The contribution of very low birth weight death to infant mortality

Background: Infant mortality remains high in many developing countries in which the contribution of deaths among infants born very low birth weight (VLBW) may be considerable. This contribution has however not been quantified in most such countries. This paper explores a model that can be used in this respect.Objective: To determine the contribution of very low birth weight infants towards the overall infants deaths in Kenya.Design: Prospective cohort study.Setting: Kenyatta National Hospital, Pumwani Maternity Hospital and Kilifi District Hospital.Subjects: Very low birth weight infants followed up for a period of one year.Results: The neonatal, post-neonatal and infant mortalities for the cohort were 442, 139 and 581/1000 respectively. These were thirteen, three and seven times higher than the national averages respectively. Of the national birth cohort of 1,300,000 during that year, it was estimated that between 15,600 (1.2%) and 24,700 (1.9%) were born VLBW. Given this VLBW infant burden and extrapolating the infant mortality observed in this study to the general population, between 9,064 (8.9%) and 14,351(14.2%) of the 101,400 (78/1000) infants who die during infancy in the country are born VLBW.Conclusion: The cohort reports very high infant mortality for VLBW infants when compared to the general population. Despite constituting less than 2% of the birth cohort, these infants contribute between 8.9% and 14.2% of all infant deaths

Rickets in Rural Kenyan Preschool Children: Case Report

Clinical rickets has not been reported previously in Embu district, Kenya. Baseline clinical assessments performed for a nutrition intervention study in preschool children (n=324) identified 28 cases of rickets (8.6% of study sample). Clinical characteristics included: delays of sitting, walking, and teething; bone and chest deformities; widened wrists and ankles; and bowed lower extremities. Risk factors identified were short duration of breastfeeding with feeding of cereal-based supplements with little or no milk, low calcium intake, limited sunlight exposure. Vitamin D and calcium deficiencies likely contributed to these cases. Treatment with Vitamin D3 and milk resulted inclinical improvement

The impact of morbidity on food intake in rural Kenyan children

Objective: To quantify the effect of common illnesses on energy intake in rural Kenyan children.Design, setting and subjects: Toddlers in rural Kenya (n = 110) were studied longitudinally from 18-30 months of age in the mid-1980s.Outcome measures: Morbidity data were collected weekly using an illness questionnaire and physical inspection. Food intake was quantitatively assessed on two successive days each month. Food intake on days of illness was compared to food intake on days of wellness and during convalescence.Results: Significant decreases in mean daily energy intake were seen between days of wellness vs. days of severe illness. Above usual intakewas observed during convalescence. Girls showed a greater reduction in intake during illness compared to boys. Food intake reductions weregreatest in children with gastrointestinal (diarrhoea) and lower respiratory tract infections, measles and other febrile illnesses. In the case ofsevere illness, a compensatory increase in intake during week one of the convalescence period was observed, being greater in girls (376 kcalvs. 71 kcal extra per day for boys).Conclusion: Food intake is decreased during common acute illnesses in children and increased above their usual intake during convalescence.Food should not be withheld from sick children and feeding should be actively encouraged during illness, particularly during convalescencewith the return of appetite. These data, although somewhat dated, are still applicable to toddlers in rural Africa where malnutrition and feedingpractices have changed very little

Comparison of blood smear microscopy to a rapid diagnostic test for in-vitro testing for P. Falciparum malaria in Kenyan school children

Objective: To compare the diagnostic performance of microscopy using Giemsastained thick and thin blood smears to a rapid malaria dipstick test (RDT) in detecting P. falciparum malaria in Kenyan school children. Design: Randomised, controlled feeding intervention trial from 1998-2001. Setting: Rural Embu district, Kenya. The area is considered endemic for malaria, with four rainy seasons per year. Chloroquine resistance was estimated in 80% of patients. Children had a spleen rate of 45%. Subjects: A sample of 515 rural Kenyan primary school children, aged 7-11 years, who were enrolled in a feeding intervention trial from 1998-2001. Main outcome measures: Percent positive and negative P. falciparum malaria status, sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values of RDT. Results: For both years, the RDT yielded positive results of 30% in children compared to microscopy (17%). With microscopy as the “gold standard,” RDT yielded a sensitivity of 81.3% in 1998 and 79.3% in 2000. Specificity was 81.6% in 1998 and 78.3% in 2000. Positive predictive value was 47.3% in 1998 and 42.6% in 2000, and negative predictive value was 95.6% in 1998 and 94.9% in 2000. Conclusion: Rapid diagnostic testing is a valuable tool for diagnosis and can shorten the interval for starting treatment, particularly where microscopy may not be feasible due to resource and distance limitations. East African Medical Journal Vol. 85 (11) 2008: pp. 544-54

The relationship between livestock ownership and child stunting in three countries in eastern Africa using national survey data

Livestock ownership has the potential to improve child nutrition through various mechanisms, although direct evaluations of household livestock and child stunting status are uncommon. We conducted an analysis of Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) datasets from Ethiopia (2011), Kenya (2008-2009), and Uganda (2010) among rural children under 5 years of age to compare stunting status across levels of livestock ownership. We classified livestock ownership by summing reported household numbers of goats, sheep, cattle and chickens, as well as calculating a weighted score to combine multiple species. The primary association was assessed separately by country using a log-binomial model adjusted for wealth and region, which was then stratified by child diarrheal illness, animal-source foods intake, sub-region, and wealth index. This analysis included n = 8079 children from Ethiopia, n = 3903 children from Kenya, and n = 1645 from Uganda. A ten-fold increase in household livestock ownership had significant association with lower stunting prevalence in Ethiopia (Prevalence Ratio [PR] 0.95, 95% CI 0.92-0.98) and Uganda (PR 0.87, 95% CI 0.79-0.97), but not Kenya (PR 1.01, 95% CI 0.96-1.07). The weighted livestock score was only marginally associated with stunting status. The findings varied slightly by region, but not by wealth, diarrheal disease, or animal-source food intake. This analysis suggested a slightly beneficial effect of household livestock ownership on child stunting prevalence. The small effect size observed may be related to limitations of the DHS dataset or the potentially complicated relationship between malnutrition and livestock ownership, including livestock health and productivity

Vitamin D Deficiency and Its Health Consequences in Africa

Africa is heterogeneous in latitude, geography, climate, food availability, religious and cultural practices, and skin pigmentation. It is expected, therefore, that prevalence of vitamin D deficiency varies widely, in line with influences on skin exposure to UVB sunshine. Furthermore, low calcium intakes and heavy burden of infectious disease common in many countries may increase vitamin D utilization and turnover. Studies of plasma 25OHD concentration indicate a spectrum from clinical deficiency to values at the high end of the physiological range; however, data are limited. Representative studies of status in different countries, using comparable analytical techniques, and of relationships between vitamin D status and risk of infectious and chronic diseases relevant to the African context are needed. Public health measures to secure vitamin D adequacy cannot encompass the whole continent and need to be developed locally

Early growth of very low birth weight infants

No Abstract. East African Medical Journal Vol. 83(3) 2006: 84-8

Two year neurological outcomes of very low birth weight infants

Background: High risk newborns such as the Very Low Birth Weight (VLBW) require long term follow up to ascertain their subsequent survival and quality of life (based on neurological intactness). Though such data is now standard in the developed world, little is known in published literature about the situation in resource constrained countries. Objective: To describe the neurological outcomes of VLBW infants evaluated at two years of age. Design: Longitudinal descriptive survey.Setting: Kenyatta National Hospital's Newborn Unit during the year 2002. Subjects: One hundred and twenty infants born weighing 1000 grams and 1500 grams followed up until the age of 24 months.Results: Of the 120 infants evaluated, 14 (11.7%; 95% Cl 6.2-17.1) had cerebral palsy, 11 (9.2%; 95% Cl 4.8-16.9) were delayed on cognitive assessment while 32 (26.7%; 95% Cl 9.3-38.1) were found to have functional disabilities. The factors associated with functional disability in the cohort included; neonatal illness (P = 0.005, 95% Cl 1.2