Unlocking delays: revealing barriers to early diagnosis of childhood central nervous system tumors in an upper-middle-income country.

Purpose: Childhood central nervous system (CNS) tumors tend to have a longer time interval until diagnosis than other pediatric malignancies. The aim is to describe the time to diagnosis among Brazilian pediatric patients treated at a tertiary center and explore associated factors.

Methods: Cross-sectional study; application of questionnaires to parents of children with CNS tumors during outpatient visit or inpatient care.

School and language performance in children born with low birth weight.

Objectives: To identify the impact of birth weight on the development of metalinguistic skills and performance in reading, writing, and arithmetic in students aged 6 to 10 years, enrolled from the 1st to the 4th grade of Elementary School in public schools of the metropolitan region of São Paulo.

Methods: The concurrent cohort included 315 students. Birth weight was the exposure variable, and the outcomes were performance in receptive and expressive language, oral metalinguistic skills, and performance in writing, arithmetic, and reading.

Factors associated with student performance on the medical residency test.

Objective: To determine whether the scores of the Progress test, the Skills and Attitude test, and the medical internship are correlated with the medical residency exam performance of students who started medical school at the Federal University of São Paulo in 2009.

Methods: The scores of 684 Progress tests from years 1-6 of medical school, 111 Skills and Attitude exams (5th year), 228 performance coefficients for the 5th and 6th years of internship, and 211 scores on the medical residency exam were analyzed longitudinally. Correlations between scores were assessed by Pearson's correlation.

[Factors associated with excess weight and stunting in schoolchildren born with low birth weight].

The scope of this study is to assess the nutritional status of low birth weight (LBW) children and the possible associations with independent maternal variables, gender and neonatal history. It involved a cross-sectional study with 544 LBW schoolchildren (five to ten years of age) in the metropolitan area of São Paulo. Variables: the neonatal data of liveborn infant declarations and the current weight and height of the mothers were collected.

A cross-sectional study assessing the pharyngeal carriage of Neisseria meningitidis in subjects aged 1-24 years in the city of Embu das Artes, São Paulo, Brazil.

Meningococcal carriage is a prerequisite for invasive infection. This cross-sectional study assessed the pharyngeal carriage prevalence in healthy subjects aged 1-24 years in Embu das Artes city, São Paulo, Brazil. Pharyngeal swabs were examined for the presence of Neisseria meningitidis.

Interpretation of ambiguities by schoolchildren with low birth weight from Embu das Artes, São Paulo state, Brazil.

Purpose: To assess the development of language regarding the ability to recognize and interpret lexical ambiguity in low-birth-weight schoolchildren enrolled at the school system in the municipality of Embu das Artes, Sao Paulo state, compared with that of schoolchildren with normal birth weight.

Methods: A case-control, retrospective, cross-sectional study conducted with 378 schoolchildren, both genders, aged 5 to 9.9 years, from the municipal schools of Embu das Artes.

Family history of cardiovascular disease and non-HDL cholesterol in prepubescent non-obese children.

Objective: To describe the values of non-HDL cholesterol (NHDL-c) and the frequency of a family history of early cardiovascular disease (family HCVD) in healthy prepubescent children. Analyze the association between NHDL-c and family HCVD, and possible associations with other risk factors for cardiovascular disease (CVD).

Method: Cross-sectional study including 269 prepubescent (aged 6-10 years) schoolchildren with a normal body mass index (+1SD-2SD).

Care needs of children with disabilities - Use of the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory.

Objective: To describe the care needs reported by caregivers of children with disabilities going through the school inclusion process using the Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory.

Methods: Cross-sectional study with 181 children aged 7 to 10 years with physical or mental disabilities, undergoing the inclusion process in Elementary school in 2007.

Location: 31 schools of the Regional Education Board - District of Penha, East Side the city of São Paulo.

Body mass index, adipokines and insulin resistance in asthmatic children and adolescents.

Objective: This study aimed to describe the body mass index, insulin resistance, levels of adipokines and inflammatory markers in Brazilian asthmatic children and adolescents and to investigate their possible association with the severity and control of asthma.

Methods: Cross-sectional study (n = 92; age: 3-18 years). Assessed data: Body weight and height, used to calculate the body mass index (BMIZ) and height-for-age (HAZ).

[Clinical evolution and nutritional status in asthmatic children and adolescents enrolled in Primary Health Care].

Objective:: To evaluate the clinical evolution and the association between nutritional status and severity of asthma in children and adolescents enrolled in Primary Health Care.

Methods:: A retrospective cohort study of 219 asthmatic patients (3-17 years old) enrolled in Primary Care Services (PCSs) in Embu das Artes (SP), from 2007 to 2011. Secondary data: gender, age, diagnosis of asthma severity, other atopic diseases, family history of atopy, and body mass index.

School children with low birth weight inserted in system of Embu's education: construction of sentences.

Purpose: To characterize the construction of sentences in schoolchildren born with low weight.

Methods: We selected 413 students from Embu das Artes (SP), Brazil. Application of Recreating Speech Acts of Test of Language Competence sub-test.

Adequacy of antenatal care and its relationship with low birth weight in Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil: a case-control study.

Background: Birth weight reflects gestational conditions and development during the fetal period. Low birth weight (LBW) may be associated with antenatal care (ANC) adequacy and quality. The purpose of this study was to analyze ANC adequacy and its relationship with LBW in the Unified Health System in Brazil.

Continuing education on child development for primary healthcare professionals: a prospective before-and-after study.

Context And Objective: Children's developmental disorders are often identified late by healthcare professionals working in primary care. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of a continuing education program on child development, on the knowledge and practices of these professionals.

Design And Setting: Prospective single-cohort study (before-and-after study), conducted in the city of Belém, Pará , Brazil.

[Functional skills of children with deficiencies in school inclusion: barriers to effective inclusion].

The scope of this article is to describe the disabilities of students in the process of inclusion by means of the PEDI - Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Inventory. A cross-sectional analysis was conducted. The population studied included 181 students (7-10 years old) from 31 public schools in São Paulo.

Does low birth weight affect the presence of cardiometabolic risk factors in overweight and obese children?

Unlabelled: Recent findings suggest that low-birth-weight children with current obesity are more likely to have higher systolic blood pressure levels and impaired β-cell function than those who are obese with normal birth weight. It seems possible, however, that concurrent low birth weight with excess weight gain can exacerbate other risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases. The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of birth weight on the lipid/apolipoprotein profile, visfatin levels, and insulin parameters in overweight/obese children.

[The viewpoint of health professionals on the role of basic units in the healthcare network of the Brazilian Unified Health System].

In the process of creation of the Unified Health System (SUS) as a universal policy seeking to ensure comprehensive care, unscheduled assistance in primary healthcare units (UBS) is an unresolved challenge. The scope of this paper is to analyze the viewpoint of health professionals on the role of primary healthcare units in meeting this demand. It is a transversal study of qualitative data obtained through questionnaires and interviews with 106 medical practitioners from 6 emergency medical services and 190 professionals from 30 units.

Association of adipokines with cardiovascular risk factors in low birth weight children: a case-control study.

Unlabelled: Our aim was to investigate plasma levels of adiponectin, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) in low birth weight (LBW) children and to determine correlations among these adipokines and birth weight and cardiovascular disease risk factors. In a case-control study, the concentrations of adiponectin, MCP-1 and PAI-1 were measured in 180 schoolchildren (ages 6-11 years). MCP-1 and PAI-1 levels were significantly elevated in LBW children.

Association of ACE gene insertion/deletion polymorphism with birth weight, blood pressure levels, and ACE activity in healthy children.

Background: The human angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene contains a polymorphism consisting of either an insertion (I) or a deletion (D) of a 287 bp Alu repetitive sequence in intron 16. The potential role of ACE polymorphism in the risk of developing hypertension or other cardiovascular disorders has not been determined in relation to birth weight (BW).

Methods: The ACE genotype and plasma ACE activity were determined in 167 children.

Risk factors for low birth weight in Botucatu city, SP state, Brazil: a study conducted in the public health system from 2004 to 2008.

Background: Low birth weight (LBW), defined as birth weight less than 2500 g, has a complex etiology and may be a result of premature interruption of pregnancy or intrauterine growth restriction. The objective of this study was to provide information on determinants of LBW and contribute to the understanding of the problem in Brazil.

Methods: A case-control study was conducted in Botucatu city, SP state, Brazil.

[Overweight and obesity in prepubertal schoolchildren: the association with low birth weight and family antecedents of cardiovascular disease. Embu - metropolitan region of São Paulo, 2006].

The aim was to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in schoolchildren and the association with birth weight and family antecedents of cardiovascular disease. This cross-sectional study used a probabilistic sample of 929 schoolchildren aged 6 to 10 years. The variables were: body mass index (BMI), birth weight and family antecedents of cardiovascular disease.

The expression of vulnerability through infant mortality in the municipality of Embu.

Context And Objective: Infant mortality expresses a set of living, working and healthcare access conditions and opens up possibilities for adopting interventions to expand equity in healthcare. This study aimed to investigate vulnerability and the consequent differences in access to health services and occurrences of deaths among infants under one year of age in the municipality of Embu.

Design And Setting: This was a descriptive study in the municipality of Embu.

Blood pressure levels in childhood: probing the relative importance of birth weight and current size.

Several studies have reported data supporting the idea that an impaired intrauterine environment that deprives the fetus of optimal nutrient delivery results in the predisposition of the fetus to experience cardiovascular and metabolic dysfunction in later life. However, contradictory data still exist. Our purpose was to investigate the effects of both birth weight and weight gain on the risk for high blood pressure levels in 6- to 10-year-old children.

Prophylaxis for iron deficiency anemia using ferrous sulfate among infants followed up at a primary healthcare unit in the municipality of Embu-SP (2003/2004).

Context And Objective: Iron deficiency anemia is an important public health problem in Brazil. In the municipality of Embu, a population study in 1996 found anemia prevalence of 68.5% among children aged one to two years.