Lesions on extremities.

Approximately five billion people do not have access to necessary surgical treatment globally and up to 85% of children in LMICs are affected with conditions requiring surgical care by the age of 15 years. It is crucial to identify common surgical conditions in children in Pakistan to inform healthcare professionals and policymakers for effective resource allocation. This representative cross-sectional household survey conducted on children aged 5–10 years assessed existing surgical diseases and healthcare-seeking behaviors in the two largest provinces (Sindh and Punjab) of Pakistan. The data was collected through a validated cross-sectional survey tool [Surgeons OverSeas Assessment of Surgical Need (SOSAS)]. Caregivers were asked about their child’s recent and past surgical conditions in six distinct anatomical regions and pictures were taken of identified conditions after appropriate consent for further diagnosis. Health-seeking behaviors including the kind of treatment sought, the nature of care received, and the reasons for not receiving care were noted. 13.5% of children surveyed reported a surgical condition, with a similar distribution across urban (13.2%) and rural (13.7) areas and the most common cause was trauma. The greatest number of surgical conditions were found to be on the head and neck region (57.7%), while the back accounted for the least number of conditions (1.7%). Our results outline a need for organizing all entities (governmental, non-governmental, and private) involved in child health to ensure efficient resource allocation to cater to existing surgical problems.

全球范围内，约五十亿人无法获得必要的手术治疗，而在低收入和中等收入国家（LMICs），高达85%的儿童在15岁之前会受到需要手术治疗病症的影响。识别巴基斯坦儿童中常见的手术病症对于向医疗保健专业人士和政策制定者提供信息，以确保有效资源配置至关重要。本次针对5至10岁儿童进行的代表性横断面家庭调查，评估了巴基斯坦两个最大省份（信德省和旁遮普省）中现有的手术疾病和寻求医疗保健的行为。数据通过验证的横断面调查工具[海外外科医生对手术需求的评估（SOSAS）]收集。照顾者被询问其儿童近期及过去的六种不同解剖区域的手术状况，并在获得适当同意后对确定的状况进行拍照，以供进一步诊断。记录了寻求医疗保健的行为，包括寻求的治疗类型、接受的护理性质以及未接受护理的原因。调查的13.5%的儿童报告了手术状况，城乡地区分布相似（城市13.2%，农村13.7%），最常见的病因是创伤。最多的手术状况出现在头颈部（57.7%），而背部则是手术状况出现最少（1.7%）。我们的研究结果概述了组织所有涉及儿童健康的实体（政府、非政府及私营）的必要性，以确保为现有的手术问题提供高效的资源配置。