Severe obesity prevalence in 8- to 9-year-old Italian children: a large population-based study.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Little information is available on severe obesity in childhood. This study estimates the prevalence of severe obesity in 8- to 9-year-old children resident in Italy and its association with gender, age, geographical area and parents' nutritional status and education using the World Health Organization (WHO) and International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) criteria. SUBJECTS/METHODS: A nationally representative sample of grade 3 Italian students was measured in 2010 (N=42,431) using standardized instruments and methodology. Severe obesity in children was assessed using definitions provided by the WHO and by the IOTF. Prevalence was estimated within categories of sociodemographic variables and their independent effects were estimated using multivariate logistic regression. RESULTS: The estimated prevalence of severe obesity in 2010 was 4.5% (95% confidence interval (CI): 4.2-4.7) according to the WHO definition and 2.7% (95% CI: 2.5-2.9) with IOTF cutoffs. These values were slightly lower than those observed in 2008. The prevalence was higher in males, in 8-year-old children and in the South. Parental low education and high body mass index were strongly associated with childhood severe obesity. CONCLUSION: According to the definition used, between 30,000 and 50,000 children aged 8-9 years suffer severe obesity in Italy.

Long-term immunogenicity of hepatitis B vaccination in children and adolescents in a southern Italian town.

PURPOSE: Universal anti-hepatitis B vaccination of infants and of 12-year-old children became mandatory in Italy in 1991. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the persistence of anti-hepatitis B surface (HBs) antibodies several years after a primary course of vaccination. METHODS: In 2010, anti-HBs titers were measured in all subjects aged between 5 and 25 years residing in a southern Italian town. Individuals with an anti-hepatitis B antibody concentration of 10 IU/ml or more were considered to be protected. RESULTS: Of the 671 subjects evaluated, 149 (30%) lacked protective antibodies. Fifty-three (29.4%) of the subjects had been vaccinated ≤10 years earlier and 96 (30.3%) more than 10 years earlier (P = not significant). Subjects vaccinated in infancy were more likely to lack protective anti-HBs antibodies than subjects vaccinated at 12 years of age, regardless of the years elapsed since immunization. CONCLUSIONS: Most subjects maintained protective antibodies for a considerable number of years after vaccination. Vaccination in adolescence results in more prolonged immunogenicity than vaccination in infancy.