Concurrently wasted and stunted children 6‐59 months in Karamoja, Uganda

Prevalence and case detection

Bibliographic Data

ID15535746
AuthorsGloria Odei Obeng-Amoako (0000-0001-5004-3701, Makerere University, corresponding author), Mark Myatt (0000-0003-1119-1474, Brixham Community Hospital), Joel Conkle (0000-0003-2603-5052, United Nations Children's Fund), Brenda Kaijuka Muwaga (Oldham Council), Richmond Aryeetey (0000-0003-4667-592X, University of Ghana), Andrew Livex Okwi (Makerere University), Isaac Okullo (0009-0002-3766-5244, Makerere University), Ezekiel Mupere (0000-0002-8746-9009, Makerere University), Henry Wamani (Makerere University), André Briend (0000-0001-9390-8541, University of Copenhagen), Charles Amnon Sunday Karamagi (Makerere University), Joan N Kalyango (0000-0001-5113-2909, Makerere University)
Year2020
Volume16
Issue4
Pagese13000-e13000
Publication date2020-03-25
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMaternal and Child Nutrition (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1740-8695 • E-ISSN: 1740-8709
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/mcn.13000
PMID32212249
OpenAlexW3013009245
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited19

We assessed prevalence of concurrently wasted and stunted (WaSt) and explored the overlaps between wasted, stunted, underweight and low mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) among children aged 6-59 months in Karamoja, Uganda. We also determined optimal weight-for-age (WAZ) and MUAC thresholds for detecting WaSt. We conducted secondary data analysis with 2015-2018 Food Security and Nutrition Assessment (FSNA) cross-sectional survey datasets from Karamoja. Wasting, stunting and underweight were defined as <-2.0 z-scores using WHO growth standards. Low MUAC was defined as <12.5 cm. We defined WaSt as concurrent wasting and stunting. Prevalence of WaSt was 4.96% (95% CI [4.64, 5.29]). WaSt was more prevalent in lean than harvest season (5.21% vs. 4.53%; p = .018). About half (53.92%) of WaSt children had low MUAC, and all were underweight. Younger children aged <36 months had more WaSt, particularly males. Males with WaSt had higher median MUAC than females (12.50 vs. 12.10 cm; p < .001). A WAZ <-2.60 threshold detected WaSt with excellent sensitivity (99.02%) and high specificity (90.71%). MUAC threshold <13.20 cm had good sensitivity (81.58%) and moderate specificity (76.15%) to detect WaSt. WaSt prevalence of 5% is a public health concern, given its high mortality risk. All children with WaSt were underweight and half had low MUAC. WAZ and MUAC could be useful tools for detecting WaSt. Prevalence monitoring and prospective studies on WAZ and MUAC cut-offs for WaSt detection are recommended. Future consideration to integrate WAZ into therapeutic feeding programmes is recommended to detect and treat WaSt children

Environmental health · Malnutrition · Stunted growth · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Global Maternal and Child Health · Medicine · Internal Medicine

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