PedNSS

Abstract

""The Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System (PedNSS) is a public health surveillance system that monitors the nutritional status of low-income children in federally funded maternal and child health programs. Data on birthweight, breastfeeding, anemia, short stature, underweight, overweight, and obesity are collected for children who attend public health clinics for routine care, nutrition education, and supplemental food. Data are collected at the clinic level then aggregated at the state level and submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for analysis. A national nutrition surveillance report is produced by using PedNSS data. Surveillance reports also are produced for each contributor, defined as a state, U.S. territory, or Indian Tribal Organization (ITO). In 2008, a total of 51 contributors, including 43 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and ITOs, participated in PedNSS (Figure 1). These contributors submitted more than 8,165,000 records for children from birth to age 5 to the system--nearly 3 million more records than in 1999. This increase is due largely to an increase in the number of contributors to the PedNSS. Fluctuations in the number of contributors or the demographic characteristics of the contributors' populations can affect trends. The number of PedNSS contributors differs slightly from year to year because some contributors do not provide data every year during the 10-year period from 1999 through 2008. Data for the 2008 PedNSS were collected from children enrolled in federally funded programs that serve low-income children. These programs include the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) (85.3%) and non-WIC programs (14.7%) such as the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program and the Maternal and Child Bureau Title V program. . This report summarizes 2008 data and highlights data trends from 1998 through 2008." - p. 1This report was developed with suport from the following CDC offices: Coordinating Center for Health Promotion, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, Nutrition Branch, Program Development and Evaluation Branch.Also available via the World Wide Web as an Acrobat .pdf file (748 KB, 16 p.).Includes bibliographical references (p. 11-12).Polhamus B, Dalenius K, Mackintosh H, Smith B, Grummer-Strawn L. Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance 2008 Report. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2009