BACKGROUND Numerators and denominators used to estimate infections' incidence rates (IRs), incidence rate ratios (IRRs), and differences (IRDs) vary. Our objective is to quantify the impact of various common definitions for illness episodes (numerators) and person-time at risk (denominators) in estimating these measures. METHODS Data were from a cohort study in which daily occurrence of illne...

BACKGROUND There is evidence that children experience a transient increase in mild episodes of gastroenteritis when they start attending out-of-home child care. We assessed the transient and sustained effects of cumulative day-care attendance, age at first enrolment and type of child care facility attended on hospitalization rates for gastroenteritis. METHODS Cox proportional hazard models we...

Shigellosis epidemics were investigated in two urban centers. In each city, preschool children played a major role in O!fecting their families and were most susceptible to secondary infection after illness had been introduced into the household. Children attending day-care centers were significantly more likely to be initial cases and to be the major cause of intrafamilial spread of disease tha...

BACKGROUND Parent education is an integral component to promoting judicious antibiotic use. Opportunities to educate parents directly are limited. Child care providers are in a position to relay information to parents. METHODS A group-randomized trial assessed the impact of a child care center staff intervention on parental knowledge and attitudes regarding appropriate antibiotic use. A 9-poi...

BACKGROUND Vegetable consumption among preschool children is below recommended levels. New evidence-based approaches to increase preschoolers' vegetable intake, particularly in the child care setting, are needed. This study tests the effectiveness of two community-based randomized interventions to increase vegetable consumption and willingness to try vegetables: (1) the pairing of a vegetable w...

Gumpel, S. M. (1972). Archives of Disease in Childhood, 47, 330. Clinical and social status of patients with congenital rubella. Eighty-five older patients with congenital rubella attending The Hospital for Sick Children were reassessed, paying special attention to their development and adaptation to their handicaps. They were a very handicapped group of children, nearly all were deaf, over two...

The primary concern of physicians caring for children must be the best interests of the individual child. All infants and children have intrinsic value and deserve our respect and protection. This is true whether or not they are handicapped or have the potential to be handicapped and regardless of whether this handicap is physical or mental. This means that all children, regardless of handicap ...

When New Jersey became the first state to require a flu vaccine for children in 2008, parents protested outside the State House. 1 The new mandate requires children between six months and five years old to get an annual flu shot to attend a child care facility or day care center. 2 According to state epidemiologist Dr. Eddy Bresnitz, New Jersey based its decision to require flu vaccines for pre...

BACKGROUND There is a growing interest in studying the influence of child-care center policies on the health of preschool-aged children. OBJECTIVE To develop a reliable and valid instrument to quantitatively evaluate the quality of written nutrition and physical activity policies at child-care centers. DESIGN Reliability and validation study. A 65-item measure was created to evaluate five a...