Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2019 Nov;108(11):2075-2082.
doi: 10.1111/apa.14874. Epub 2019 Jun 23.

Early childhood infections and the use of antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics in Finland, Estonia and Russian Karelia

Neea Mustonen  1   2 , Heli Siljander  1   2 , Aleksandr Peet  3 , Vallo Tillmann  3 , Taina Härkönen  1   2 , Jorma Ilonen  4   5 , Heikki Hyöty  6   7 , Mikael Knip  1   2   8   9 ; DIABIMMUNE Study Group
Collaborators, Affiliations
Comparative Study

Early childhood infections and the use of antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics in Finland, Estonia and Russian Karelia

Neea Mustonen et al. Acta Paediatr. 2019 Nov.

Abstract

Aim: Infections in early childhood are common reasons to seek medical attention. This study compares the prevalence of infections, and the use of antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics, in children from Finland, Estonia and Russian Karelia.

Methods: Children with a genetically increased risk for type 1 diabetes (N = 797) were observed from birth up to 3 years of age. Illnesses and medications were reported by parents continuously. All reported infections, antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics were compared between Finland and Estonia, and to a lesser extent with Russian Karelia, due to poor study compliance.

Results: Compared with Estonians, Finns reported more infections during the first and second years of life. During the follow-up, Finnish children had 10 infections while Estonians only had 8 (p < 0.001). Finns also used more antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics in each year during the follow-up. Russian Karelians reported the lowest frequency of infections and the most infrequent use of antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics in the first two years of life.

Conclusion: Infections and the use of antibiotics and antipyretic-analgesics in early childhood were most frequent in Finland, where socio-economic conditions are the most developed and microbial encounters are sparse. This may reflect on the hygiene hypothesis, a less effective immune system that allows normally harmless microbes to attack and cause clinical infections.

Keywords: Antibiotics; Antipyretic-analgesics; Childhood infections; The hygiene hypothesis.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Kusel MM, de Klerk NH, Holt PG, Kebadze T, Johnston SL, Sly PD. Role of respiratory viruses in acute upper and lower respiratory tract illness in the first year of life: a birth cohort study. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2006; 25: 680-6.
    1. Regamey N, Kaiser L, Roiha HL, Deffernez C, Kuehni CE, Latzin P, et al. Viral etiology of acute respiratory infections with cough in infancy: a community-based birth cohort study. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2008; 27: 100-5.
    1. Nyquist AC, Gonzales R, Steiner JF, Sande MA. Antibiotic prescribing for children with colds, upper respiratory tract infections, and bronchitis. JAMA 1998; 279: 875-7.
    1. Jacobs RF. Judicious use of antibiotics for common pediatric respiratory infections. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2000; 19: 938-43.
    1. Wise R, Hart T, Cars O, Streulens M, Helmuth R, Huovinen P, et al. Antimicrobial resistance is a major threat to public health. BMJ 1998; 317: 609-10.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources