Nivel de conocimiento e índice de higiene oral luego de aplicar una guía de salud bucal en sistema braille / Level of knowledge and index of oral hygiene following application of a guide to bucal health in the braile system

Objetivo: Evaluar el conocimiento sobre la salud oral y el estado de higiene oral después de aplicar una guía de salud bucal en sistema Braille. Metodología: Se desarrolló un estudio transversal en niños con discapacidad visual. El número de sujetos evaluados fue de 51 niños, de ambos sexos y entre 7 y 17 años de edad. Se obtuvo información sobre el conoci- miento inicial de salud bucal a través de una encuesta validada y se evaluó el estado de higiene oral inicial. Se brindó educación sobre salud oral y se repartió una guía de salud bucal en Braille. La misma encuesta y una nueva evaluación del estado de higiene oral se tomó en una segunda oportunidad. Se utilizó la prueba de chi cuadrado para el análisis de datos. Resultados: Inicialmente, el conocimiento sobre salud bucal en niños con discapacidad visual era bajo, con un mal estado de higiene oral. Después de aplicar la guía en Braille, los niños obtuvieron un alto nivel de conocimiento y un estado regular de higiene oral. Se encontró una asociación significativa entre el nivel de conocimiento final y el índice de higiene oral final. Conclusión: Se obtuvo una mejora en el nivel de conocimiento y el estado de higiene oral después de aplicar una guía de salud bucal en Braille. (AU)

Objective: To evaluate knowledge concerning oral health and oral hygiene status following application of an oral health guide in the Braille system. Methodology: A cross sectional study was conducted involving visually impaired children. A total of 51 subjects, composed of children of both sexes aged between 7 and 17 years, were included in the study. Information on baseline oral health knowledge was obtained through a vali-dated survey and the subjects' initial oral hygiene status was assessed. Education concerning oral health and an oral health guide in Braille were given to the subjects. The same survey and a new oral hygiene status assessment were then conducted. The chi-squared test was employed for data analysis. Results: Initial knowledge concerning oral health among visually impaired children was low, and oral hygiene status was poor. Following appli-cation of the Braille guide, the children exhibited a high level of knowledge and normal oral hygiene status. A signifi-cant association was found between the subjects' level of final knowledge and their final oral hygiene index. Conclu-sion: An improvement in the subjects' level of knowledge and their oral hygiene status was obtained following application of a dental health guide in Braille. (AU)

Impacto de la lactancia no materna en el infante / Impact of non-maternal breastfeeding in the infant

Objetivo: La lactancia materna ha sido la principal fuente de alimentación desde el nacimiento del ser humano, siendo recomendada por la Organización Mundial de la Salud como alimento exclusivo durante los seis primeros meses de vida; sin embargo, por diversas causas se ha ido reemplazando por fórmulas lácteas u otros tipos de leche artificial, al cual se le ha denominado lactancia no materna. Este tipo de alimentación se da principalmente a través del uso del biberón proporcionando ventajas y desventajas tanto a los padres como al infante. El uso de estas fórmulas lácteas es de acuerdo a la etapa de vida en la que se encuentra el infante y debe ser orientado por un profesional; por otro lado, si este tipo de alimentación no es acompañada con la adecuada higiene oral, se prolonga y se da con mucha frecuencia, se convierte en un factor predisponente a la aparición de caries de infancia temprana, hábitos nocivos, etc. Por lo tanto, el objetivo del presente artículo de revisión es proporcionar información actualizada sobre la lactancia no materna y sus implicancias a nivel de la cavidad bucal. (AU)

Objective: Breastfeeding has been the main source of food since the birth of the human being, being recommended by the World Health Organization as exclusive food during the first six months of life; However, for various reasons it has been replaced by milk formulas or other types of artificial milk, which has been called non-breastfeeding. This type of feeding occurs mainly through the use of the bottle providing advantages and disadvantages to both the parents and the infant. The use of these milk formulas is according to the stage of life in which the infant is and should be guided by a professional; On the other hand, if this type of diet is not accompanied by adequate oral hygiene, it is prolonged and occurs very frequently, it becomes a predisposing factor to the appearance of early childhood caries, harmful habits, etc.Therefore, the objective of this review article is to provide with updated information on non-breastfeeding and its implications at the level of the oral cavity. (AU)

Measuring the success of community science: the northern California Household Exposure Study.

BACKGROUND: Environmental health research involving community participation has increased substantially since the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) environmental justice and community-based participatory research (CBPR) partnerships began in the mid-1990s. The goals of these partnerships are to inform and empower better decisions about exposures, foster trust, and generate scientific knowledge to reduce environmental health disparities in low-income, minority communities. Peer-reviewed publication and clinical health outcomes alone are inadequate criteria to judge the success of projects in meeting these goals; therefore, new strategies for evaluating success are needed. OBJECTIVES: We reviewed the methods used to evaluate our project, "Linking Breast Cancer Advocacy and Environmental Justice," to help identify successful CBPR methods and to assist other teams in documenting effectiveness. Although our project precedes the development of the NIEHS Evaluation Metrics Manual, a schema to evaluate the success of projects funded through the Partnerships in Environmental Public Health (PEPH), our work reported here illustrates the record keeping and self-reflection anticipated in NIEHS's PEPH. DISCUSSION: Evaluation strategies should assess how CBPR partnerships meet the goals of all partners. Our partnership, which included two strong community-based organizations, produced a team that helped all partners gain organizational capacity. Environmental sampling in homes and reporting the results of that effort had community education and constituency-building benefits. Scientific results contributed to a court decision that required cumulative impact assessment for an oil refinery and to new policies for chemicals used in consumer products. All partners leveraged additional funding to extend their work. CONCLUSIONS: An appropriate evaluation strategy can demonstrate how CBPR projects can advance science, support community empowerment, increase environmental health literacy, and generate individual and policy action to protect health.

Disentangling the exposure experience: the roles of community context and report-back of environmental exposure data.

This article examines participants' responses to receiving their results in a study of household exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds and other pollutants. The authors study how the "exposure experience"-the embodied, personal experience and understanding of chronic exposure to environmental pollutants-is shaped by community context and the report-back process itself. In addition, the authors investigate an activist, collective form of exposure experience. The authors analyze themes of expectations and learning, trust, and action. The findings reveal that while participants interpret scientific results to affirm lay knowledge of urban industrial toxics, they also absorb new information regarding other pollutant sources. By linking the public understanding of science literature to the illness and exposure experience concepts, this study unravels the complex relationship between lay experience and lay understanding of science. It also shows that to support policy development and/or social change, community-based participatory research efforts must attend to participants' understanding of science.