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We have taken every care to ensure that drug dosages and related medical advice in this book are accurate. However, drug and disinfectant dosages can change and are updated often, so always double-check dosages and procedures against a reliable, up-to-date formulary and the given drug’s documentation before administering it.

Child Healthcare: a guide to common paediatric disorders

First published in 2007 by Bettercare. This version produced on 26 February 2025.

Updated August 2007, January 2015 (layout), February 2019.

Text © Perinatal Education Trust 2007

ISBN (paperback): 978-1-920218-01-0
ISBN (international paperback edition): 978-1-717895-17-2
ISBN (reflowable ebook): 978-1-920218-95-9

Excluding content explicitly credited to others, this book is published under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License. For details, see creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0.

This licence means you may share, copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format under the following terms:

  • Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the licence, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
  • Non-Commercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes.
  • No Derivatives — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.

For any other uses, please contact Bettercare.

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      1. Home
      1. How to use our books
      2. Buy printed books
      3. About Bettercare
      4. FAQs
      5. Contact us
      1. Acknowledgements
      2. Introduction
        1. About Bettercare
        2. Why decentralised learning?
        3. Free Bettercare Online Learning Platform
        4. Learning programmes
        5. Format of the courses
        6. Contributors
        7. Updating the course material
        8. Contact information
        9. Registration
      3. 1 The history and examination
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. The first meeting
        4. The review of any referral information
        5. Basic information
        6. The history
        7. The physical examination
        8. Special investigations
        9. The assessment
        10. A plan of action
        11. Writing good clinical notes
        12. Case studies
      4. 2 Immunisation
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. BCG immunisation
        4. Polio immunisation
        5. Immunisation against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis
        6. Measles immunisation
        7. Immunisation against Hepatitis B
        8. Immunisation against Haemophilus influenzae, rota virus and Pneumococcus
        9. Handling vaccines
        10. Case studies
      5. 3 Growth and development
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Measuring body size
        4. The importance of growth monitoring
        5. Growth charts
        6. Growth curves
        7. Growth patterns
        8. Overweight and obesity
        9. The Road-to-Health Booklet
        10. Neurodevelopment
        11. Sexual development
        12. Case studies
      6. 4 Nutrition
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Malnutrition
        4. Protein energy malnutrition
        5. Vitamin deficiencies
        6. Trace element and mineral deficiencies
        7. Iron deficiency
        8. Case studies
      7. 5 Diarrhoea
        1. Objectives
        2. Diagnosis and causes of diarrhoea
        3. The complications of acute diarrhoea
        4. Treatment of diarrhoea
        5. Management of dehydration
        6. Prevention of diarrhoea
        7. Case studies
      8. 6 Upper respiratory tract conditions
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Common cold
        4. Acute sinusitis
        5. Allergic rhinitis
        6. Pharyngitis and tonsillitis
        7. Otitis media
        8. Epiglottitis
        9. Influenza
        10. Case Studies
      9. 7 Lower respiratory tract conditions
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Viral croup
        4. Bronchitis
        5. Bronchiolitis
        6. Pneumonia
        7. Asthma
        8. An approach to lower respiratory tract conditions
        9. Case Studies
      10. 8 Tuberculosis
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Tuberculosis
        4. Case studies
      11. 9 HIV infection
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Transmission of HIV to children
        4. Diagnosing HIV infection in a child
        5. The clinical diagnosis of HIV infection and AIDS
        6. Management of HIV-exposed infants
        7. Management of children with symptomatic HIV infection
        8. Case studies
      12. 10 Childhood infections
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Measles
        4. Chickenpox
        5. Mumps
        6. Herpes stomatitis
        7. Acute viral hepatitis
        8. Tick-bite fever
        9. Acute conjunctivitis
        10. Case studies
      13. 11 Parasites
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Roundworms
        4. Whipworms
        5. Pinworms
        6. Hookworms
        7. Tapeworms
        8. Hydatid disease
        9. Giardiasis
        10. Amoebiasis
        11. Bilharzia
        12. Malaria
        13. Case Studies
      14. 12 Skin conditions
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Local viral infection
        4. Local fungal infections
        5. Local bacterial infections
        6. Rashes due to systemic infections
        7. Local parasitic infestations
        8. Rashes due to skin irritants
        9. Rashes due to allergies
        10. Other skin conditions in children
        11. Typical presentation of rashes
        12. Case studies
      15. 13 Serious illnesses
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Acute rheumatic fever
        4. Acute glomerulonephritis
        5. Septicaemia
        6. Meningitis
        7. Pyelonephritis
        8. Other bacterial infections
        9. Diabetes
        10. Convulsions
        11. Cancer
        12. Case studies
      16. 14 Home and society
        1. Objectives
        2. Children’s rights
        3. Poverty
        4. Social environment
        5. Child abuse
        6. Street children
        7. Orphans
        8. Developmental screening
        9. Neurodevelopmental disability
        10. Behaviour and emotional problems
        11. Case studies
      17. 15 Childhood mortality
        1. Objectives
        2. Introduction
        3. Collecting information on under-5 deaths
        4. Mortality review
        5. Causes of under-5 deaths
        6. The analysis of mortality data
        7. Ways of avoiding the common causes of under-5 deaths
        8. Case studies
      18. Skin-conditions: photographs
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