Biomedical subjects
Anne Margrethe Nielsen
Publications and source records attributed to Anne Margrethe Nielsen.
[The impact of selected environmental factors on the morbidity of children in day care centers].
The purpose of this review was to present the existing evidence of the relation between children's absence from day-care centres caused by disease and environmental factors, such as hygienic standard, space per child, and indoor climate in day-care centres. The review is based on results from cohort studies and randomised, controlled studies identified through literature searches. There is good evidence that improved hand hygiene may reduce the morbidity and absence among children attending day-care centres. The effect of the efforts varies from a few to 50 per cent. On the background of cohort studies there is some evidence that available space per child in the day-care centres is also correlated to the rate of absence caused by diseases. The impact of noise and indoor climate in day-care centres and the time spent outdoors has so far only been sparsely investigated but seems to be of some importance.
[Morbidity of Danish infants during their first months of life. Incidence and risk factors].
INTRODUCTION: The purpose of the study was to describe accumulated incidences of common diseases among Danish children during their first months of life, and identify risks and protective factors. MATERIAL AND METHODS: In 1995, mothers with Danish citizenship of 5998 randomly selected newborn children in Denmark were asked to participate in a national prospective study, representative of children of mothers with Danish citizenship. Mothers of 5429 infants participated and were interviewed when on an average their babies were 4 1/2 months old. RESULTS: At the time of the interview, 85% of all infants had had a cold, 23% had been wheezing, 22% had had rash/eczema, 13% had had vomits, 11% had had diarrhoea, 11% had had high fever without other symptoms, 5% had suffered from middle ear infection, 5% had had pneumonia, 1% had had blood in stools and 1% had had convulsions, and 13% had suffered from other diseases. Maternal age and breastfeeding protected against diseases. Siblings, damp/cold housing, and the psychological stress of the mother increased the risks, whereas maternal smoking and low birth weight had no effect on most of the outcomes. DISCUSSION: This study underpins the significant importance of breastfeeding against morbidity and the augmented risks from siblings.
[Morbidity among infants from ethnic minorities].
INTRODUCTION: The purpose of the study was to describe morbidity in ethnic minority children during their first year of life. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Baseline data from a cohort of 482 ethnic minority children born in Denmark in 1995. The mothers were interviewed in their homes, when on an average their children were 7 1/2 months old. The results were compared with those of a parallel cohort study of 5429 children born in 1995 by Danish citizens. RESULTS: Out of all of the minority children, 86% had had a cold, 33% had had vomits, 29% had had diarrhea, 27% had had fever without other symptoms, 21% had suffered from middle ear infection, 21% had been wheezing, 21% had had eczema/rash, and 10% had suffered from pneumonia. Minority children aged 3-6 months had more often had gastrointestinal symptoms, middle ear infection, high fever without other symptoms and had because of illness more often been seen by a family doctor, an emergency doctor or had visited an emergency room than was the case with Danish children. Minority children had more seldom than Danish children been ill or had a cold or wheeze, and had more seldom been given medication. DISCUSSION: Slightly increased morbidity from some illnesses was found among minority children and a little less from other illnesses compared with Danish children. However, the differences were not substantial.