Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Objective. To describe the national by federal entity prevalence of the nutritional status of weight and length at birth. Materials and methods. Cross-sectional descrip­tive study. Data from 1 907 341 alive newborns in 2017, registered in the Subsistema de Información sobre Nacimientos (Sinac), were analyzed. The percentiles for weight and length were estimated in the INTERGROWTH-21st platform. Re­sults. The prevalence of small gestational age (SGA) and insufficient length (IL) was 7.4 and 4.8%, respectively. Differ­ences in the prevalence of IL, SGA and large for the gestational age (LGA) by sex were recorded (p <0.01). The entities with the highest prevalence of SGA were Estado de México and Yucatán (10.4%); Sonora (15.3%) and Baja California Sur (16.8%) of LGA. Conclusion. Sizing the nutritional status at birth allows the identification of entities that require targeted actions to reduce the risks associated with malnutrition.

Colombia has a tradition on Public Health education since the mid years of 1950’s. The first cohorts of Public Health academics and workers were trained at the National School of Public Health, which was established, with the support of the Rockefeller Foundation, at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogota, but later moved to the Universidad de Antioquia in Medellin. In the current context, Colombian Public Health academics have rallied against the neoliberal Health Reform implanted in 1993 that has failed to address the country’s health priorities. Most of the interactions between Public Health academic leaders with government and other decision makers, revolve around the discussion on whether a new way to conceptualize and operate the national health system should be visualized and implemented. So far, the academic sector have been unable to overthrow the main aspects of the Reform −private insurance companies operating, and profiting, on public money− but they have demonstrated how inequalities in health access have widening under the Health Reform and how it have been unable to improve the health situation of the population.

A healthy and safe public health environment is a fundamental responsibility of government; achieving it requires collaboration across multiple sectors. Public health services include, forexample, vaccination and quarantine for infectious diseases; health promotion, such as anti-smoking campaigns for noncommunicable diseases; and health insurance for universal health coverage. All these services require intersectoral actions in which the government must play a fundamental role, either partially or totally. The Taiwanese outlook on governmental public health infrastructure and professionalization of public health is given in this paper. It also describes the national governmental public health measures that were employed during the Covid-19 pandemic and discusses the challenges ahead for the country’s governmental public health. Governmental public health is essential and should not be affected by changes in political forms or socioeconomic development. Instead, effective governmental public health will promote these developments while protecting citizens’ right to health.

Objective. To estimate Covid-19 and pre-pandemic low respiratory infection (LRI) mortality in children and adolescents in Mexico. Materials and methods. We estimated the percentage of total mortality attributable to Covid-19 (95% confidence intervals; 95%CI) and made the corresponding estimates for pre-pandemic LRI mortality. Results. In 2019, LRIs represented 8.6% (95%CI 8.3, 8.9) of deaths in children aged 0-9 years, and 2.0% (95%CI 1.8, 2.3) in those aged 10-19 years. In 2020, the corresponding estimates for Covid-19 were 4.4% (95%CI 4.1, 4.6) and 3.7% (95%CI 3.4, 4.1). Conclusions. Relative to LRI, Covid-19 may be exerting a considerable mortality burden, particularly in older children and adolescents.

Objective. To characterize the impact of Mexico’s Co­vid-19 vaccination campaign of older adults. Materials and methods. We estimated the absolute change in sympto­matic cases, hospitalizations and deaths for vaccine-eligible adults (aged >60 years) and the relative change compared to vaccine-ineligible groups since the campaign started. Re­sults. By May 3, 2021, the odds of Covid-19 cases among adults over 60 compared to 50-59 year olds decreased by 60.3% (95%CI: 53.1, 66.9), and 2 003 cases (95%CI: 1 156, 3 130) were avoided. Hospitalizations and deaths showed similar trends. Conclusions. Covid-19 events decreased after vaccine rollout among those eligible for vaccination.

Prolonged delays in breast cancer screening related to the Covid-19 pandemic may lead to delayed diagnoses, poor health consequences, and an increase in cancer disparities among women already experiencing health inequities. There is a void in empirical high-quality evidence to support a specific strategy for administering cancer screening during a pandemic and its resolution phase, but several pragmatic considerations can help guide its recovery and ensure its continuity. One of these strategies is to address the backlogs in the diagnostic and follow-up of breast cancer, designing programs that align with the current epidemiological situation. Here, we present some approaches for the generation of breast cancer detec­tion programs which embody recommendations and obliga­tions to overcome the SARS-CoV-2. With this initiative, we reinforce our commitment to advance health care by ensuring more women have access to preventive care.

Objective. To estimate the sensitivity and specificity of two Mexican death registries for the identification of vital status using a publicly available record-linkage tool. Materials and methods. We selected all reported deaths (n=581) and 575 alive participants in an epidemiologic cohort with active follow-up. Individual records were cross-linked to two mortal­ity registries. Results. A sensitivity of 87.2% (95%CI: 84.7, 90.2) and specificity of 99.3% (95%CI: 98.2, 99.8) were jointly achieved with both registries. Major discrepancies in cause of death were observed in 10.8% of deaths. Conclusion. There is initial evidence that Mexican death registries are a valuable resource for mortality follow-up in epidemiologic studies.

Objective. To assess the consistency of fertility estimates from two surveys with different sample sizes and data collec­tion formats. Materials and methods. Using data from the Encuesta Demográfica Retrospectiva (Eder) 2011 and 2017, this study compares reproductive indicators in two samples of women aged 43 years and older. Results. The two surveys produce the same estimates of fertility intensity and timing for the cohort studied, including differences by schooling and marital experience. Consistency is also confirmed in the most frequent family formation patterns and in the greater preference for sons. Conclusions. The adjustments to the statistical design and the collection in electronic format had no significant effect on the fertility estimates and their differentials by level of schooling. Evaluations of the same type are required for the variety of thematic dimensions covered by the survey to demonstrate the validity of the information collected.

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