[Health status survey in a district with many immigrant children]. / En helsestasjonsundersøkelse i et distrikt med mange innvandrerbarn.

In Norway, prophylactic child health care is organized through local mother and child clinics, each of which serves a given population. This study summarizes the findings from the routine check-up of four-year-olds in a district with a high proportion of immigrant families. The sample consisted of 70 children, 33 of them from immigrant families. The ordinary check-up was supplemented by information obtained by means of a questionnaire, which was filled in by the public health nurse and the doctor in consultation with the parents. A validated scale, or checklist (BCL), for ordinary behavioural problems among pre-school children was also included. The findings must be interpreted with caution, one reason being the large socio-economic differences between the immigrant and the Norwegian families included in the study. Nevertheless, the difference between the eating habits of the two groups of children was striking, in spite of the emphasis placed on diet at the clinic. Another important finding was the poor knowledge of Norwegian among the immigrant children, which was obviously associated with the poor language skills of the mothers. Therefore, an important element of the preventive health work among immigrant children should be to encourage the mothers to attend courses in Norwegian.

[Cerebral palsy in the light of old and new research results--in what direction does the pendulum swing?]. / Cerebral parese sett i lys av gamle og nye forskiningsresultater--hvilken vei svinger pendelen?

Cerebral palsy is reviewed from Little's first description of spastic diplegia in 1843 to the results of the most recent studies. One central question concerns whether prenatal or perinatal causes are the most important for the development of cerebral palsy. Current research indicates that conditions prior to and during pregnancy probably play a more important role than earlier thought. For years it has been the belief that cerebral palsy is caused by mismanagement in the perinatal period. At the same time, it has been suggested that improved perinatal care would reduce the incidence of cerebral palsy. This has not been the case, and many studies indicate that, despite proper perinatal care, the incidence of cerebral palsy is increasing. Much research remains to be done to obtain an overall picture of the etiology of cerebral palsy before we can establish measures to prevent this complex and serious condition.