Prevalence of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema among children in Vientiane city, Lao PDR.

An International Study of Asthma and Allergy in Childhood (ISAAC) revealed a wide range of prevalences of childhood asthma in the world. Lao PDR had no such epidemiological data yet. This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology of asthma, rhinitis, and eczema in children in the country. A cross-sectional study was conducted in Vientiane City, the capital of Lao PDR, in 1997 using the ISAAC questionnaire. From three primary schools and one high school, 395 children, age 6-7 years, and 468 children, age 13-14 years, were chosen. The prevalence of asthma for children aged 13-14 years in Lao PDR was 25.6%, which ranks the highest in international asthma prevalence. The prevalence in allergic-rhinoconjunctivitis of children was 24.4% and atopic eczema was 7.1%. Contrary to generally accepted risk factors, there were no associations revealed between asthma prevalence and smoking of family members (especially mothers), intake of fish/meat, and male gender.

Hidden reality on the introduction of auto-disable syringes in developing countries.

With the growing concerns about the risk of unsafe injections (e.g. unsterilized injection practices), WHO, UNICEF and UNFPA decided to introduce the auto-disable (AD) syringe for immunization in the world. The AD syringe is designed to be automatically locked after a single use, hence no chance of reuse. Consequently, the risk of infection can be reduced for the recipient. On the other hand, the management of increased medical waste is becoming difficult, as the waste volume of AD syringes would be 200 times as much as those of sterilizable syringes. The used and improperly disposed AD syringes could be a huge source of blood-borne infections and environmental pollution at the community level. This study attempted to explore the present situation with regard to the introduction of AD syringes for immunization in Lao PDR. We conclude that reviewing the present 'safe injection' policy is urgently required in Lao PDR, as well as in other developing countries where the disposal system for medical wastes is not yet well established.