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Objective: To analyze the weight gain and to describe the metabolic complications in preterm newborns with nutritional support (NS) and to describe nutritional practices in the first month of hospitalization for 52 preterm newborns., Material and Methods: Descriptive and prospective study of preterm infants (30-36 gestational weeks), with birth weight > 1 kg, hospital stay > 12 days, without respiratory support or complications, conducted at a public hospital in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico from January to November 2006. Weight, serum glucose, insulin, cholesterol, triglycerides, gamma-glutamyltransferase, creatinine, urea nitrogen, type of NS (parenteral PN, enteral EN, mixed MN), energy content, and macronutrient intake were measured weekly. To obtain representative data, nutritional practices were not altered by the study protocol. One way ANOVA and Wilcoxon tests were used in data analyses., Results: Overall, 52 newborns were included, averaging 33 gestational weeks and 1,590 g of weight. The NS was started by the fourth day on average. Parenteral nutrition was the most frequent NS during the first 2 weeks (75%). Energy and macronutrient supply was 50% less than the recommended. Weight gain ranged from -100 to 130 g/week. Parenteral nutrition showed better weekly weight gain, followed by EN. The metabolic complication rate per person-day was greater for MN (0.56), than for EN (0.16) or PN (0.09). Routine surveillance of weight and metabolic complications was deficient., Conclusions: Late onset of NS, insufficient energy supply, and deficient surveillance were obstacles to weight gain and to prevent the metabolic complications in these newborns.

Introduction: Recently, there have been new antiseptics for surgical scrub that do not require brushing. One of them contains 1% chlorhexidine gluconate and 61% ethyl alcohol; within its benefits, it may offer a low potential for skin sensitization, as well as cost savings and less use of water., Objectives: To evaluate satisfaction levels, washing time, safety, cost and amount of water between the traditional surgical scrub technique (group A) and brush-free surgical scrub procedure (group B)., Material and Methods: One hundred clean and clean-contaminated surgeries with four hundred members of surgical teams were included. Satisfaction levels, hand-washing time, skin disorders and problems associated with placement of gloves were evaluated. Hands cultures were taken in 20% of the population and the amount of water used by patients in group A was measured. Total costs and wound infections were analyzed., Results: Satisfaction scale in group A was 9.1 +/- 1.39 and 9.5 +/- 1.54 in group B (p = 0.004). The mean hand-washing time was 3.9 +/- 1.07 min in group A and 2.0 +/- 0.47 min in group B (p = 0.00001). Thirteen patients had dry skin in group A and four in group B (6.5% vs. 2%; p = 0.02). There were ten positives cultures in group A and five in group B (25% vs. 12.5%, p = 0.152). Wound infection rate was 3%. On average, five-hundred eighty liters of water were used by the former group, and the estimated hand-washing cost was lower in the second group., Conclusions: The handwashing technique with CGEA is as effective as traditional surgical scrub technique, and it is associated with less washing time, dry skin, cost and use of water.

Introduction: The administration of parenteral infusates is a frequent intervention that is considered innocuous; moreover, the risk of this procedure which offers a direct access to the bloodstream is minimized., Objective: To evaluate the epidemiology of nosocomial pediatric bacteremias after implementing a control program., Methods: Analysis of pediatric bacteremias was made in 3 periods: 1) 1990-1992, prior to establishing strategies to avoid contamination of parenteral infusions; 2) 1996, the phase after establishing these strategies; and 3) 2005-2006, the recent situation in the hospital., Results: The proportion of gram-negative rods isolated in blood cultures dropped from 82.9 to 35.1% (p = 0.004) during the 17-year study period. There was no significant difference in the proportion of gram-negative rods isolated from intravascular catheters. The proportion of contaminated parenteral infusions dropped from 22.2% to 0.4% (p < 0.001)., Discussion: The strategies established to avoid the contamination of parenteral infusions were associated with a reduction in the proportion of gram-negative rods in blood cultures, although the proportion is still higher than that in developed countries, probably related to catheter contamination. We suggest establishing similar strategies in other hospitals from developing countries.

Objective: To determine the rate of contamination of intravenous solutions and injection ports in pediatric patients., Material and Methods: During non-epidemic periods, eight pediatric wards in Mexican hospitals were studied. Qualitative cultures were performed from the surface of injection ports and from intravenous solutions in use in pediatric patients younger than 2 years, culturing 750 infusion systems from 728 patients., Results: The rate of contamination of intravenous solutions was 2.4% (18/750; CI 95%: 1.3% to 3.5%) and for injection ports it was 3.2% (24/750; CI 95%: 2.1% to 4.3%). Enterobacteriaceae predominated; in four cases the organisms isolated from the port and from the solutions were coincident (Klebsiella spp. and Enterobacter sp.). The rate of contamination for solutions mixed in the wards was 5.1%, against 1.3% of those not mixed (chi2 = 9.19, p < 0.01)., Discussion: Contamination of parenteral solutions is not a rare phenomenon and it could be related to inappropriate practices in the preparation of intravenous solutions and medications as well as the contamination of injection ports. In hospitals working with standards similar to those reported here, the monitoring of sterility of intravenous solutions could contribute to reduce the rate of nosocomial bacteremia.

Background: Mortality predictive indexes have not been applied to patients in general wards out of the ICU., Methods: Retrolective study aimed to evaluate the value of mortality prediction indexes in a cohort of 944 non-critical patients. Three indexes were evaluated according to their calibration and discriminative power: the Mortality Probability Model II (MPMII), the Simplified Acute Physiology System II (SAPS II) and the Logistic Organ Dysfunction System (LODS). The bivariate calculation of relative risk (RR) to die was performed relative to the group of patients that had an expected probability to die > 10%, calculated by an index. To evaluate the calibration, data were arranged in descending order using the chi2 goodness-of-fit model. To evaluate discrimination power, ROC curves were used., Results: SAPS II, MPM II and LODS predicted significant risks at levels of P < 0.005, (RR = 6.56, 4.03 and 3.44, respectively). Regarding the calibration, the null hypothesis was accepted only by using SAPS II (P = 0.664)., Conclusions: The three evaluated indexes each had a good discriminative capacity to detect non-critical inpatients with high risk to die. SAPS II was the best index to predict mortality, as determined by both the bivariate and the calibration analysis. There is no reason for not using mortality predictive indexes for non-critical inpatients.

Objective: To know the quality of the water from hospitals and the risks that poor chlorination implies., Methods: We analyzed 90 water specimens from 15 hospitals (9 from the private and 6 from the public sector). Specimens were obtained from three areas (hospitalization ward, operating room, and kitchen) in two visits., Results: By microbiologic analysis, we found 30 (33.3%) contaminated specimens. By chemical analysis, we found only 49 (54.5%) specimens with adequate chlorination (> or = 1 mg/L). Of the 30 contaminated specimens, only 7 (23.3%) had adequate chlorination. On the other hand, of the 60 specimens without contamination, 42 (79%) had adequate chlorination (chi2 = 17.561, p < 0.001). The significant difference was sustained when the criterion for appropriate chlorination was established at > or = 0.5 mg/L., Conclusions: Hospitals require guidelines for water chlorination and testing to maintain it at > or = 0.5 mg/L in every point of use.

Objective: To analyze the challenges and accomplishments of the Mexican health system as it faced the HIV/AIDS epidemic over the 20 years since discovery of the virus., Methods: A review of the relevant literature was done. The topics revised were: HIV/AIDS epidemiology, the early response of the health system and civil society, prevention and risk behaviors, care and treatment, and financing and resources allocation., Discussion: In Mexico a rapid initial public response surely contributed to containing any early spread of the epidemic to select populations; whether that spread will continue to be contained is an open question. Sexual risk practices remain high not only among traditional risk populations but also among youth. Even though the epidemic remains concentrated in Mexico, principally among MSM and IDU, only 13% of public HIV prevention funds are directed to key populations at especially high risk of becoming infected or infecting others. In recent years antiretroviral coverage has increased rapidly with funding increasing from 30 to 367 million pesos from 2001 to 2003 and coverage now approaching 100%. Of all health spending on HIV/AIDS in the public sector, 82.4% is spent by the social security institutes and 17.6% by the Ministry of Health. The former provides medical care to about half of PLHA while the latter, in addition to caring for the other half, supports the large majority of prevention expenses. One of the challenges faced by the health system which has largely achieved universal antiretroviral coverage is how to provide quality care with appropriate monitoring, promotion of adherence and recognition and treatment of resistance and adverse effects--without dramatically increasing costs.