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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
09:36

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

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Associations of single versus multiple anthropometric failure with mortality in children under 5 years: A prospective

Jewel Gausman1, Rockli Kim2,3,4, S V Subramanian4,5

  • 1Department of Global Health and Population, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA.

SSM - Population Health
|December 6, 2021
PubMed

Insights

Concurrent anthropometric failures (AF) in children, specifically stunted and underweight (SU) or stunted, underweight, and wasted (SUW), significantly increase mortality risk. These combined failures account for a substantial percentage of child deaths, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Nutrition
  • Global Health
  • Child Mortality Studies

Background:

  • Current nutritional status indicators like stunting, underweight, and wasting do not fully capture children with multiple concurrent anthropometric failures (AF).
  • Identifying children with combined nutritional deficits is crucial for accurate risk assessment and intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To estimate the association between various categories of AF and mortality in children aged 1-5 years.
  • To determine the proportion of child deaths attributable to single versus multiple anthropometric failures.

Main Methods:

  • A prospective, longitudinal study of 3605 children in Ethiopia and India was conducted.
  • Mortality risk was analyzed using conventional definitions and mutually exclusive AF categories (stunted only, underweight only, wasted only, SU, underweight and wasted, SUW).
  • Socioeconomic status and demographic variables were adjusted for, and population attributable fractions were calculated.

Main Results:

  • Children with stunted and underweight (SU) and stunted, underweight, and wasted (SUW) had significantly higher odds of death (3.20 and 5.52 times, respectively) compared to children with no AF.
  • No increased mortality risk was observed for children with single anthropometric failures.
  • SUW and SU categories accounted for approximately 42.69% of all child deaths, representing nearly 80% of deaths attributed to AF.

Conclusions:

  • Concurrent anthropometric failures, particularly SUW and SU, are critical indicators of malnutrition-related mortality risk in children.
  • Findings offer valuable insights for public health programs and policies to better identify and support at-risk children.
Abstract

Keywords:
Anthropometric failureCategories of anthropometric failureChild healthChild mortalityComprehensive index of anthropometric failureEthiopiaIndiaLow and middle income countriesNutritionSocial disparitiesStuntingUnderweightWastingYoung lives

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