Paediatric Malnutrition and Associated Factors in the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital

Aim: Assessment of the occurrence of malnutrition and associated factors in children.

Study Design: Retrospective study.

Place and Duration of Study: University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Rivers State, Nigeria between June 2015 and June 2016.

Methodology: Data was collected from the medical records of each patient, data collected include; diagnosis, associated symptoms and parent sociodemographic information.

Results: The study showed a 3.6% (37/1017) prevalence of malnutrition among the children. The mean age of the malnourished children was 21.2±10.5 months. There were more underweight children (51.4%), among the malnourished children, while the occurrence of marasmus and kwashiorkor were 29.7% and 18.9% respectively. Malnutrition was mostly common among children that were not breastfed. maternal occupation was shown to be associated with the occurrence of malnutrition in the children, especially among mothers that were civil servants and students. Maternal educational status was also shown to be associated with the occurrence of malnutrition, especially in mothers with no formal education.

Conclusion: The adverse effects of malnutrition span through the lifetime of the children who survive into adolescence and adulthood. Malnutrition is still prevalent in Port Harcourt, underscoring the need to improve on the ongoing efforts to improve the nutritional and physical wellbeing of the children.