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

.

.

.

.

.

.

Preliminary pages

In order to assess the coverage of health services for non- insured population receiving health care from the Ministry of Health (SSA), a cross-sectional study was developed. With official statistics of SSA and data from the XI General Census of Population and Housing (1990), ratios of coverage and mortality rates in hospitals were assessed. The data were processed through simple analysis. In addition, states were stratified by groups according to poverty indicators obtained through a factorial analysis with the method of multiple components. The results showed that a polarized health economy for the non-insured population in Mexico is the cause of complex difficulties in the health care provision. The low financial resources affect the distribution of health care services in the states. Seventy six per cent of the non- insured population is concentrated in those states with the highest levels of poverty, with a potential coverage of only 34.2 per cent and just 63.4 per cent of potential population use. The coverage of health care services in the states with lower poverty indicators is 1.9 times that of the states with higher poverty indicators. It was also observed that hospital mortality rate among children less than one year old was 1.7 times higher in poor regions. In general, the health services coverage is low. Therefore, it is necessary to expand the access to health care and improve the quality of services as well as life conditions of the population in the states with the highest poverty indicators. If this occurs, it will be possible to close the gap in order to build a better National Health System.

Risk factors that contribute to high blood lead concentrations were determined in 113 infants, aged 3 to 7 years old, that attended pediatric consultation at the American British Cowdray Hospital (ABC) from May 1991 to October 1992. The range of blood lead concentrations was 4 to 45 µg/dl, with an average value of 15.6 µg/dl (DE= 7.0), and a geometric mean of 14.2 µg/dl (IC95%= 11.9-16.5). Seventy six percent of the children presented blood lead concentrations of over 10 µg/dl. The main predictors of blood lead levels were the use of glazed pottery for cooking rice (ANOVA, p= 0.0000) and the storage of food in glazed pottery (t-test, p= 0.005). There was a significant association between the use of glazed pottery for cooking rice and blood lead concentrations (tendency p= 0.000). The attributable risk of this population due to the use of glazed pottery was 81 per cent. This study sustains the need to develop and enforce public health policies for programs of lead poisoning prevention.

A majority of the sample of children (N= 160-121, ages 6-30 months) from the Mexico City Prospective Lead Study exceeds the lowest limit action level (10 µg/dl) of the Centers for Disease Control standards for childhood lead exposure. Over one-third of the sample at 18 months and 24 months exceeds the action level (15 µg/dl) for aggressive intervention. Diet plays an important role in regulating early childhood blood lead levels. Fresh milk and breast feeding are associated with lower lead levels, but extended breast feeding is related to elevated lead levels. Low income and poor maternal education are associated with higher lead concentration in children. Child consumption of canned milk and juice, up to this date, is associated with elevated child lead levels. Canned products sealed with lead are disappearing from Mexican markets. Efforts to improve childhood nutrition and poverty may be expected to have the additional benefit of lowering lead levels of Mexican children.