The health status of street children and youth in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review of the literature

Journal of Adolescent Health

Volumn 53, Issue 3, 2013, Pages

  Woan, Jessica ^a   Lin, Jessica ^b   Auerswald, Colette ^b,c,d  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON SCHOOL OF MEDICINE   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^c UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

^d UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA   (United States)

Author keywords

Adolescent; Developing countries; Health status; Homeless youth; Review; Street children

Indexed keywords

CHILD BEHAVIOR; CHILD GROWTH; CHILD NUTRITION; CHRONIC DISEASE; COGNITIVE DEFECT; DEVELOPING COUNTRY; DISEASE SEVERITY; HEALTH CARE ACCESS; HEALTH STATUS; HIGH RISK POPULATION; HOMELESSNESS; HUMAN; INFECTION; INJURY; MENTAL DISEASE; MENTAL HEALTH; PRIORITY JOURNAL; REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH; REVIEW; SEXUAL HEALTH; STREET CHILD; SUBSTANCE ABUSE; SYSTEMATIC REVIEW; VIOLENCE;

EID: 84882858232     PISSN: 1054139X     EISSN: 18791972     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2013.03.013     Document Type: Review

References (129)

1. UNICEF Executive Board. Exploitation of working children and street children. U.N. Doc. E/ICEF/1986/CRP.1983; 1986.
2. UNICEF. The state of the world's children 2012: Excluded and invisible: United Nations Publications Report No.: 9280639161; 2012.
3. World Bank. How we classify countries. 2012. Available at: http://data.worldbank.org/about/country-classifications (accessed April 5, 2013).
4. C.S. Hutz, and S.H. Koller Methodological and ethical issues in research with street children New Dir Child Adolesc Dev 85 1999 59 70
5. M. Raffaelli, S.H. Koller, and C.T. Reppold Gender differences in Brazilian street youth's family circumstances and experiences on the street Child Abuse Negl 24 2000 1431 1441
6. P. Vahdani, S.M. Hosseini-Moghaddam, and L. Gachkar Prevalence of hepatitis B, hepatitis C, human immunodeficiency virus, and syphilis among street children residing in southern Tehran, Iran Arch Iran Med 9 2006 153 155
7. G.A. Jones, E. Herrera, and S. Thomas de Benítez Tears, trauma and suicide: Everyday violence among street youth in Puebla, Mexico Bull Latin Am Research V 26 2007 462 479
8. L.F. Berkman, and I. Kawachi Social epidemiology 2000 Oxford University Press New York
9. I. Kawachi, S. Subramanian, and D. Kim Social capital and health Social Capital Health 2008 1 26
10. S.M. Sawyer, R.A. Afifi, and L.H. Bearinger Adolescence: A foundation for future health Lancet 379 2012 1630 1640
11. World Health Organization. Programming for adolescent health and development. WHO technical report series no. 886. Report of WHO/UNFPA/UNICEF Study Group on Programmin1g for Adolescent Health; 1999.
12. R.M. Viner, E.M. Ozer, and S. Denny Adolescence and the social determinants of health Lancet 379 2012 1641 1652
13. World Health Organization Preamble to the Constitution of the World Health Organization as adopted by the International Health Conference, New York, 19-22 June, 1946, and entered into force on 7 April 1948 Official Records of the World Health Organization 2 1946 100
14. UNICEF. The state of the world's children 2011: Adolescence - An Age of Opportunity 2011. Available at: http://www.unicef.org/publications/index-57468. html. Accessed April 5, 2013.
15. World Bank income classifications July 2009 V. Fuster, and B. Kelly Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Preventing the Global Epidemic of Cardiovascular Disease: Meeting the Challenges in Developing Countries 2010 National Academies Press (US) Washington, DC
16. K.H. Nada, and E.D.A. Suliman Violence, abuse, alcohol and drug use, and sexual behaviors in street children of Greater Cairo and Alexandria, Egypt AIDS 24 2010 S39
17. Ramakrishna J, Karott M, Murthy R. Experiences of sexual coercion among street boys in Bangalore, India. In: Bott S, Jejeebhoy S, Shah I, et al, eds. Towards adulthood: Exploring the sexual and reproductive health of adolescents in South Asia. Geneva, Switzerland: 2003. p. 95-98.
18. P. Agnihotri Street boys of Delhi: A study of their family and demographic characteristics Indian J Med Sci 55 2001 543 548
19. A. Ali, and A. de Muynck Illness incidence and health seeking behaviour among street children in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, Pakistan - a qualitative study Child Care Health Dev 31 2005 525 532
20. S.S. Sherman, S. Plitt, and S. ul Hassan Drug use, street survival, and risk behaviors among street children in Lahore, Pakistan J Urban Health Bull NY Acad Med J Urban Health 82 2005 IV113 IV124
21. Y. Beyene, and Y. Berhane Characteristics of street children in Nazareth, Ethiopia East Afr Med J 74 1997 85 88
22. L.P. Greksa, N. Rie, and A.B. Islam Growth and health status of street children in Dhaka, Bangladesh Am J Hum Biol 19 2007 51 60
23. G. Hosny, T.M. Moloukhia, and G. Abd Elsalam Environmental behavioural modification programme for street children in Alexandria, Egypt East Mediterr Health J 13 2007 1438 1448
24. D. Nzimakwe, and H. Brookes An investigation to determine the health status of institutionalised street children in a place of safety in Durban Curationis 17 1994 27 31
25. M. Raffaelli, S.H. Koller, and D. Morais Assessing the development of Brazilian street youth Vulnerable Children Youth Studies Vul 2 2007 154 164
26. J. Ruiz Street youth in Colombia: Lifestyle, attitudes and knowledge. AIDS health promotion exchange/World Health Organization, Global Programme on AIDS Health Promotion Unit 1 1994 12 14
27. A.K. Wutoh, E.K. Kumoji, and Z.Y. Xue HIV knowledge and sexual risk behaviors of street children in Takoradi, Ghana AIDS Behav 10 2006 209 215
28. The story of children living and working on the streets of Nairobi 2002 Women Education Researchers of Kenya (WERK) for SNV/Kenya and German Technical Organization (GTZ)
29. C.C. Huang, P. Barreda, and V. Mendoza A comparative analysis of abandoned street children and formerly abandoned street children in La Paz, Bolivia Arch Dis Child 89 2004 821 826
30. M. Kudrati, M.L. Plummer, and N.D. Yousif Children of the Sug: A study of the daily lives of street children in Khartoum, Sudan, with intervention recommendations Child Abuse Negl 32 2008 439 448
31. B. Matchinda The impact of home background on the decision of children to run away: The case of Yaounde city street children in Cameroon Child Abuse Neglect 23 1999 245 255
32. J. Morakinyo, and A.O. Odejide A community based study of patterns of psychoactive substance use among street children in a local government area of Nigeria Drug Alcohol Depend 71 2003 109 116
33. B.O. Olley Social and health behaviors in youth of the streets of Ibadan, Nigeria Child Abuse Neglect 30 2006 271 282
34. C. Panter-Brick, A. Todd, and R. Baker Growth status of homeless Nepali boys: Do they differ from rural and urban controls? Soc Sci Med 43 1996 441 451
35. E.M. Salem, and F.A. El-Latif Sociodemographic characteristics of street children in Alexandria East Mediterranean Health J 8 2002 64 73
36. R. Seth, A. Kotwal, and K.K. Ganguly Street and working children of Delhi, India, misusing toluene: An ethnographic exploration Subst Use Misuse 40 2005 1659 1679
37. M. Turkmen, P. Okyay, and O. Ata A descriptive study on street children living in a southern city of Turkey Turk J Pediatr 46 2004 131 136
38. P. Tiwari Life on streets Indian J Pediatr 74 2007 283 286
39. D. Pagare, G. Meena, and M. Singh Risk factors of substance use among street children from Delhi Indian Pediatr 41 2004 221 226
40. D. Pagare, G.S. Meena, and R.C. Jiloha Sexual abuse of street children brought to an observation home Ind Pediatr 42 2005 134 139
41. J.L.P. Lugalla, and J.K. Mbwambo Street children and street life in urban Tanzania: The culture of surviving and its implications for children's health Int J Urban Reg Res 23 1999 329 344
42. UNICEF. Street and unsupervised children of Mongolia; 2003. Available at: http://www.unicef.org/mongolia/street-children-Report-Eng.pdf. Accessed April 5, 2013.
43. UNICEF. 2001 ZIM: A study on street children in Zimbabwe. 2001. Available at: http://www.unicef.org/evaldatabase/index-14411.html. Accessed April 5, 2013.
44. M. Ali, S. Shahab, and H. Ushijima Street children in Pakistan: A situational analysis of social conditions and nutritional status Soc Sci Med 59 2004 1707 1717
45. R. Campos, M. Raffaelli, and W. Ude Social networks and daily activities of street youth in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Street Youth Study Group Child Dev 65 2 Spec No 1994 319 330
46. S.O.B. Porto, D.D.P. Cardoso, and D.A.O. Queiroz Prevalence and risk factors for HBV infection among street youth in central Brazil J Adolesc Health 15 1994 577 581
47. L.M.K. Forster, M. Tannhauser, and H.M.T. Barros Drug use among street children in southern Brazil Drug Alcohol Depend 43 1996 57 62
48. M.C.W. Wittig, J.D. Wright, and D.C. Kaminsky Substance use among street children in Honduras Substance Use Misuse 32 1997 805 827
49. M. Raffaelli, E. Siqueira, and A. Paynemerritt HIV-related knowledge and risk behaviors of street youth in Belo-Horizonte, Brazil AIDS Educ Prev 7 1995 287 297
50. R. Gurgel, J. Da Fonseca, and D. Neyra-Castaneda Capture-recapture to estimate the number of street children in a city in Brazil Arch Dis Childhood 89 2004 222
51. J.K. Anarfi Vulnerability to sexually transmitted disease: Street children in Accra Health Transit Rev 7 Suppl 1997 281 306
52. F.T. de Carvalho, L. Neiva-Silva, and M.C. Ramos Sexual and drug use risk behaviors among children and youth in street circumstances in Porto Alegre, Brazil AIDS Behav 10 2006 S57 S66
53. J.K. Anarfi Street youth in Accra city: Sexual networking in a high-risk environment and its implications for the spread of HIV /AIDS Health Trans Rev (Supplement) V 5 1995 131 152
54. Y.N. Kidolezi, J.A. Holmes, and H. Nopo Selection and reporting bias in household surveys of child labor: Evidence from Tanzania Afr Develop Rev 19 2007 368 378
55. L. Aptekar, and L.M. Ciano-Federoff Street children in Nairobi: Gender differences in mental health New Dir Child Adolesc Dev 1999 35 46
56. S. Abdelgalil, R.G. Gurgel, and S. Theobald Household and family characteristics of street children in Aracaju, Brazil Arch Dis Child 89 2004 817 820
57. A.A. Aderinto Social correlates and coping measures of street-children: A comparative study of street and non-street children in south-western Nigeria Child Abuse Neglect 24 2000 1199 1213
58. M. Kerfoot, V. Koshyl, and O. Roganov The health and well-being of neglected, abused and exploited children: The Kyiv Street Children Project Child Abuse Neglect 31 2007 27 37
59. J.A.B. Lee, and S. Odie-Alie Carry me home: A collaborative study of street children in Georgetown, Guyana J Soc Work Res Eval 1 2000 185 196
60. K.J. Lalor Street children: A comparative perspective Child Abuse Neglect 23 1999 759 770
61. A.R. Noto, S.A. Nappo, and J.C.F. Galduroz Use of drugs among street children in Brazil J Psychoactive Drugs 29 1997 185 192
62. J. Grundling, and I. Grundling The concrete particulars of the everyday realities of street children Human Relations 58 2005 173
63. A. Veale, and G. Donà Street children and political violence: A socio-demographic analysis of street children in Rwanda Child Abuse Neglect 27 2003 253 269
64. J.R. Seager, and T. Tamasane Health and well-being of the homeless in South African cities and towns Develop S Africa 27 2010 63 83
65. K. Thapa, S. Ghatane, and S. Rimal Health problems among the street children of Dharan municipality Kathmandu Univ Med J (KUMJ) 7 2010 272 279
66. B. Bal, R. Mitra, and A.H. Mallick Nontobacco substance use, sexual abuse, HIV, and sexually transmitted infection among street children in Kolkata, India Substance Use Misuse 45 2010 1668 1682
67. A. Elkoussi, and S. Bakheet Volatile substance misuse among street children in upper Egypt Substance Use Misuse 46 2011 35 39
68. V.L. Towe, S. ul Hasan, and S.T. Zafar Street life and drug risk behaviors associated with exchanging sex among male street children in Lahore, Pakistan J Adolesc Health 44 2009 222 228
69. K. Ogel, S. Taner, and M. Tosun Juvenile offences among hospitalized adolescent inhalant users in Istanbul: A comparison regarding place of residence J Psychoactive Drugs 38 2006 297 304
70. N.K. Mondal, S. Ghosh, and M.R. Ray Micronucleus formation and DNA damage in buccal epithelial cells of Indian street boys addicted to gasp 'Golden glue' Mutat Res 721 2011 178 183
71. E. Owoaje, and O. Uchendu Sexual risk behaviour of street youths in southwest Nigeria East Afr J Public Health 6 2009 274
72. J.I. Ikechebelu, G.O. Udigwe, and C.C. Ezechukwu Sexual abuse among juvenile female street hawkers in Anambra State, Nigeria Afr J Reprod Health 12 2008 111
73. M.S. Baybuga, and S.S. Celik The level of knowledge and views of the street children/youth about AIDS in Turkey Int J Nurs Stud 41 2004 591 597
74. V. Duyan Relationships between the sociodemographic and family characteristics, street life experiences and the hopelessness of street children Childhood 12 2005 445 459
75. R.C. D'Abreu, A.K. Mullis, and L.R. Cook The resiliency of street children in Brazil Adolescence 34 1999 745 751
76. J.A. Pinto, A.J. Ruff, and J.V. Paiva HIV risk behavior and medical status of underprivileged youths in Belo-Horizonte, Brazil J Adolesc Health 15 1994 179 185
77. N.A. Apt, and E.Q. Blavo Response. Street children and AIDS 1997 Centre for Social Policy Studies, Faculty of Social Studies, University of Ghana Legon, Ghana
78. S. Gregson, C.A. Nyamukapa, and G.P. Garnett HIV infection and reproductive health in teenage women orphaned and made vulnerable by AIDS in Zimbabwe AIDS Care 17 2005 785 794
79. R. Gross, B. Landfried, and S. Herman Height and weight as a reflection of the nutritional situation of school-aged children working and living in the streets of Jakarta Soc Sci Med 43 1996 453 458
80. S. Olgar, F. Oktem, and A. Dindar Volatile solvent abuse caused glomerulopathy and tubulopathy in street children Hum Exp Toxicol 27 2008 477 483
81. R.C. D'Abreu, A.K. Mullis, and L.R. Cook Social support and the ability to adapt to life among Brazilian street children and non-street children J Soc Psychol 141 2001 127 129
82. S.O. Ayaya, and F.O. Esamai Health problems of street children in Eldoret, Kenya East Afr Med J 78 2001 624 629
83. C. Panter-Brick, P.G. Lunn, and R. Baker Elevated acute-phase protein in stunted Nepali children reporting low morbidity: Different rural and urban profiles Br J Nutr 85 2001 125 131
84. C. Worthman, and C. Panter-Brick Homeless street children in Nepal: Use of allostatic load to assess the burden of childhood adversity Dev Psychopathol 20 2008 233 255
85. S.K.S. Poudel, and S.C. Barker Infestation of people with lice in Kathmandu and Pokhara, Nepal Med Vet Entomol 18 2004 212 213
86. L. Njord, R.M. Merrill, and R. Njord Characterizing health behaviors and infectious disease prevalence among Filipino street children Int J Adolesc Med Health 20 2008 367 374
87. E.T. Baldo, V.Y. Belizario, and W.U. De Leon Infection status of intestinal parasites in children living in residential institutions in Metro Manila, the Philippines Korean J Parasitol 42 2004 67 70
88. S. Guignard, H. Arienti, and L. Freyre Prevalence of enteroparasites in a residence for children in the Cordoba Province, Argentina Eur J Epidemiol 16 2000 287 293
89. S. Russell The economic burden of illness for households in developing countries: A review of studies focusing on malaria, tuberculosis, and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome Am J Trop Med Hyg 71 2 Suppl 2004 147 155
90. D.A. Queiróz, D.D. Cardoso, and C.M. Martelli Seroepidemiology of hepatitis A virus infection in street children of Goiânia-Goiás Rev Soc Bras Med Trop 28 1995 199 203
91. M.M. Avila, E. Casanueva, and C. Piccardo HIV-1 and Hepatitis B virus infections in adolescents lodged in security institutes of Buenos Aires Pediatr AIDS HIV Infect 7 1996 346 349
92. F. Fallah, A. Karimi, and G. Eslami The homeless youth and their exposure to hepatitis B and hepatitis C among in Tehran, Iran Gene Ther Mol Biol 12 2008 95 100
93. R. Martins, S. Porto, and B. Vanderborght Short report: Prevalence of hepatitis C viral antibody among Brazilian children, adolescents, and street youths Am J Trop Med Hyg 53 1995 654
94. S.D. Hillis, L. Zapata, and C.L. Robbins HIV seroprevalence among orphaned and homeless youth: No place like home AIDS 26 2011 779 792
95. K.L. Dehne, and G. Reidner Sexually transmitted infections among adolescents M. Berer, The need for adequate health services 2005 WHO Geneva, Switzerland
96. A. Shakarishvili, L.K. Dubovskaya, and L.S. Zohrabyan Sex work, drug use, HIV infection, and spread of sexually transmitted infections in Moscow, Russian Federation Lancet 366 2005 57 60
97. D.M. Kissin, L. Zapata, and R. Yorick HIV seroprevalence in street youth, St Petersburg, Russia AIDS 21 2007 2333 2340
98. M.L. Lambert, F. Torrico, and C. Billot Street youths are the only high-risk group for HIV in a low-prevalence South American country Sex Transm Dis 32 2005 240 242
99. A.M. Pinzon-Rondon, S.A. Koblinsky, and S.L. Hofferth Work-related injuries among child street-laborers in Latin America: Prevalence and predictors Rev Panam Salud Publica 26 2009 235 243
100. S.R. Banerjee Physical abuse of street and slum children of Kolkata Ind Pediatr 38 2001 1163 1170
101. S. Khurana, N. Sharma, and S. Jena Mental health status of runaway adolescents Ind J Pediatr 71 2004 405 409
102. M.O. Ribeiro Street children and their relationship with the police Int Nurs Rev 55 2008 89 96
103. K. McAlpine, R. Henley, and M. Mueller A survey of street children in Northern Tanzania: How abuse or support factors may influence migration to the street Community Ment Health J 46 2010 26 32
104. S. Scivoletto, T.F. da Silva, and R.A. Rosenheck Child psychiatry takes to the streets: A developmental partnership between a university institute and children and adolescents from the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil Child Abuse Neglect 35 2011 89 95
105. J. Brooke Gunmen said to be police kill 7 street children in Rio July 24, 1993 1993 The New York Times
106. UNICEF. The state of the world's children 2006: Excluded and invisible: United Nations Publications Report No.: 9280639161; 2005.
107. P. Pinheiro United Nations Secretary-General's Study on Violence Against Children 2006 World Report on Violence against Children
108. S.O. Aral, J.S. St Lawrence, and R. Dyatlov Commercial sex work, drug use, and sexually transmitted infections in St. Petersburg, Russia Soc Sci Med 60 2005 2181 2190
109. H.R. Ahmadkhaniha, S.V. Shariat, and S. Torkaman-nejad The frequency of sexual abuse and depression in a sample of street children of one of deprived districts of Tehran J Child Sex Abus 16 2007 23 35
110. S. Malamud At risk and abandoned: Street children, AIDS and human rights AIDSlink 1995 6 7
111. C. Robbins, L. Zapata, and D. Kissin Multicity HIV seroprevalence in street youth, Ukraine Int J STD AIDS 21 2010 489 496
112. J.P. Ntozi, I.M. Najjumba, and F. Ahimbisibwe Has the HIV/AIDS epidemic changed sexual behaviour of high risk groups in Uganda? Afr Health Sci 3 2003 107 116
113. Q. Tahmina, and S. Moral Sex-workers in Bangladesh, Livelihood, at what Price? 2004 Society for Environment and Human Development Mirpur, Bangladesh
114. R.M. Merrill, L. Njord, and R. Njord The effect of family influence on indicators associated with street life among Filipino street children Vulnerable Child Youth Stud 5 2010 142 150
115. P. Techakasem, and V. Kolkijkovin Runaway youths and correlating factors, study in Thailand J Med Assoc Thai 89 2006 212 216
116. M. Sta Maria Concomitants of risk and protection among Filipino street youth Int J Psychol 43 2008 12
117. L. Njord, R.M. Merrill, and R. Njord Drug use among street children and non - street children in the Philippines Asia-Pacific J Public Health 22 2010 203 211
118. J.M. Jutkowitz, H. Spielmann, and U. Koehler Drug use in Nepal: The view from the street Substance Use Misuse 32 1997 987 1004
119. P. Obando, W. Kliewer, and L. Murrelle The comorbidity of substance abuse and depressive symptoms in Costa Rican adolescents Drug Alcohol Depend 76 2004 37 44
120. L.B. Zapata, D.M. Kissin, and C.L. Robbins Multi-city assessment of lifetime pregnancy involvement among street youth, Ukraine J Urban Health 88 2011 1 14
121. S. Olgar, A. Dindar, and T. Ertugrul Electrocardiographic and echocardiographic findings in street children known to be substance abusers Cardiol Young 18 2008 58 61
122. F.V. Thiesen, A.R. Noto, and H.M.T. Barros Laboratory diagnosis of toluene-based inhalants abuse Clin Toxicol 45 2007 557 562
123. R. Contreras-Bulnes, L.J. Reyes-Silveyra, and T. Fuentes-Alvarez Dental caries and treatment needs in street children in Toluca, Mexico Int Dent J 58 2008 134 138
124. M.C. Dogan, M.C. Haytac, and O. Ozali The oral health status of street children in Adana, Turkey Int Dental J 56 2006 92 96
125. F.K. Kahabuka, and H.S. Mbawalla Oral health knowledge and practices among Dar es Salaam institutionalized former street children aged 7-16 years Int J Dent Hyg 4 2006 174 178
126. T. Lane, H.F. Raymond, and S. Dladla High HIV prevalence among men who have sex with men in Soweto, South Africa: Results from the Soweto Men's Study AIDS Behav 15 2011 626 634
127. H.F. Raymond, P. Kajubi, and M.R. Kamya Correlates of unprotected receptive anal intercourse among gay and bisexual men: Kampala, Uganda AIDS Behav 13 2009 677 681
128. C. Auerswald, Z.A. Kwena, and J.H. Ochieng Feasibility of employing respondent-driven sampling for HIV/STI testing of street children: Experience from the Vijana Wetu pilot study in Kisumu, Kenya 2010 AIDS 2010-XVIII International AIDS Conference Vienna, Austria http://www.iasociety.org/ Abstracts/A200739893.aspx
129. United Nations. Convention on the Rights of the Child. 1990. Available at: http://www.unicef.org/crc/. Accessed April 5, 2013.