Weekly changes in psychophysiological variables of 8- to 10-year-old school girls.

Three groups of schoolgirls 8, 9, and 10 years of age, respectively, self assessed sleep onset/offset and duration, as well as oral temperature and a set of cognitive measures, at school at 09:00, 11:00, 14:00, and 16:00 h on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays (and/or Saturday) for 2 consecutive weeks (spring 1987 and 1989). The scores of a letter cancellation test exhibited neither daily nor weekly temporal variation at the age of 8 years [analysis of variance (ANOVA), p > 0.05].

[Deficiencies, disabilities and handicaps: taking responsibility for the young maladjusted child].

A handicap should not be confused with deficiency or incapacity. It is the resulting difference between an individual's competencies and the situation which is proposed to, or imposed to, him. Whatever the type of deficiency a child may have, and the subsequent incapacity, it is important to discern for therapy, the positive aspects of his personality as soon as possible in order to develop his chances for success and avoid set backs.

Diurnal changes in psychophysiological variables of school girls: comparison with regard to age and teacher's appreciation of learning.

Ninety-five nonresident girls of a private school volunteered for the study with the teachers' help as well as parental consent. Ages were approximately 8, 9, and 10 years. They were synchronized with diurnal activity from 0730 to 2100 h and nocturnal rest.

[Transcutaneous trinitrine. Calling into question the efficacy and innocousness of its use in facilitating venous approach].

Seven infants aged 6 days to 9 months were tested for the use by rubbing of a pomade containing 1 mg trinitrine. The study was interrupted because of high blood passage of trinitrine. The authors emphasize the difficulty of any comparison with the use of this drug in adults.

[Communication in the trisomy 21 patient: observation and therapeutic possibilities].

The behaviour of 4- to 6-year-old children with Down syndrome was studied by audio-visual means during individual or group stimulation sessions. From these observations, it is concluded that children with Down syndrome have a rich preverbal communication, but poor child-to-child interchanges. Thus, when taking care of children with Down syndrome, it is necessary to accentuate individual stimulation and take into account the affective drive of the child towards the adult.

[The child and school: uneasy feelings].

For many children, the school system in France is maladjusted and is a source of repulsion instead of psychological and intellectual enrichment. The author analyses the causes of this maladjustment.

[Intraspinal epidermoid cysts and lumbar punctures].

The authors describe a case of intra-spinal epidermoid cyst and recall the scarcity of the symptoms of such tumors and their slow evolution and emphasize the very likely part taken by spinal punctures in the genesis of a number of them.

[Child health in the school environment].

The authors studied the consequences of the present school system on children's health. They emphasize the causes of failures, mostly related to a misappreciation of children's individual differences and inequalities of the rate of physical and psychoaffective development. Overloaded school days, the lack of respect of sleep and extra-curricular needs, the overlooking of attention capacities were also studied.

[Septic arthritis due to a nontoxigenic diphtheria bacillus].

Septic arthritis of the hip in a 2 year old child is described. A nontoxigenic diphtheria bacillus was isolated in large numbers from the articular fluid. The same organism was isolated from excoriated skin lesions of the toes.

[The pediatrician and school difficulties].

Difficulties at school are amongst the most frequent encountered in paediatric practice but paediatricians are infrequently consulted by those who are responsible for the children from day to day. As a result decisions are often contrary to the elementary principles of physiology. Unfortunately the chronological age is still the important criteria for determining school progress.

[Anhidrosis. Presentation of an unusual case report].

A one month old girl with sudden attacks of fever and dehydration was found to have anhydrosis. Histologically the sweat glands were normal but the electrical resistance of the skin showed there was an abnormality of sweating. The cause of the disorder is unknown but could be due to a defect in the secretion of acetyl choline by the post ganglionic sympathetic nerves or due to a receptor defect in the sweat gland.

[Acute nalidixic acid poisoning in children].

A 31 month old child developed seizures 30 minutes after the accidental ingestion of toxic quantities of nalidixic acid. The case is unusual because of the age of the patient and the circumstances of the poisoning. It emphasises that this drug is contraindicated in children with previous neurological disease.

[Benigne multi-recurrent meningitis (Mollaret's disease). A case in a child of 2 years and 8 months].

The authors report a case of meningitis, presenting all characteristics of the disease described in 1944 by P. Mollaret, occurring in a child aged 2 years and 8 months. They stress the rarity of cases on childhood.