OBJECTIVE: To compare the incidence of acute otitis media among children aged 2 to 6 months old in Sampaloc, Manila who were previously given 3 doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Non-Typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) protein D, diphtheria or tetanus toxoid conjugates) and those who did not receive the vaccine over a period of one year.
METHODS:
Design: Cohort Study
Setting: Primary Health Center in Sampaloc, Manila, Philippines
Participants: Medical records of well children aged 2 to 6 months were reviewed for inclusion. Participants were categorized into vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. Both groups underwent baseline history and physical examination including otoscopy and any signs and symptoms of active ear infection were noted. Subjects were followed up for a period of one year on a monthly basis for signs or symptoms of acute otitis media.
RESULTS: A total of 176 subjects participated in the study. The overall incidence of AOM among participants was 5.11% (9 out of 176). An AOM incidence of 3.75% (3 out of 80) and 6.25% (6 out of 96) was found among the exposed and unexposed groups, respectively. Fisher's exact test (one-tailed) p value= .34, relative risk (RR) .6 (95% Cl 0.155, 2.323).
CONCLUSION: The results of this study showed no difference in the development of AOM in the two groups. However, based on the relative risk, Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is still beneficial in preventing AOM in children.

Human ; Male ; Female ; Infant ; Diphtheria ; Otoscopy ; Inflammation

Proper maternal nutrition evidently results in good pregnancy outcomes both for the mother and born infant. However, the process leading to good nutrition during pregnancy remains a challenge most especially during public health emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which brought limitations on access to a variety of foods as well as nutrition services. Thus, nutrition education through the provision of contextualized information, education and communication (IEC) materials was explored as an alternative delivery strategy. The delivery strategy aims to increase the number of pregnant women in Barangay Palanan, Makati City, Philippines who have adequate nutrition knowledge through IEC materials-based nutrition education that is contextualized during public health emergencies. As an outcome, the delivery strategy intends to increase the number of pregnant women who have normal nutritional status as determined by weight per month of pregnancy. Results in determining the adequacy of nutrition knowledge through pre- and post-testing show that there is a 10% increase in the passing rate from 59% at baseline to 69% at endline. From the number of pregnant women who have taken the post-test, a remarkable 52% have either post-test scores that are maintained or improved. Meanwhile, for pregnant women who have normal nutritional status, an increase of 5% was seen given by 46% at baseline to 51% at endline. Ultimately, IEC materials-based nutrition education may serve as a supplementary approach in the continuous provision of nutrition services to attain good nutrition of pregnant women amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pregnancy ; COVID-19