"Mi voglio bene": a pediatrician-based randomized controlled trial for the prevention of obesity in Italian preschool children.

Background: The first years of life are crucial to start preventive interventions that can have an impact on lifestyle and later overweight and obesity. Under the Italian National Health System (INHS), children are cared for by family pediatricians who perform health balances at regular intervals. The Italian Society of Preventive and Social Pediatrics (SIPPS) has designed a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to evaluate the effectiveness of family pediatricians for the prevention of childhood obesity in preschool children.

Pediatric sentinel surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases in Italy.

Background: Planning and evaluating vaccination programs depend on reliable systems of monitoring disease incidence in the community. In Italy vaccine-preventable diseases are subject to statutory notification, but they are often unreported. In January, 2000, a pediatric sentinel network was launched, with the aim of monitoring in a timely and accurate way the geographic and temporal trends of vaccine-preventable diseases.