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Background: Objective structured clinical examination has advantages over traditional oral examinationt of medical student. However, it is not routinely used in Chile. Aim: To describe the objective structured clinical examination system and report the results of its first use with Chilean medical students. Material and methods: Thirteen interns ware evaluated at the end of their surgical rotation, using the objective structured clinical examination. Thirteen stations were structured for this examination: one for history taking, two for physical examination, four for problem solving and knowledge, one for radiological interpretation, one for instrumental recognition, one for skills and one for text comprehension. There were a total of 88 questions. Results: All students exceeded 60% of requirements. Mean approval score was 73%. The higher score was 80% and the lower 61%. Ten students had a score over 70%. The method was well accepted by teachers and students. Conclusions: This first local experience with the objective structured clinical examination was successful (Rev Med Chile 2000; 128: 1039-44).

Three different scredules of treatment for Giardia lamblia infection were evaluated in 416 children from poor neighbourhoods kindergarten schools by parasitologicai examination of fecal samples, In the first kindergarten (group I), children were only given oral tinidazol 50 mg • kg of body weight for three times, at diagnosis and later at three months intervals. In the second one [group II] the same treatment schedule was given together with health education on preventive measures on each one of the three oportunities. Children attending to the third kindergarten (group 111) received pharmacological treatment only iwice, at diagnosis and after six months, but health education was given thrice, also at three month intervals from diagnosis. The frequency of infection lowered significantly from 43.9% to 17.5% at the end of the school year [p < 0.05| in group II patients, bu* only from 36.3% to 25.4% in group I and from 50.5% to 21 .8% in group 1 1 1 . Thus, giardicsis seems to be best controlled by both periodical treatment and health education of infected ch.i'dren.