Hand hygiene in medical students: performance, education and knowledge.

Background: Despite several guidelines on hand hygiene (HH), compliance especially in physicians is reported to be low which has huge implications for healthcare-associated infections. To evaluate performance of HH, influence of teaching and influence of monitoring the results in medical students, we conducted an observational study.

Methods: Performance of hand disinfection was evaluated in first (N=28), third (N=193) and fifth (N=45) year medical students using fluorescent hand disinfectant.

Differences in asthma diagnosis and medication use in children living in Germany and the Netherlands.

Aim: To compare diagnosis and treatment between German and Dutch children with asthmatic symptoms at the age of 5-6 and 7-8 years, and the use of anti-asthma medication at 7-8 years of age.

Methods: Parents of 4462 children participated in two surveys, in 1995 and 1997. All 465 children identified with current asthmatic symptoms at the age of 5-6 (May 1995) or at 7-8 years of age (May 1997) were sent a third more detailed questionnaire (October 1997).

Indoor environment and respiratory symptoms in children living in the Dutch-German borderland.

Objective: To investigate the relation between indoor environmental risk factors and respiratory symptoms in 7-8-year-old children living in the Dutch-German borderland.

Methods: A nested case-control study was conducted among children participating in a large longitudinal study on respiratory health. Parents of all 781 children with respiratory complaints and an equal number of randomly selected controls were asked to complete a questionnaire, including questions on indoor environment.

Childhood infections and risk of wheezing and allergic sensitisation at age 7-8 years.

Background: Childhood atopic disease has been associated with exposure to infections early in life. There is however considerable controversy on this issue, since evidence exists for both protective and adverse effects of infections. Aim of this study was to investigate the association between childhood infections and the occurrence of wheeze and allergic sensitisation in 7-8-year-old Dutch and German children.

Infant immunization and the occurrence of atopic disease in Dutch and German children: a nested case-control study.

Our goal was to assess the role of early childhood vaccination in the occurrence of respiratory symptoms and allergic sensitization in 7-8-year-old Dutch and German children. A nested case-control study was conducted among children participating in a large longitudinal study on respiratory health, to study the relationship between vaccination (bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG), pertussis, measles/mumps, rubella, and Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib)) and respiratory symptoms and allergic sensitization. Parents of 510 7-8-year-old children with respiratory complaints and an equal number of randomly selected children without respiratory complaints were asked to complete a questionnaire.