended to introduce supplementary milk feeds earlier than rural women. The feeding bottles were often not properly sterilized. 52% urban and 37% rural children started receiving semisolids/solids during infancy. The rural women practiced more prolonged breastfeeding as compared to their urban counterparts and many rural mothers continued breastfeeding beyond 2 years. Majority of women both from rural and urban areas believed in hot and cold foods and wanted to impose restrictions on the type and quantity of the food of children suffering from diarrhea or respiratory infections for varying periods.^ieng

Childhood morbidity in mobile hospital camps in Himachal Pradesh.

PIP: A systematic investigation of morbidity patterns was conducted in 1977- 80 among 2580 children under 12 years of age attending mobile hospital camps in 4 districts on India's Hamachal Pradesh. The children came from remote villages where socioeconomic and educational levels were low and environmental sanitation was rudimentary. There were 1301 cases of protein energy malnutrition in this group, 124 involving children 0-1 year of age, 514 in the 1-5-year age group, and 663 (51%) in the 5-12- year age group. At the time of examination, 287 of the children were infested with worms and 125 had diarrhea. These 3 conditions-- malnutrition, worm infestation, and diarrhea--were present in 32% of the village children surveyed. The most common form of morbidity was nutritional disorders (malnutrition, anemia, and vitamin deficiencies), affecting 70% of the children. The next most common condition was respiratory infection, affecting 35%. Other disorders affecting significant numbers of children were scabies, pyoderma, convulsions, mental retardation, rheumatic fever and congenital heart diseases, and renal diseases. Morbidity from conditions such as gastroenteritis, measles, and pneumonia was often accompanied by malnutrition. Thus, there is a need in this area for child health programs aimed at providing nutrition education as well as improving immunization coverage.^ieng

Causes of early neonatal mortality.

PIP: The early neonatal period extends up to the 7th day of the infant's life. 75% of infant deaths occur within the first 28 days of life, and most of them occur within the first 7 days. In a retrospective study undertaken from June 1, 1987, to May 31, 1990, data was obtained from the Neonatal Care Section of Krishna Hospital, Karad, District Satara, in south western Maharashtra. Most of the villagers wee of low socioeconomic status, and the women had poor educational level. Most of the deliveries in this area are conducted by untrained dais under unhygienic conditions. The early neonatal mortality rate (ENMR) was defined as neonatal death of babies weighing over 1000 g during the first 7 days per 1000 live births. A total of 1013 live births with weight more than 1000 g were included in the study: 533 wee males and 480 females. The incidence of low-birth-weight (=or- 2.5 kg) babies was 77.1%, and that of prematurity (gestational age 37 weeks) was 58.9%. There were 37 neonatal deaths, with an ENMR of 36.6. The chief causes of ENMR were perinatal asphyxia (40.5%), prematurity (29.7%), bacterial infections (27.0%), and congenital malformations (2.8%). The mortality was higher in low-birth-weight as compared to the normal-birth-weight babies. A total of 59% of all births were preterms who contributed to 29.7% of deaths. The high incidence of low-birth-weight babies was attributable to the fact that this hospital received 79.4% of total admissions for delivery of complicated pregnancy referrals from the peripheries. The difference between mortality of babies with birth weight of less than and more than 2.5 kg was statistically significant (p0.05). Regular antenatal checkups, health education of pregnant and lactating mothers, professional child delivery, and timely referral of pregnancy complications to well-equipped hospitals may cut down on early neonatal mortality.^ieng