Work

Parental Socio‐Economic Factors and the Risk of Invasive Bacterial Infections in Children: A Register‐Based Finnish Study

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: AIM: Little is known about how socio-economic factors influence severe childhood bacterial infections. We explored whether parental socio-economic status correlates with the risk of invasive bacterial infections in the offspring. METHODS: Data on children < 16 years with community-acquired blood or cerebrospinal fluid culture-positive bacterial infections during 2002-2016 were collected from the National Infectious Diseases Register for the following pathogens: Streptococcus agalactiae, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Escherichia coli. Statistics Finland randomly selected five age-, sex- and region-matched controls for cases, including data on parental income and education. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for invasive bacterial infections were estimated using logistic regression. RESULTS: The risk of severe bacterial infection was slightly, but not statistically increased with lowest parental income (OR 1.09, 95% CI 0.94-1.26). This risk was more evident with Escherichia coli. Lower maternal education showed a slight trend towards increased risk of severe bacterial infections (ORs: primary education 1.10, 95% Cl 0.97-1.24; secondary education 1.07, 95% Cl 0.98-1.17). CONCLUSION: Despite universal healthcare and a social welfare system, our data suggest that lower parental income and maternal education may be associated with a slightly increased risk of severe bacterial infections.

Source: Acta Paediatrica

DOI: 10.1111/apa.70517