[Health of school beginners]

Since 1994, the results of medical examinations carried out on school beginners in the Federal state of Brandenburg have been documented according to a uniform standard, and a standardised procedure has been used for questioning parents about their child's medical history, accidents, and the relevant environmental and social anamnesis. To this extent, information is available on each child's health and social characteristics. In order to analyse the connection between a child's health and the social status of the family, a combined social and education-related variable was established. The social status of the families in question was defined in terms of three groups (low, medium and high social status) and related to the child's health characteristics. The results of the 1994 study of 23,462 families (response: 72.8%) are considered in detail and include comprehensive data on the families' social situation. The results of the 1995 study (n = 14,568) confirm the effects of social status on a child's health and prove the reliability of the model of calculation.