[International adoption from Ethiopia in a 5-year period].

INTRODUCTION An increase in the number of internationally adopted children has been observed in the last few years. The country of origin that has experienced a greater increase is Ethiopia. The health of internationally adopted children from Ethiopia has not been extensively assessed to date. The main objective of the study is to determine the prevalence of infectious diseases in children adopted from Ethiopia, and to assess their nutritional status. METHOD A prospective, observational cohort study was conducted using the medical records of 251 children adopted from Ethiopia to Spain in the period from Jan 1, 2006 and December 31, 2010. RESULTS The mean age of the children was 7 months (range 1-120). Abnormalities were detected on physical examination in 56.6%. In 90% of cases the child was less than 5 years-old. Half of the sample had a weight below the third percentile, with some degree of malnutrition in 65% of the children. HIV exposure was not uncommon (4.8%). CONCLUSIONS Low weight and acute gastroenteritis were the main findings in this cohort. Infectious diseases should be systematically assessed.