Highlights of this issue

Overcrowding puts Inuit children at risk

This study by Kovesi and colleagues shows that reduced ventilation and crowding in the homes of young Inuit children may be a factor in the very high rate of lower respiratory tract infection found among them. Orr discusses the research quality of this study and the questions raised by the investigators' findings.

See pages 155 and 167

Vitamin D–deficiency rickets in Canadian children

Despite guidelines and public health measures to ensure sufficient vitamin D intake, vitamin D–deficiency rickets is a continuing problem among Canadian children. Ward and colleagues present the annual incidence rates of this condition in Canada and conclude that there has been a failure to prevent vitamin D deficiency in Canada. In a related commentary, Grenier discusses the importance of national surveillance programs such as the Canadian Paediatric Surveillance Program.

See pages 161 and 169

Pediatric tuberculosis screening

The risk of pediatric tuberculosis is highest among children less than 5 years old. In Canada, internationally adopted children form one of the few groups largely affected by this disease. In this commentary, Long and Boffa explain the inadequacies of the standard immigration medical examination in identifying pediatric tuberculosis and the steps needed to meet the specific medical screening needs of these children.

See page 172

Practice

Transfusion reactions: Yazer and colleagues use a case-based approach to illustrate common types of transfusion reactions (page 141).

In Clinical Vistas Briefs, a 76-year-old woman has peripheral edema and episodic shortness of breath; a young man experiences persistent fever, low back pain and rapid weight loss; and a homeless man fails to thrive after medical treatment (page 148).

In Clinical Vistas, a chest radiograph and CT scan are used to diagnose a transfusion-related acute lung injury (page 149).