Severe Acute Malnutrition in Children Under 6 Months : Case of Sikasso hospital

Abstract

Introduction: Acute malnutrition remains a public health problem. During the first six months of life, proper nutrition is essential for proper growth and the formation and development of the nervous system. Malnutrition in infants under 6 months is a scourge and remains little studied. The objective: of this study was to assess the prevalence of severe acute malnutrition in children under 6 months in the pediatric department of Sikasso hospital. Patients and methods: This was a prospective cross-sectional descriptive study over a period of one year. Were included in the study all children under 6 months hospitalized, screened as severe acute malnutrition. Informed consent from the parents or legal guardian was obtained orally. Results: 126 children out of 1755 hospitalized patients were diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition, i.e. a prevalence of 7.17%. The mean age was 2.01±1.82 months. The sex ratio was 1.63 in favor of the male sex. Fever was the main reason for admission (42.85%). Nearly 17.46% of the children were exclusively breastfed. One child was positive for HIV 1 on PCR. The evaluation of the nutritional status at one month post-hospitalization follow-up noted 63.16% remission; 15.87% dropouts and 19.05% deaths. Conclusion: Severe acute malnutrition in children under 6 months remains a concern in hospitals. Future studies will better clarify the factors associated with high mortality in these children.