[Care of children during wartime]

Children represent the most vulnerable segment of the civilian population during wartime. Besides the direct effects of weapons and destructions during warfare, children are particularly prone to other forms of damage; extensive disruptions in the environment of the individual child are setting the stage for an increased appearance of infectious diseases, and long term limitations of adequate nutrition are causing various forms of malnutrition and of nutritional deficiencies. The consecutive decrease of general resistance against infectious diseases is an important dispositional factor in the pathogenesis of recurrent and chronic infections. Most severe, far reaching and often irreversible damages are those of mental health of children, sometimes lasting for the whole lifetime of the individual. Some of the most simple but effective preventive measures to alleviate the suffering of children during wartime, accessible to every health worker are briefly reviewed.