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[Nutritional index in heart diseases in childhood]
J A Granzotti1, S L Falha, M D Nunes
1Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto-USP.
Insights
Childhood heart disease often leads to poor nutritional status, particularly in cyanotic congenital forms. Early detection and management are crucial for improving growth and health outcomes in pediatric cardiology patients.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Cardiology
- Nutritional Science
- Congenital Heart Defects
Context:
- Childhood heart disease presents diverse challenges.
- Nutritional status is a key indicator of overall health in children.
- Understanding the interplay between cardiac conditions and nutrition is vital for effective treatment.
Purpose:
- To investigate the incidence and impact of heart disease on the nutritional status of children.
- To analyze the relationship between different types of heart disease (congenital acyanotic, congenital cyanotic, acquired) and nutritional indices.
Summary:
- A study of 200 pediatric cardiology patients revealed that most children with heart disease exhibit normal nutritional indexes (5-95 percentile).
- However, a significant minority (6%) showed undernutrition (below 5th percentile), with cyanotic congenital heart disease forms demonstrating the poorest nutritional outcomes.
- Common diagnoses included ventricular septal defect, atrial septal defect, valvular diseases, and arrhythmias.
Impact:
- Findings highlight a significant association between childhood heart disease and deficits in nutritional status.
- Results underscore the importance of monitoring nutritional parameters in pediatric patients with cardiac conditions.
- This research informs clinical practice by emphasizing the need for integrated care addressing both cardiac health and nutritional well-being in children.
Purpose:
To study heart disease in childhood aiming to know its incidence and consequences upon the nutritional status.
Patients And Methods:
Two-hundred patients were distributed in three groups: 1) 113 (56.5%) with congenital acyanotic form; 2) 19 (9.5%) with congenital cyanotic form and 3) 68 (34%) with acquired forms. All of them regularly visiting the ambulatory service of Paediatric cardiology of the Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto da USP from 1987 until 1990.
Results:
The majority (92%) of the children (being 56% male and aging 5.1 +/- 0.4 years-old) showed nutritional indexes between 5 and 95 (percentile scale). The overall diagnosis distribution were: 1) ventricular septal defect (51 cases); 2) atrial septal defect (21 cases); 3) valvular diseases (21 cases); 4) arrhythmias (20 cases); 5) cardiac involvement of systemic diseases (20 cases); and 6) tetralogy complex (8 cases). Twelve patients (6%) were underscored (below percentile 5) and only 4 (2%) scored above percentile 95 (obese patients). The comparison of the mean indexes were found statistical different (p less than 0.05), being the cyanotic congenital forms the worst ones and the acquired forms the best one.
Conclusion:
Heart disease in childhood is associated to nutritional index deficits in the majority of the cases.