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Body composition in children with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy
V A Stallings1, C E Cronk, B S Zemel
1Division of Gastroenterology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, USA.
The Journal of Pediatrics
|May 1, 1995
Summary
Children with spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy (SQCP) show reduced body composition and nutritional status. Serial anthropometric measurements can help identify malnutrition in these children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Neurology
- Body Composition Analysis
Background:
- Spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy (SQCP) affects motor function and can impact overall health.
- Nutritional status and body composition are crucial for growth and development in children.
- Understanding these parameters in SQCP is vital for effective management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare body composition and nutritional status in prepubertal children with SQCP versus healthy controls.
- To identify specific patterns of nutritional deficits in children with SQCP.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study involving 136 children with SQCP (ages 2-12) and 39 healthy controls.
- Evaluations included anthropometric measures and total body water (TBW) analysis in a subset.
- Data collected from two tertiary care settings.
Main Results:
- Children with SQCP exhibited significantly lower indicators of body composition and nutritional status.
- Reduced accretion of fat-free mass was observed with increasing age in the SQCP group.
- Body fat estimation using skinfolds showed good correlation with fat mass derived from TBW.
Conclusions:
- Malnutrition is prevalent in children diagnosed with SQCP.
- Routine anthropometric measurements are effective tools for identifying malnourished children with SQCP.