Child Health

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Browsing Child Health by Author "Kirolos, Amir"

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    Long-term outcomes of severe childhood malnutrition study
    (Kamuzu University of Health Sciencies, 7-07-21) Kirolos, Amir
    Type of research study This study is a cross-sectional follow-up of an existing cohort of adolescents/young adults who suffered from severe malnutrition as children. The problem Childhood malnutrition is widespread in Malawi and has health impacts which are often life long 1. Severe wasting in childhood is particularly deadly 2, and the ‘double burden of malnutrition’ (undernutrition of nutritionally rich foods and oversupply of foods with low nutritional value) is being increasingly recognised as a major health problem globally 3. Current malnutrition treatment programmes have a major focus on preventing acute mortality. While the acute risk of death in early childhood is well described, there is a need for further research on the medium- and long-term outcomes of survivors to understand the long-term disease burden and tailor treatment interventions 4. Children exposed to severe malnutrition may be at higher risk of adult noncommunicable diseases due to impaired organ development, altered body composition, rapid catchup growth through high calorie feeding and exposure to an obesogenic environment. Severe childhood malnutrition is also associated with developmental delay 5, and early insults to the developing brain from malnutrition may impair cognitive potential in later life 6. Mental health and behavioural problems may be also be more common in survivors due to damage to the developing brain, environmental factors and adverse life events 7. However, mental health and behavioural outcomes in severe malnutrition have been poorly researched thus far. Objectives Our main objective is to investigate factors that influence the medium- and long-term health outcomes of children with severe childhood malnutrition. We aim: 1. To quantify the long-term survival after discharge from treatment for severe childhood malnutrition in comparison to controls 2. To measure long-term growth and body composition following severe childhood malnutrition 3. To measure the prevalence of early markers of chronic cardiovascular or metabolic disease in those previously treated for severe childhood malnutrition in comparison to controls 4. To measure the effect of severe childhood malnutrition on cognition, behaviour and mental health 5. To explore predictors of favourable or adverse long-term health outcomes