The year 1999 marks a remarkable turnaround in Nigeria’s history and bid for global reckoning as a democratic nation having grappled with a sustained military rule for many decades after her independence. However, with the country’s return to democratic rule, many teething problems evolved which of course is not strange to young and emerging democracies such as Nigeria’s particularly after many...

BACKGROUND Folk remedy use is universal, occurring in all cultures. Folk remedies have been and still are relied on in the black community. In this study, folk remedies refer to herbs, over-the-counter medications, and items traditionally used for cooking that are used to treat a variety of ailments. OBJECTIVE To identify folk remedies used to treat fever, colic, and teething among black chil...

BACKGROUND Fever is a source of considerable parental anxiety. Numerous studies have also confirmed similar anxiety among health care workers. This study analyzed caregiver knowledge of fever, and beliefs concerning children with a febrile illness, with an emphasis on the referring physician. METHODS This was a cross-sectional study of 100 caregivers of children 3 months to 12 years old, trea...

This article considers ethnomedical knowledge and practices among parents related to contraction of acute gastroenteritis among children in Peshawar, Pakistan. Research methods included analysis of the Emergency Pediatric Services' admission register, a structured interview administered to 47 parents of patients seen in the Khyber Medical College Teaching Hospital, semi-structured interviews of...

Mercury is a silvery white liquid metal that is volatile at room temperature due to its high vapour pressure. It exists in different oxidation states and can form a number of compounds. Mercury and its compounds can be absorbed into the human body by inhalation, ingestion, and through the skin. It is toxic when certain threshold values are exceeded. Acute toxicity is due to the inactivation of ...

Background. The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is high among children and youths with chronic illnesses, including cancer. The objective of this study was to assess prevalence and patterns of CAM use among pediatric oncology outpatients in two academic clinics in Canada. Procedure. A survey was developed to ask patients (or their parents/guardians) presenting to oncology cl...

The use of corporal punishment to discipline children remains one of the last holdouts of old-fashioned childrearing in the United States. Gone are the days of administering cod-liver oil to prevent rickets, spreading alcohol on babies’ gums to dull teething pain, or even putting children to sleep on their stomachs to prevent choking on fluids—practices that have been repeated by generations of...