title: Nutritional status of children under five in three state foster care institutions in Sri Lanka.
abstract: This study evaluated the prevalence of protein energy malnutrition (PEM) in children under five years (n = 52), in three randomly selected, State operated foster care institutions in Sri Lanka. The prevalence of PEM, was (51.9%), underweight (63.5%) and wasting (25.0%) was found to be considerably higher than the national prevalence (13.5%, 29.4%, 14.0%, respectively). Based on this preliminary evidence, it is recommended that a study representative of all institutionalised children in both State and private facilities be conducted to identify deficiencies and recommend improvements to institutional care in Sri Lanka.
authors.affiliation: Duke University Medical Centre, 544 Finley St, Durham, NC 27705, USA. channa.jayasekara@duke.edu
authors.forename: Channa R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Jayasekera
mesh_terms: D015362:Child Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002669:Child Welfare; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005581:Foster Home Care / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007228:Infant Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D015995:Prevalence; D011502:Protein-Energy Malnutrition / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012112:Residential Facilities / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013188:Sri Lanka / Q000453:epidemiology; D013219:State Government