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[Pneumonia in children in Latin America: morbidity, predisposing causes, mortality and costs]
1Cátedra de Pediatría, Facultad de Medicina de la UCV, Caracas, Venezuela.
Insights
Pneumonia remains a significant threat to children under five in Latin America, with high morbidity and mortality rates. National control programs and primary healthcare strategies are crucial for reducing child pneumonia deaths.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
Context:
- Pneumonia poses a major health challenge for children under five in Latin America.
- High morbidity and mortality rates persist, with slow progress in reduction across most countries.
Purpose:
- To review the magnitude, trends, and control strategies for childhood pneumonia in Latin America.
- To highlight the importance of National Programs for the Control of Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI) and PAHO/WHO guidelines.
Summary:
- Examines pneumonia's morbidity, mortality, risk factors, and costs in Latin American children under five.
- Emphasizes standardized ambulatory diagnosis and treatment within Primary Health Care.
- Underscores the role of preventive measures, including parent education and community health worker training.
Impact:
- Aims to guide efforts towards a one-third reduction in childhood pneumonia mortality.
- Promotes cost-effective interventions and integrated health strategies for ARI control.
Abstract:
The paper refers to pneumonia in children under five years of age in Latin America, and covers the following toplos: morbidity, predisposing and risk factors, mortality and costs. It emphasizes the magnitude, tendency and advances in the control of the problem. High pneumonia morbidity and mortality rates are observed, with slow tendency to decrease in the majority of the countries of the Region, with some exceptions. The paper points out the importance of the National Programs of Control of Acute Respiratory Infections (ARI), specifically of pneumonia, following the guide lines of the PAHO/WHO. Special mention is made of the diagnosis, ambulatory standardized treatment and cost-effectiveness under the strategy of the Primary Health Care. The preventive measures are important, including the health education of parents and the training of the community health workers. The principal goal is to obtain a decrease of one third in the mortality of pneumonia in children, within the present.