Nutritional status of children attending first year primary school in Derna, Libya in 2007

School-age children attempt to develop personal independence and establish a scale of values. Individual variations in children become more noticeable in such areas as rates of growth, activity patterns, nutrient requirements, personality development and food intakes. Malnutrition is one of the leading causes of disease. To assess the nutritional status among children attending first year primary school at Derna [2007], The study was conducted between [15/7/2007 and 15/11/2007] which was the time for children to have the clinical Examination and vaccination for school registration. The total numbers of children entered first year primary school in 2007 were 1765 [900 males and 865 females]. Clinical examination was done including: height and weight using standard techniques and general examination of all body. Weight, height, and age data were used to calculate z-scores of the nutritional indicators in comparison to the newly published WHO growth curve. Data were analyzed using WHO Anthro 2005 software and SPSS version 13. The mean value of weight was21.3 +/- 3.3 kgm, of height was 115.7 +/- 5.4 cm, and of BMI was 16.1 +/- 3.1. In girls, the mean value of weight was 20.6 +/- 3.4 kgm, of height was 115.9 +/- 5.6 cm, and of BMI was 15.6 +/- 3.5. Out of 1765 children, 320 [18.1%] of children were underweight, 57 [3.2%] were overweight and 24 [1.4%] were obese. Out of 1765, 1364 [77.3%] of children had normal weight. Undernutrition was more likely to be found in males [19.6%] than in females [16.7%] [OR=1.22, 01=0.95-1.56]. Overweight was found slightly more in males [3.3%] than in females [3.1%]. Obesity was found in males [1.3%] and the same rate in females [1.4%]. We found that 77.3% of children had normal weight, 18.1% of children were underweight, 3.2% of children were overweight and 1.4% of children were obese. Further studies are needed to verify possible regional differences. Combined overweight and stunting is more likely to be associated with central obesity and its metabolic effects. Similar surveys are needed to verify trends of nutritional problems

Study of feeding patterns during the first three months of life in and out maternity wards

Breast feeding promotion and immunization are important interventions of child survival programs, especially in developing countries. To study feeding patterns during the first three months of life and to identify possible factors associated with early termination of breast feeding. A retrospective study consisting of the analysis of all available feed charts of infants born in Princess Mary Maternity Hospital were carried out [between 7/2/1986 and 6/5/1986], 80 were selected according to inclusion criteria. In addition, 60 babies were chosen from Al Wahda Hospital, Derna, Libya [from 1/1/2007 to 31/3/2007]. Bottle feeding is shown to be more associated with the occurrence of diarrhea as opposed to fully breast feeding [P<0.05]. The mean birth weight in Princess Mary Maternity Hospital, U.K was significantly higher than that in Al Wahda Hospital, Derna, Libya [3.58 +0.46 and 3.45 +0.7 Kgms respectively, P<0.001]. Only 53.9% of mothers included in Princess Mary Maternity Hospital sample were fully breast-feeding on discharge from hospital. In Al Wahda Hospital, Derna, Libya, 75% of mothers included were fully breast-feeding on discharge from hospital. there were more cases of diarrhea among those babies who wee bottle fed or partially breast fed cases [46.7%] out of 15 babies who were bottle fed or partially breast fed, contrasted with only 4 cases [8.7%] of diarrhea among those who were fully breast fed. Many reasons were given by mothers for stopping breast-feeding or introducing bottles. The two most important were insufficient breast milk, and problems with breast and/or nipples. Two factors are likely to affect duration of breast-feeding: birth weight and age of the mother

Seroepidemiology and efficacy of a mass hepatitis B immunization program in children in Derna, Libya

Hepatitis B virus [HBV] infection represents a serious public health problem in many countries of the world. Libya was considered as one of the countries with a prevalence of 2.2% infection. A mass hepatitis B vaccination program was conducted to overcome this health problem. To determine the frequency of serological markers of HBV among children born after the HB vaccination program; and to evaluate the immune response to HBV vaccine. A case-control study included 300 children with age ranging from 12 months to 72 months randomly selected from community health center in Derna, Libya, during the year 2006. They were tested for HB markers including Anti-HBs, Anti-HBc. The protection rate among completely HB-vaccinated children [3 doses] was 96.7%, significantly higher than that in incompletely vaccinated children [one or two doses only] 91.3% [P < 0.05]. The infection rate was 3.3% among completely vaccinated children, while it reached 8.7% among incompletely vaccinated children. Two percent and 6% of the completely and incompletely vaccinated children were positive for HBsAg, respectively [P >0.05]. This study indicates the efficacy of HBV vaccination. But to achieve maximum protection it is important to adhere to the complete vaccination schedule