[Influence of health centers and social class in the prevalence of breast feeding]. / Influencia de los centros de salud y la clase social en la prevalencia de la lactancia materna.

AIMS: To find out the prevalence of breastfeeding in the Health District of Córdoba, taking into account the basic health areas it is composed of; to find out if breastfeeding is less frequent in lower social classes than in high ones and the influence of health centers on breastfeeding. DESIGN: Cross-sectional descriptive study. Home survey. SITE: Health District of Córdoba, urban area. SUBJECTS: 1, 3, 6 months old babies taken from the computerized newborn register of the Health District of Córdoba. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Age of the babies; breastfeeding, social class, primary care model (basic health areas attended by Health Centers or not attended by Health Centers), weight at birth, parents' jobs, pregnancy control, maternal education and number of visits. 77.2% of the mothers start breastfeeding. 51.7% of one month-old babies are breastfed. One out of four three-month-old babies are breastfed and one out of ten six-month-old babies are breastfed. Low weight at birth has a negative influence on breastfeeding. The prevalence of breastfeeding is higher in favoured classes, and in the basic health areas attended by health centers. The rest of variables analyzed are not significant. CONCLUSIONS: The health centers improve the prevalence and duration of breastfeeding.

[Descriptive study of patients with leprosy in the province of Cordoba]. / Estudio descriptivo sobre los enfermos de lepra en la provincia de Córdoba.

A descriptive study of virtually all patients with leprosy in the Córdoba province was carried out. The socioeconomic and hygienic features of the patients' homes, some clinical variables, the therapeutic habits and the features of the foci were evaluated. The major findings were as follows: More than 50% of patients had poor socioeconomic background. 32% were a clinically active stage of the disease, 42% had some degree of disability and one half of the patients did not usually comply with the treatment. The importance of the socioeconomic and hygienic background as a possible risk factor for the development and the worsening of the disease are apparent. What we have defined as a contagion-favoring environment is associated with poor hygienic status of the patient's home (p = 0.001). The lack of compliance with treatment is associated with poorer social and hygienic status (p less than 0.001).