Nutritional status following malaria control in a Vietnamese ethnic minority commune.
OBJECTIVE
To study whether control of malaria leads to catch-up growth or an increase of obesity in a marginally nourished population.


METHODS
A Vietnamese ethnic minority commune in southern Vietnam.


METHODS
Repeated annual anthropometric surveys were performed from 1995 to 2000. Z-scores for height, weight and BMI for age and weight-for-height were determined by using NCHS 1978 and CDC 2000 reference tables and by the LMS method.


METHODS
Active malaria control that reduced the parasite carrier rate from 50% in 1994 to practically nil in 1998.


RESULTS
Inhabitants were generally of short stature and very thin. Using the US reference tables, the prevalence of moderate/severe stunting among children was 53/24% and of wasting 27/9% in the first survey in 1995. Physical condition and normal daily activities of most inhabitants were normal. The repeated LMS-Z-scores uncovered a significant recovery of stunting, extending into preadolescence, including the development of a pubertal growth spurt for girls and enhancement of pubertal growth in boys, after control of malaria. The mean (95% CI) annual increase of Z-height-for-age was 0.11 (0.09-0.12) for boys and 0.14 (0.13-0.15) for girls (P<0.001). As a consequence, weight-for-age and BMI Z-scores decreased without indication of developing obesity.


CONCLUSIONS
Catch-up growth, extending into preadolescent age, was observed in a Vietnamese ethnic minority population with a chronic state of low food intake, without indication of developing obesity. The control of malaria was probably the most significant contribution to this catch-up growth.
Hung
L Q
LQ
Division of Infectious Diseases, Tropical Medicine & AIDS, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
de Vries
P J
PJ
Giao
P T
PT
Binh
T Q
TQ
Nam
N V
NV
Chong
M T
MT
Kager
P A
PA
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001827:Body Height; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D015362:Child Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D014744:Vietnam