Influence of parental and socioeconomic factors on stunting in children under 5 years in Egypt

We assessed the relationship between parental and socioeconomic characteristics and nutritional status of children under 5 years in Egypt. Data from the 2000 Egypt Demographic and Health Survey were used. A logistic regression technique was used to estimate the odds of being malnourished. Children whose mothers had a higher level of education and were > 150 cm had a lower risk of stunting than those of mothers with no education and shorter height [< 150 cm]. Parental consanguinity, rural residence, high birth order and short birth interval significantly increased the odds of stunting. Children aged >/= 12 months had greater odds of stunting than those < 12 months

Medical sociology outlined and applied to the Arab Middle East

This paper outlines the field of medical sociology and applies it to health care in the Arab Middle East. First, we examine the part that social factors play in the aetiology and distribution of disease. As economically developing societies, the Arab societies presently have a higher burden of infectious disease than do the industrialized societies of Europe and North America. Second, we look at "illness behaviour" - the recourse that a lay person adopts when he or she falls ill. Many Arab societies have traditional healing practices and beliefs that still retain force among the populace. Lastly, we focus on the health care system - its personnel, technology, and professional organization. Arab societies have special features that affect their health care system - the strong role of government and its traditional concern for the people's health, the relatively youthful age of the population, and the pivotal position of the medical profession. Critical choices lie ahead, concerning how to maintain an appropriate balance between community-based primary care and hospital-based specialist care. Medical-sociological studies in other developing regions of the world indicate that specialist care tends to predominate unless primary care receives active governmental, professional, and academic support