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Dietary sodium is required in very small amounts to support circulating blood volume and blood pressure (BP). Available nutritional surveillance data suggest that most Canadian children consume sodium in excess of their dietary requirements. Approximately 80% of the sodium Canadians consume comes from processed and packaged foods. High sodium intakes in children may be an indicator of poor diet quality. Results from systematic reviews and meta-analyses have demonstrated that decreasing dietary sodium in children leads to small but clinically insignificant decreases in BP. However, population-level strategies to reduce sodium consumption, such as food product reformulation, modifying food procurement processes, and federal healthy eating policies, are important public health initiatives that can produce meaningful reductions in sodium consumption and help to prevent chronic disease in adulthood.

Azithromycin is an antibiotic that is commonly prescribed for upper and lower respiratory tract infections in children. While it has proven benefits, some concerns regarding azithromycin use have arisen in recent years. This practice point considers azithromycin therapy for acute respiratory infections in otherwise healthy children. Pharmacokinetics, spectrum of activity, the problem of resistant bacteria and clinical aspects are considered, along with recommendations for use and contraindications. Azithromycin should be avoided in patients with a significant risk of bacteremia. It is associated with pneumococcal resistance and, with stated exceptions, is generally not recommended for the treatment of acute pharyngitis, acute otitis media or pneumococcal community-acquired pneumonia in the paediatric population.L’azithromycine est un antibiotique souvent prescrit chez les enfants en présence d’infections des voies respiratoires supérieures et inférieures. Elle a des avantages démontrés, mais plusieurs préoccupations ont surgi ces dernières années au sujet de son utilisation. Le présent point de pratique permet d’évaluer le traitement d’infections respiratoires aiguës à l’azithromycine chez des enfants autrement en santé. La pharmacocinétique, le spectre d’activités, le problème de bactéries résistantes et les aspects cliniques sont évalués, de même que les recommandations relatives à l’utilisation et les contre-indications. Il faudrait éviter l’azithromycine chez les patients présentant un risque marqué de bactériémie. Ce médicament s’associe à une résistance pneumococcique et, sauf dans des exceptions définies, il n’est généralement pas recommandé pour traiter la pharyngite aiguë, l’otite moyenne aiguë ou la pneumonie pneumococcique d’origine non nosocomiale au sein de la population d’âge pédiatrique.