[Status of two-week illness for primary and secondary students in middle and west provinces]

To explore the status of two-week illness in primary and secondary students and to provide the basis for rationally distributing heath resources in primary and secondary schools.
 Methods: Stratified cluster sampling method was used to select 6 744 primary and secondary students aged from 9.0-16.9 years, and the name or symptoms of two-week illness, frequencies, medical expenses and days of sick leave were surveyed by using the self-made questionnaires.
 Results: Respiratory system disease (73.6%) and digestive system diseases (13.2%) were the major two-week illness. When they were ill, 58.9% students went to hospital, 39.9% took medicine by themselves, and 1.2% received non-treatment. The two-week morbidity, sick frequencies, average medical expenses per time and days of sick leave were 12.6%, (1.34±0.81) times, 10.0 yuan, and (0.39±0.98) days, respectively. The two-week sick frequencies, average medical expenses per time and days of sick leave among primary or secondary students were (1.37±0.87) or (1.26±0.69) times, 12.0 or 9.0 yuan, and (0.44±1.14) or (0.30±0.55) days, respectively. There was a positive correlation between two week sick frequencies and medical fees per time, or days of sick leave (r=0.301, r=0.275 for primary students, respectively, P<0.01; r=0.334, r=0.290 for secondary students, respectively, P<0.01). The positive correlation between medical fees per time and days of sick leave was also found (r=0.312, r=0.343 for primary students and secondary students, respectively, P<0.01).
 Conclusion: Characteristics of two-week illness among primary and secondary students possess common symptoms, frequent, low medical expenses per time. The frequencies, medical expenses and days of sick leave in primary students were increased compared with that in secondary students.