Prevalence of anemia in under five-year-old children in a children's hospital in Recife, Brazil.

Introduction: Anemia is a nutritional problem of global importance. It is estimated that at least one-third of the population has been at one time anemic.

Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of anemia and associated factors in patients of a children's hospital in Recife.

[Effect of partially hidrolized guar-gum in the treatment of functional constipation among hospitalized patients].

The effect of hydrolyzed partially guar-gum was evaluated in the treatment of functional constipation among hospitalized patients. Following a randomized blind controlled-trial 64 adults were allocated to two groups: one received daily high-fiber diet (approximately 30 g) and the other similar diet plus 10 g of hydrolyzed partially guar-gum, during 15 days. Dietary fiber reduced functional constipation by 78.

[Social participation in health services: concepts of users and community leaders in two municipalities of Northeastern Brazil].

Social participation in management of the health care system at different levels of government is one of the key policies promoted by the Unified National Health System (SUS) in Brazil. As with any new policy, success hinges on several factors such as stakeholders' interests and opinions, which have not always been considered in the past. This paper analyzes the underlying concepts of two groups of stakeholders with respect to social participation in health and the potential influence of these concepts on the effectiveness of policy implementation.

[View of the different social agents on the social participation in the health system in northeastern Brazil. A qualitative approximation].

Background: Social participation in the health system constitutes one of the basic principles of Brazilian health sector reform. This paper analyses the concepts held by different groups of stakeholders with respect to social participation in health and identifies their opinions on hindering and enabling factors for this participation.

Methods: A qualitative study was conducted using individual interviews (II) and focus groups (FG) with different groups of stakeholders: 135 users (II, GF), 14 community leaders (II, GF), 12 Municipal Health Council (MHC) members (II), 8 policymakers and (II) 37 health personnel (II, GF) were interviewed.