Objective: To characterize the presentation of burns in children and risk factors associated with their occurrence in a developing country as a basis for future prevention programs. Design: Case-control study. Setting: Burn unit of the National Institute of Child Health (Instituto Nacional de Salud del Niño) in Lima, Peru. Methods: A questionnaire was administered to all consenting guardians of children admitted to the burns (cases) and general medicine (controls) units during a period of 14 months. Guardians of patients were questioned regarding etiology of the injury, demographic and socioeconomic data. Results: 740 cases and controls were enrolled. Altogether 77.5% of the cases burns occurred in the patient's home, with 67.8% in the kitchen; 74% were due to scalding. Most involved children younger than 5 years. Lack of water supply (odds ratio (OR) 5.2, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.1 to 12.3), low income (OR 2.8, 95% CI 2.0 to 3.9), and crowding (OR 2.5, 95%CI 1.7 to 3.6) were associated with an increased risk. The presence of a living room (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.4 to 0.8) and better maternal education (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.5 to 0.9) were protective factors. Conclusions: To prevent burns interventions should be directed to low socioeconomic status groups; these interventions should be designed accordingly to local risk factors.

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A novel heminested IS6110 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay was evaluated as a tool for diagnosing tuberculosis in 222 children. In an analysis of 392 specimens (gastric aspirates, nasopharyngeal aspirates, and sputum samples), results of PCR were compared with those of 3 culture methods, acid-fast bacillus (AFB) staining, and clinical assessment by the Stegen-Toledo score. The sensitivity of PCR (67%) was comparable to that of the 3-culture method (71%) and was significantly higher than that of Löwenstein-Jensen culture (54%) or AFB stain (42%) for children with highly probable tuberculosis. PCR detection rates for culture-positive specimens were 100% for smear-positive samples and 76.7% for smear-negative samples. The specificity of PCR was 100% in control children. Compared with culture, PCR demonstrated a sensitivity of 90.4%, a positive predictive value of 89%, a specificity of 94%, and a negative predictive value of 95% (kappa=.85). With clinical assessment as the standard, PCR had a sensitivity of 71%, a positive predictive value of 92%, a specificity of 95%, and a negative predictive value of 79% (kappa=.67). PCR is a rapid and sensitive method for the early diagnosis of pediatric tuberculosis.

The typical presentation of PTB in Peruvian children includes symptoms of active pulmonary disease similar to those seen in adults. This presentation differs significantly from that reported in developed countries, where many children have minimal or no symptoms at the time of presentation. The diagnostic criteria for pediatric PTB must be modified in hyperendemic developing country environments where features may differ from those described in the United States. The triad of cough lasting >/=2 weeks, fever, and a PPD >/=10 mm was highly predictive for culture-positive PTB among children in this low-income Peruvian population.

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