Somatic factors at 8 years of age in children with recurrent use of antibiotics in early infancy.

AIM: To examine the influence of recurrent therapy with antibiotics (RTA) in infancy on children's somatic factors at 8 y of age. METHODS: Subject selection was based on stratified randomized cluster sampling. Altogether 1287 infants were potential participants in the follow-up study. Children with 6 courses of antibiotics (100 children) during their first 18 mo of life and children with no (62%) or 2 courses (38%) of antibiotics participated in a clinical examination in a case-control setting (100 matched controls) at the age of 8 y. RESULTS: The children with RTA continued to have more infections and had had more courses of antibiotics compared to controls during the follow-up. There was no clinically significant difference in the somatic and dental status at the age of 8 between the two groups. The parents of the children with RTA reported significantly more often recurrent infections than the parents of the controls. CONCLUSIONS: The children with recurrent therapy with antibiotics in early childhood also continue to be prescribed more antibiotics in later childhood when compared to those who received no or few antibiotics in infancy. However, recurrent infections and medications do not seem to have a marked effect on the somatic and dental status of these children at 8 y of age.

Recurrent antibiotic use in a small child and the effects on the family.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the typical characteristics of small children on recurrent therapy with antibiotics (RTA) and the effects RTA have on the families. DESIGN: Stratified randomised cluster sampling. SETTING: An unselected population-based questionnaire study in Finland. SUBJECTS: Parents (n = 1443) expecting their first child were followed prospectively from the mother's early pregnancy until the child was 18 months of age. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The outcome measure was the number of courses of antibiotic therapy (options: 011-51 > or = 6) during the child's first 18 months of life. Six or more courses were considered RTA. Associated variables were child- and family-related factors during the child's first 18 months of life. RESULTS: Children on RTA were taken to see a physician more often than other children when they had fever or a common cold. RTA was significantly associated with the child's day care outside the home, allergy and need for a special diet. The father's severe stress was associated with the child's RTA. Breastfeeding lasting more than 3 months was found to have a protective effect against RTA. CONCLUSION: The threshold for seeking medical help was low in the families of children on RTA, which is best avoided by breastfeeding and day care at home. Health care staff should not forget to support families, especially the fathers, with children experiencing recurrent infections.