Abstract
Introduction: Malnutrition in children has health and physical consequences resulting in delayed physical growth and motor development, behavioral and social problems as well as susceptibility to contracting diseases.The Screening Tool for Assessment of Malnutrition in Pediatrics (STAMP) is a specially constructed tool that uses anthropometric measurements, body composition, and patient's clinical status to predict the risk of malnutrition for inpatients at admission. There is no agreement on the ideal screening tool or scales for detecting and determining the level of malnutrition in pediatric inpatients. Various studies in the pediatric population have analyzed the association of malnutrition during hospitalization with patient outcomes, but few have analyzed whether the STAMP tool in particular could be used to predict length of hospital stay and disease severity in these patients. Objectives: We studied the use of STAMP screening tools to assess the risk of malnutrition in inpatients by including a nutritional screening in the admission process and analyze the association between the risk of malnutrition and patient outcomes (length of hospital stay and severity of disease). Methodology: We conducted a prospective single-center study between May to July 2021 at a tertiary care hospital. All patients admitted to the pediatric ward aged 1 month to 15 years with a length of stay of at least 24 hours were included into the study. Data were collected about clinical, anthropometric and demographic variables for each patient including STAMP grading, length of hospital stay and severity of disease. Results: Our study suggests comparable demographic and other patient-related variables in the three categories (mild, moderate and severe) of STAMP grading (p-value >0.05). STAMP grading was not significantly associated with both length of hospital stay and severity of disease. Conclusion: The use of STAMP as a malnutrition screening tool for pediatric inpatients is not significantly associated with length of stay or severity of disease.
Highlights
Malnutri on of children has always been a global concern
STAMP grading was not significantly associated with both length of hospital stay and severity of disease
Health and physical consequences of malnourishment in children are delay in their physical growth and motor development; lower intellectual quo ent (IQ), greater behavioral problems and deficient social skills; suscep bility to contrac ng diseases and the list goes on.[1,2]
Summary
Malnutri on of children has always been a global concern. Health and physical consequences of malnourishment in children are delay in their physical growth and motor development; lower intellectual quo ent (IQ), greater behavioral problems and deficient social skills; suscep bility to contrac ng diseases and the list goes on.[1,2] The 2017 data from the Ministry of Health and Popula on of Nepal suggests 1 million children under 5 years (36 %) suffer from chronic malnutri on (stun ng or low height-for-age) and 10 % suffer from acute malnutri on (was ng or low weight-forheight).[3]. Along with malnutri on the burden of infec ous diseases (pneumonia, diarrhea) resul ng in hospital admissions is more. Children may present with a degree of malnutri on at the me of hospital admission. Pediatric malnutri on, before and during hospital admission could elevate morbidity and influence the clinical outcomes of disease. When admi ed in hospital, they are generally not subjected to anthropometric assessment may not receive nutri onal support.[4,5]. Measuring a child's growth is one of the most efficient ways of assessing their general state of health, making effec ve interven ons possible that can reestablish ideal condi ons for health and avoid the damage resul ng from malnutri on.[6]. Nutri onal assessment of hospitalized children is very o en neglected, contribu ng to the occurrence of complica ons and prolonged hospital stays.[7]
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