title: Experience and Outcome of Children with Severe Acute Malnutrition Using Locally Prepared Therapeutic Diet.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Globally more than 1/3rd of the child deaths are attributed to under nutrition and it continues to be a major public health problem in developing countries. This research paper is an attempt towards intervention and management of severely malnourished children with the use of locally prepared therapeutic diets to bring down the case fatality rate.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional longitudinal study was undertaken at a tertiary care hospital in North India. Children under 5 y of age fulfilling the WHO case definition of severe acute malnutrition and suffering from medical complications were enrolled and managed on standard WHO protocols using locally prepared therapeutic diet (Starter F-75 diet and Catch-up F-100 diet).
  
  
  RESULTS
  During the period of 11 mo, a total of 315 children (192 boys and 123 girls) under 5 y with severe acute malnutrition requiring in-patient care were enrolled and evaluated. The overall case fatality rate was 3.5% while average weight gain seen was 9.33 ± 8.28 g/kg body weight/day and average length of stay was 11.71 ± 7.59. The Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) observed a cure rate of 47% and secondary failure rate of 19%.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present study highlights the integral role of locally prepared therapeutic diet (starter F-75 and F-100) besides standardized care provided at Nutrition Rehabilitation Centre (NRC) to combat malnutrition which is a major scourge in the developing world. To sustain the benefits and prevent relapse, there is a need to integrate the services at NRC with the community-based therapeutic care to deliver continuum of care from facility to door step and vice versa.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, Bangla Sahib Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India.
authors.forename: Preeti
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, Bangla Sahib Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India. pkpaed@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Praveen
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, Bangla Sahib Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India.
authors.forename: Shivani
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rohatgi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, Bangla Sahib Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India.
authors.forename: Srikanta
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Basu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, Bangla Sahib Marg, New Delhi, 110001, India.
authors.forename: Satinder
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aneja
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004035:Diet Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D007223:Infant; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality; D015596:Nutrition Assessment; D009752:Nutritional Status; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D000067011:Severe Acute Malnutrition / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000178:diet therapy / Q000401:mortality / Q000503:physiopathology
keywords: Children; Locally prepared therapeutic diet; Nutrition rehabilitation centre; Severe acute malnutrition