Violence injuries of Iraqi children

Iraqi Children suffered injuries during 1991 Gulf war. This was followed by suffering for 13 years from the effect of economic sanctions. The 2003 military invasion and occupation by coalition forces added more death and injuries. We wanted to know how frequent physical injuries were to Iraqi children, and how inflicted and what the consequences were. Mothers who were admitted with their children to the Children Welfare Hospital, Baghdad, in the period July 1-December 31, 2004, were interviewed about violence to their children, relatives, and neighbours that they had witnessed. Of the 218 mothers interviewed, 50 witnessed injuries [23%]; 28 of those who witnessed injuries were from the city of Baghdad and 22 from towns in the central part of the country. Twenty two injuries were by gunshots, 14 by aerial attack or tank bombs, and others were due to explosions. Head injuries were the most common. Twenty of the injured children recovered with no disability, two lost fingers, two got blind, two were limping, and one had persistent backache. Iraqi Children were commonly victims of violence during invasion and occupation of Iraq. There seems to be inadequate protection for children during the years 2003-2004

Children's exposure to mildly cold environment

Exposure to mildly cold environment was considered to be the cause of many children illnesses during winter, or even during summer. Understanding these beliefs is essential for improving the care of children. To find out in what ways mild exposure to a cold environment was believed to affect children health, and how did mothers respond. Mothers of 200 children who brought their children to Al Mansour Children Hospital, Baghdad, in the period Jan.1st to April 30th 2002 were interviewed to fill a questionnaire form about the harmful effect of mild cold exposure. The mothers held beliefs regarding mild cold exposure that ranged from causing coryza 96.5%, fever 96%, cough 94%, chest pain 85%, pneumonia 74%, to vomiting 88%, diarrhoea 95.5% and abdominal colic 94% . The sources of exposure described included: giving a bath, inadequate clothing, uncovering during sleep, walking barefooted, crawling on a cold floor, or taking a cold drink or food. These beliefs lead to improper care of children including over warning or over clothing, while distracting attention from useful measures like avoiding contact with infected persons or consumption of contaminated food or drink

Drugs use for diarrhoea in children at home

Children's acute diarrhea is an extensive global problem .It has increased in Iraq seventeen fold after wars and economic sanctions. Proper management is important in saving lives and prevention of complications. We wanted to see what drugs were used, how often and how it compared with oral rehydration use. The mothers of 175 children who presented with diarrhoea of acute onset and admitted to the Children Welfare Hospital, Baghdad, over a period of 8 months were interviewed. Apart from 39 children, who had parenteral infections, two had celiac disease and one accidentally ingested a laxative, the others were diagnosed as gastroenteritis at hospital. Of the 102 children diagnosed as gastroenteritis before admission, 29[28%] had their stools microscopically examined and a parasite was found in 12. Seventy: three [75%] of those who did not have stools examined, and [59%] of those who had no parasites demonstrated in stool were given antibacterial [metronidazole, gentamicin, amoxycilin,+1-cloxacilin, co-trimoxazole]. Many had antiemetics and anti spasmodics. Oral rehydration solution [ORS-WHO] was given to [46%] of patients. Seventy-Four [73%] of children with gastroenteritis were given anti bacterials at home and less than half had ORS