Dynamics of the children's health status in the Vologda oblast

Children’s health and wellbeing is the primary concern of the family, the state and society as a whole. The purpose of this research is to identify the main trends in the child population’s health and to identify priority areas for its protection. The information base of the work was made up of the statistical data on Russia and the Vologda Oblast for the longterm period from 2000 to 2017. The study found an increase in child morbidity, stagnation of disability and a decrease in mortality, especially in infancy. Over the years of 20002017 the most common health disorders among children and adolescents are respiratory diseases, injuries and poisonings and other consequences of external causes; infectious and parasitic diseases; diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue. In dynamics for the specified period in the Vologda Oblast the first places on the size of morbidity increase (among children under 14) were taken by neoplasms (2.3 times), diseases of genitourinary system (1.9 times) and respiratory organs (1.6 times). Among adolescents aged 1517 one may point out an increase of genitourinary system diseases (1.9 times), neoplasms (1.8 times), and diseases due to injuries and poisoning (1.7 times). Mental and behavioral disorders, nervous system diseases and congenital development anomalies lead in the structure of children’s disability. The majority of infant deaths occur during the perinatal period (52%) and congenital anomalies (2%), that is, diseases related to the mother’s health. Negative dynamics of child morbidity growth is due to several reasons: the growing detection of deviations in children’s health status in the framework of the Priority national project “Health” and health care modernization; the insufficiency and poor effectiveness of preventive measures; increase in the incidence of individual nosological groups; improved diagnosis of congenital anomalies among infants as a result of screening surveys. In our opinion, the results of this study can be used as an information and analytical basis for the development of effective measures of state social policy.