Lesiones laborales en ninos que trabajan en la calle en America Latina: prevalencia y factores de prediccion

Work-related injuries among child street-laborers in Latin America: prevalence and predictors Objectives. To determine the prevalence and nature of occupational injuries among children working in the streets of four major cities in Latin America, as well as to identify factors that predict these work-related injuries. Methods. This cross-sectional study interviewed 584 children from 5-17 years of age working on the streets of Bogota, Colombia; Lima, Peru; Quito, Ecuador; and Sao Paulo, Brazil. Descriptive analyses and multivariate logistic regressions were conducted, with incidence and serious injuries regressed on occupational and sociodemographic variables. Results. Approximately 39.6% of the child street-laborers surveyed reported an injury sustained while working in the streets: scratches (19.5%), cuts/lacerations (16.4%), burns (8.6%), car accidents (8.9%), sprains (4.6%), and amputations (0.3%). Working a high number of daytime hours and performing on the street predicted the greatest risk of injury, even after controlling for sociodemographic factors; specifically, each additional hour of daytime work increased the risk of injury by 1.4%. Child performers had three times the injury rate of children primarily selling products. Boys, older children, and children in Quito were more likely to experience moderate-to-severe injuries, than girls, younger children, and street children in the other study cities. Conclusions. Interventions are needed to address the substantial risk of injury experienced by children working on the city streets of Latin America. Key words Child labor; homeless youth; accidents, occupational; Brazil; Colombia; Ecuador; Latin America; Peru. Objetivos. Determinar la prevalencia y la naturaleza de las lesiones laborales en ninos que trabajan en las calles de cuatro grandes ciudades de America Latina e identificar los factores de prediccion de esas lesiones. Metodos. Estudio transversal mediante entrevistas a 584 ninos de 5 a 17 anos que trabajaban en las calles de Bogota, Colombia; Lima, Peru; Quito, Ecuador; y Sao Paulo, Brasil. Se realizaron analisis descriptivos y regresiones logisticas multifactoriales de la incidencia y la gravedad de las lesiones con relacion a las variables laborales y sociodemograficas. Resultados. Aproximadamente 39,6% de los ninos trabajadores de la calle encuestados informo haber sufrido lesiones mientras trabajaba: rasgunos (19,5%), heridas/laceraciones (16,4%), quemaduras (8,6%), accidentes con automov