Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?

<h4>Background</h4>Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) remains a serious public health concern in low- and middle-income countries. Little is known about treatment outcomes of child inpatients in Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Units. This study aimed to assess treatment outcomes of SAM an...

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Main Authors: Richard Mbusa Kambale, Gaylord Amani Ngaboyeka, Joseph Ntagerwa Ntagazibwa, Marie-Hélène Igega Bisimwa, Lisa Yvette Kasole, Viateur Habiyambere, Victor Buunda Kubuya, Joseph Kasongowa Kasongo, Emmanuel André, Dimitri Van der Linden
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2020-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0236022&type=printable
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author Richard Mbusa Kambale
Gaylord Amani Ngaboyeka
Joseph Ntagerwa Ntagazibwa
Marie-Hélène Igega Bisimwa
Lisa Yvette Kasole
Viateur Habiyambere
Victor Buunda Kubuya
Joseph Kasongowa Kasongo
Emmanuel André
Dimitri Van der Linden
author_facet Richard Mbusa Kambale
Gaylord Amani Ngaboyeka
Joseph Ntagerwa Ntagazibwa
Marie-Hélène Igega Bisimwa
Lisa Yvette Kasole
Viateur Habiyambere
Victor Buunda Kubuya
Joseph Kasongowa Kasongo
Emmanuel André
Dimitri Van der Linden
author_sort Richard Mbusa Kambale
collection DOAJ
description <h4>Background</h4>Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) remains a serious public health concern in low- and middle-income countries. Little is known about treatment outcomes of child inpatients in Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Units. This study aimed to assess treatment outcomes of SAM and identify factors associated with mortality among children treated at Saint Joseph Nutritional Center, South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.<h4>Methods</h4>A retrospective hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted on medical records of 633 severely malnourished children followed as inpatients at Saint Joseph Nutritional Center from July 2017 to December 2018. Data were entered, thoroughly cleaned and analyzed in SPSS version 25. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression model were fitted to identify factors associated with mortality.<h4>Results</h4>Among 633 patients admitted with SAM, 13.1% were lost to follow-up and 9.2% died while in hospital. Children with late referral to the health facility (> 14 days) after the onset of main external malnutrition signs had 2.03 times higher odds of death than those referred less than 14 days [AOR = 2.03 at 95%CI (1.12, 3.68)]. The odds of death was 1.91 times higher for children with MUAC < 115 mm than for those with MUAC ≥ 115 mm [AOR = 1.91 at 95% CI (1.05, 3.50)]. Children infected with HIV were 3.90 times more likely to die compared to their counterparts [AOR = 3.90 at 95% CI (2.80, 9.41)].<h4>Conclusion</h4>Particular emphasis should be placed on partnering with communities to improve information on malnutrition signs and on critical importance of early referral to the health system. While HIV incidence in DRC is still low (0.21%), its impact on mortality among severely malnourished children is increased due to the limited access to HIV testing and antiretroviral therapy.
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spelling doaj-art-c65653908d1c4ee5a1e22c1bc61cabf62025-08-20T02:00:42ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032020-01-01157e023602210.1371/journal.pone.0236022Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?Richard Mbusa KambaleGaylord Amani NgaboyekaJoseph Ntagerwa NtagazibwaMarie-Hélène Igega BisimwaLisa Yvette KasoleViateur HabiyambereVictor Buunda KubuyaJoseph Kasongowa KasongoEmmanuel AndréDimitri Van der Linden<h4>Background</h4>Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) remains a serious public health concern in low- and middle-income countries. Little is known about treatment outcomes of child inpatients in Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Units. This study aimed to assess treatment outcomes of SAM and identify factors associated with mortality among children treated at Saint Joseph Nutritional Center, South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.<h4>Methods</h4>A retrospective hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted on medical records of 633 severely malnourished children followed as inpatients at Saint Joseph Nutritional Center from July 2017 to December 2018. Data were entered, thoroughly cleaned and analyzed in SPSS version 25. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression model were fitted to identify factors associated with mortality.<h4>Results</h4>Among 633 patients admitted with SAM, 13.1% were lost to follow-up and 9.2% died while in hospital. Children with late referral to the health facility (> 14 days) after the onset of main external malnutrition signs had 2.03 times higher odds of death than those referred less than 14 days [AOR = 2.03 at 95%CI (1.12, 3.68)]. The odds of death was 1.91 times higher for children with MUAC < 115 mm than for those with MUAC ≥ 115 mm [AOR = 1.91 at 95% CI (1.05, 3.50)]. Children infected with HIV were 3.90 times more likely to die compared to their counterparts [AOR = 3.90 at 95% CI (2.80, 9.41)].<h4>Conclusion</h4>Particular emphasis should be placed on partnering with communities to improve information on malnutrition signs and on critical importance of early referral to the health system. While HIV incidence in DRC is still low (0.21%), its impact on mortality among severely malnourished children is increased due to the limited access to HIV testing and antiretroviral therapy.https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0236022&type=printable
spellingShingle Richard Mbusa Kambale
Gaylord Amani Ngaboyeka
Joseph Ntagerwa Ntagazibwa
Marie-Hélène Igega Bisimwa
Lisa Yvette Kasole
Viateur Habiyambere
Victor Buunda Kubuya
Joseph Kasongowa Kasongo
Emmanuel André
Dimitri Van der Linden
Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
PLoS ONE
title Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
title_full Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
title_fullStr Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
title_full_unstemmed Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
title_short Severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an Intensive Therapeutic and Feeding Centre of South Kivu, Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo: Why do our patients die?
title_sort severe acute malnutrition in children admitted in an intensive therapeutic and feeding centre of south kivu eastern democratic republic of congo why do our patients die
url https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0236022&type=printable
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