Health status of rural schoolchildren from Byelorussian Polesye: twenty-years shifts.

Abstract

The complex research of children from Byelorussian Polesye has been making by author for last 20 years in the three studies: 1966-68, 1976-78, and 1986. The third one was carried out after the Chernobyl accident in South Byelorussia regions with high level of fall-out contamination. The acceleration of physical growth was established to continue for whole this period. The third study showed evidence of the impairment of immunological resistance and high predisposition to infection and inflammatory disease. It revealed in decrease of leucocytes and lymphocytes count and increase of monocytes and stab/band neutrophiles in comparison with the previous two studies. These results should be useful for monitoring of the population.