Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Matern Child Nutr. 21 July 2022; Online ahead of print; e13400.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.13400
Bliznashka L, Grantz KH, Botton J, Berthé F, Garba S, et al.
Matern Child Nutr. 21 July 2022; Online ahead of print; e13400.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.13400
This study aimed to quantify the burden of relapse following successful treatment for uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) and to identify associated risk factors in rural Niger. We used data from 1490 children aged 6-59 months discharged as recovered from an outpatient nutritional programme for SAM and followed for up to 12 weeks after admission. Post-discharge SAM relapse was defined as weight-for-height Z-score <-3, mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) <115 mm or bipedal oedema after having been discharged as recovered. Post-discharge hospitalisation was defined as admission to inpatient SAM treatment or hospitalisation for any cause after having been discharged as recovered. We used multivariate log-binomial models to identify independent risk factors. After programmatic discharge, 114 (8%) children relapsed to SAM and 89 (6%) were hospitalised. Factors associated with SAM relapse were discharge during the lean season (relative risk [RR] = 1.80 [95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.22-2.67]) and larger household size (RR = 1.56 [95% CI = 1.01-2.41]), whereas older child age (RR = 0.94 [95% CI = 0.88-1.00]), higher child MUAC at discharge (RR = 0.93 [95% CI = 0.87-1.00]) and maternal literacy (RR = 0.54 [95% CI = 0.29-0.98]) were protective factors. Discharge during the lean season (RR = 2.27 [95% CI = 1.46-3.51]) was independently associated with post-discharge hospitalisation. Future nutritional programmes in the context of Niger may consider modification of anthropometric discharge criteria or the provision of additional home support or follow-up during the lean season as potential interventions to prevent relapse. More research including post-discharge follow-up is needed to better understand the sustainability of treatment outcomes after discharge and the type of intervention that may best sustain recovery over time.
Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01613547.
Clinical Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01613547.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Am J Clin Nutr. 12 April 2017; Volume 105 (Issue 5); 1191-1197.; DOI:10.3945/ajcn.116.148064
Isanaka S, Kodish SR, Berthé F, Alley I, Nackers F, et al.
Am J Clin Nutr. 12 April 2017; Volume 105 (Issue 5); 1191-1197.; DOI:10.3945/ajcn.116.148064
BACKGROUND
Community-based management of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) has been shown to be safe and cost-effective, but program coverage remains low. Treatment models that maintain high levels of clinical effectiveness but allow for increased coverage are still needed. A reduced schedule of follow-up, in which children receive clinical follow-up and therapeutic foods on a monthly rather than weekly basis, may be one alternative.
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to describe the safety and feasibility of a monthly distribution of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) in the treatment of uncomplicated SAM, in terms of clinical response to treatment and household RUTF use.
DESIGN
We conducted a nonrandomized pilot intervention study in which 115 children eligible for outpatient treatment of SAM were provided a monthly ration of RUTF. Anthropometric measurements were taken weekly for 4 wk to monitor treatment response. Unannounced household spot checks were conducted over 4 wk to assess household use of RUTF and storage practices.Results: Adequate weight and midupper arm circumference (MUAC) gain were found throughout the 4-wk follow-up period. Observed mean ± SD weight gain from admission was 9.8 ± 6.8 g · kg-1 · d-1 in week 1 and 4.2 ± 2.1 g · kg-1 · d-1 by week 4. Unplanned household spot checks found an average surplus of RUTF sachets compared with the number expected based on the date of distribution and recommended dosing throughout the 4 wk of follow-up. The frequency at which more than the recommended dose was used (i.e., deviance of >2 sachets between available and expected stocks) was 4% and 22% of households visited in week 1 and week 4, respectively.
CONCLUSION
Adequate treatment response and RUTF use in the outpatient treatment of SAM was maintained over 4 wk of follow-up with a monthly schedule of RUTF distribution. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02994212.
Community-based management of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) has been shown to be safe and cost-effective, but program coverage remains low. Treatment models that maintain high levels of clinical effectiveness but allow for increased coverage are still needed. A reduced schedule of follow-up, in which children receive clinical follow-up and therapeutic foods on a monthly rather than weekly basis, may be one alternative.
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to describe the safety and feasibility of a monthly distribution of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) in the treatment of uncomplicated SAM, in terms of clinical response to treatment and household RUTF use.
DESIGN
We conducted a nonrandomized pilot intervention study in which 115 children eligible for outpatient treatment of SAM were provided a monthly ration of RUTF. Anthropometric measurements were taken weekly for 4 wk to monitor treatment response. Unannounced household spot checks were conducted over 4 wk to assess household use of RUTF and storage practices.Results: Adequate weight and midupper arm circumference (MUAC) gain were found throughout the 4-wk follow-up period. Observed mean ± SD weight gain from admission was 9.8 ± 6.8 g · kg-1 · d-1 in week 1 and 4.2 ± 2.1 g · kg-1 · d-1 by week 4. Unplanned household spot checks found an average surplus of RUTF sachets compared with the number expected based on the date of distribution and recommended dosing throughout the 4 wk of follow-up. The frequency at which more than the recommended dose was used (i.e., deviance of >2 sachets between available and expected stocks) was 4% and 22% of households visited in week 1 and week 4, respectively.
CONCLUSION
Adequate treatment response and RUTF use in the outpatient treatment of SAM was maintained over 4 wk of follow-up with a monthly schedule of RUTF distribution. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT02994212.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Int J Infect Dis. 25 March 2022; Volume S1201-9712 (Issue 22); 00184-9.; DOI:10.1016/j.ijid.2022.03.047
Andersen CT, Langendorf C, Garba S, Sayinzoga-Makombe N, Mambula C, et al.
Int J Infect Dis. 25 March 2022; Volume S1201-9712 (Issue 22); 00184-9.; DOI:10.1016/j.ijid.2022.03.047
OBJECTIVE
To estimate the prevalence and antibiotic resistance profile of community- and hospital-acquired bacteremia among hospitalized children with severe acute malnutrition in Niger.
METHODS
A descriptive, longitudinal study was conducted in an intensive nutritional rehabilitation center in Madarounfa, Niger. Children aged 6 to 59 months admitted for inpatient treatment of complicated severe acute malnutrition (n=2187) had blood specimens drawn at admission to assess prevalence of community-acquired bacteremia. Subsequent specimens were drawn per physician discretion to assess incidence of hospital-acquired bacteremia. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed on positive blood cultures.
RESULTS
The prevalence of community-acquired bacteremia at admission was at least 9.1% (95% CI: 8.1, 10.4%), with non-typhoid Salmonella identified in over half (57.8%) of cases. The cumulative incidence of hospital-acquired bacteremia was estimated at 1.2% (95% CI: 0.8, 1.7%), among which the most common organisms were Klebsiella pneumoniae (19.4%), Acinetobacter baumannii (16.1%), Enterococcus faecalis (12.9%), and Escherichia coli (12.9%). Among community-acquired bacteremia, 58% were resistant to amoxicillin-clavulanate; 100% of hospital-acquired bacteremia were resistant to amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanate. Mortality risk was elevated among children with hospital-acquired bacteremia (RR=9.32) and community-acquired bacteremia (RR=2.67).
CONCLUSION
Bacteremia was a significant contributor to mortality. Antibiotic resistance poses a challenge to effective clinical management of SAM.
To estimate the prevalence and antibiotic resistance profile of community- and hospital-acquired bacteremia among hospitalized children with severe acute malnutrition in Niger.
METHODS
A descriptive, longitudinal study was conducted in an intensive nutritional rehabilitation center in Madarounfa, Niger. Children aged 6 to 59 months admitted for inpatient treatment of complicated severe acute malnutrition (n=2187) had blood specimens drawn at admission to assess prevalence of community-acquired bacteremia. Subsequent specimens were drawn per physician discretion to assess incidence of hospital-acquired bacteremia. Antibiotic susceptibility testing was performed on positive blood cultures.
RESULTS
The prevalence of community-acquired bacteremia at admission was at least 9.1% (95% CI: 8.1, 10.4%), with non-typhoid Salmonella identified in over half (57.8%) of cases. The cumulative incidence of hospital-acquired bacteremia was estimated at 1.2% (95% CI: 0.8, 1.7%), among which the most common organisms were Klebsiella pneumoniae (19.4%), Acinetobacter baumannii (16.1%), Enterococcus faecalis (12.9%), and Escherichia coli (12.9%). Among community-acquired bacteremia, 58% were resistant to amoxicillin-clavulanate; 100% of hospital-acquired bacteremia were resistant to amoxicillin and amoxicillin-clavulanate. Mortality risk was elevated among children with hospital-acquired bacteremia (RR=9.32) and community-acquired bacteremia (RR=2.67).
CONCLUSION
Bacteremia was a significant contributor to mortality. Antibiotic resistance poses a challenge to effective clinical management of SAM.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Matern Child Nutr. 7 March 2020; Volume 16 (Issue 4); e12989.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12989.
Isanaka S, Andersen CT, Hanson KE, Berthé F, Grais RF, et al.
Matern Child Nutr. 7 March 2020; Volume 16 (Issue 4); e12989.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12989.
Outpatient therapeutic feeding protocols for the treatment of uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition in children were initially based on weight gain data from inpatient settings and expert knowledge of the physiological requirements during recovery. However, weight gain and energy requirements from historic inpatient settings may differ from modern outpatient settings and therefore may not be appropriate to guide current therapeutic feeding protocols. We calculated the weight gain and average estimated total daily energy requirement of children successfully treated for uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition as outpatients in Niger (n = 790). Mean energy provided by six therapeutic feeding protocols was calculated and compared with average estimated energy requirements in the study population. Overall weight gain was 5.5 g·kg-1 ·day-1 among recovered children. Average energy requirements ranged from 92 to 110 kcal·kg-1 ·day-1 depending on the estimation approach. Two current therapeutic feeding protocols were found to provide an excess of energy after the first week of treatment in our study population, whereas four research protocols tended to provide less energy than the estimated requirement after the first week of treatment. Alternative feeding protocols have the potential to simplify and lead to important savings for programmes but should be evaluated to show adequacy to meet the energy needs of children under treatment, as well as feasibility and cost efficiency. Our findings rely on theoretical calculations based on several assumptions and should be confirmed in field studies.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 14 October 2019
Tang K, Berthé F, Nackers F, Hanson KE, Mambula C, et al.
Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 14 October 2019
Background
Healthcare-associated infections pose a major, yet often preventable risk to patient safety. Poor hand hygiene among healthcare personnel and unsanitary hospital environments may contribute to this risk in low-income settings. We aimed to describe hand hygiene behaviour and environmental contamination by season in a rural, sub-Saharan African hospital setting.
Methods
We conducted a concurrent triangulation mixed-methods study combining three types of data at a hospital in Madarounfa, Niger. Hand hygiene observations among healthcare personnel during two seasons contributed quantitative data describing hand hygiene frequency and its variability in relation to seasonal changes in caseload. Semistructured interviews with healthcare personnel contributed qualitative data on knowledge, attitudes and barriers to hand hygiene. Biweekly environmental samples evaluated microbial contamination from October 2016 to December 2017. Triangulation identified convergences, complements and contradictions across results.
Results
Hand hygiene compliance, or the proportion of actions (handrubbing or handwashing) performed out of all actions required, was low (11% during non-peak and 36% during peak caseload seasons). Interviews with healthcare personnel suggesting good general knowledge of hand hygiene contradicted the low hand hygiene compliance. However, compliance by healthcare activity was convergent with poor knowledge of precise hand hygiene steps and the motivation to prevent personal acquisition of infection identified during interviews. Contamination of environmental samples with gram-negative bacilli was high (45%), with the highest rates of contamination observed during the peak caseload season.
Conclusion
Low hand hygiene compliance coupled with high contamination rates of hospital environments may increase the risk of hospital-acquired infections in sub-Saharan African settings.
Healthcare-associated infections pose a major, yet often preventable risk to patient safety. Poor hand hygiene among healthcare personnel and unsanitary hospital environments may contribute to this risk in low-income settings. We aimed to describe hand hygiene behaviour and environmental contamination by season in a rural, sub-Saharan African hospital setting.
Methods
We conducted a concurrent triangulation mixed-methods study combining three types of data at a hospital in Madarounfa, Niger. Hand hygiene observations among healthcare personnel during two seasons contributed quantitative data describing hand hygiene frequency and its variability in relation to seasonal changes in caseload. Semistructured interviews with healthcare personnel contributed qualitative data on knowledge, attitudes and barriers to hand hygiene. Biweekly environmental samples evaluated microbial contamination from October 2016 to December 2017. Triangulation identified convergences, complements and contradictions across results.
Results
Hand hygiene compliance, or the proportion of actions (handrubbing or handwashing) performed out of all actions required, was low (11% during non-peak and 36% during peak caseload seasons). Interviews with healthcare personnel suggesting good general knowledge of hand hygiene contradicted the low hand hygiene compliance. However, compliance by healthcare activity was convergent with poor knowledge of precise hand hygiene steps and the motivation to prevent personal acquisition of infection identified during interviews. Contamination of environmental samples with gram-negative bacilli was high (45%), with the highest rates of contamination observed during the peak caseload season.
Conclusion
Low hand hygiene compliance coupled with high contamination rates of hospital environments may increase the risk of hospital-acquired infections in sub-Saharan African settings.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Matern Child Nutr. 23 July 2019; Volume 16 (Issue 1); e12876.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12876
Isanaka S, Berthé F, Nackers F, Tang K, Hanson KE, et al.
Matern Child Nutr. 23 July 2019; Volume 16 (Issue 1); e12876.; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12876
Many factors can contribute to low coverage of treatment for severe acute malnutrition (SAM), and a limited number of health facilities and trained personnel can constrain the number of children that receive treatment. Alternative models of care that shift the responsibility for routine clinical and anthropometric surveillance from the health facility to the household could reduce the burden of care associated with frequent facility-based visits for both healthcare providers and caregivers. To assess the feasibility of shifting clinical surveillance to caregivers in the outpatient management of SAM, we conducted a pilot study to assess caregivers' understanding and retention of key concepts related to the surveillance of clinical danger signs and anthropometric measurement over a 28-day period. At the time of a child's admission to nutritional treatment, a study nurse provided a short training to groups of caregivers on two topics: (a) clinical danger signs in children with SAM that warrant facility-based care and (b) methods to measure and monitor their child's mid-upper arm circumference. Caregiver understanding was assessed using standardized questionnaires before training, immediately after training, and 28 days after training. Knowledge of most clinical danger signs (e.g., convulsions, edema, poor appetite, respiratory distress, and lethargy) was low (0-45%) before training but increased immediately after and was retained 28 days after training. Agreement between nurse-caregiver mid-upper arm circumference colour classifications was 77% (98/128) immediately after training and 80% after 28 days. These findings lend preliminary support to pursue further study of alternative models of care that allow for greater engagement of caregivers in the clinical and anthropometric surveillance of children with SAM.
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Matern Child Nutr. 8 September 2018; Volume 15 (Issue 2); DOI:10.1111/mcn.12688
Isanaka S, Hanson KE, Frison S, Anderson CT, Cohuet S, et al.
Matern Child Nutr. 8 September 2018; Volume 15 (Issue 2); DOI:10.1111/mcn.12688
The use of mid upper arm circumference (MUAC) measurement to screen and determine eligibility for admission to therapeutic feeding programs has been established, but evidence and programmatic experience to inform guidance on the use of MUAC as a discharge criterion is limited. We present results from a large scale nutritional program using MUAC for admission and discharge and compare program outcomes and response to treatment when determining eligibility for discharge by proportional weight gain vs. discharge by MUAC. The study population included all children admitted to the Ministry of Health therapeutic feeding program supported by Médecins Sans Frontières in northern Burkina Faso from September 2007 to December 2011 (n = 50,841). Recovery was high overall using both discharge criteria, with low risks of death, non-response and transfer to inpatient care and high daily gains in weight, MUAC, WHZ and height. When discharge was made by MUAC only, recovery increased, while all adverse program outcomes and length of stay decreased, with increasing MUAC on admission. MUAC-based programming, where MUAC is integrated into program screening, admission, and discharge, is one of several new approaches that can be used to target resources to the most at-risk malnourished children and improve program efficiency and coherency. This analysis provides additional programmatic experience on the use of MUAC-based discharge criterion, but more work may be needed to inform optimal discharge thresholds across settings.
Journal Blog > Perspective
Field Exch. 6 March 2017
Tapié de Céleyran F, Hanson KE, Ferreyra C, Salse NKS, Tshialala D, et al.
Field Exch. 6 March 2017
Journal Article > ResearchFull Text
Matern Child Nutr. 1 January 2020; Volume 16; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12876
Isanaka S, Berthé F, Nackers F, Tang K, Hanson KE, et al.
Matern Child Nutr. 1 January 2020; Volume 16; DOI:10.1111/mcn.12876
Many factors can contribute to low coverage of treatment for severe acute malnutrition (SAM), and a limited number of health facilities and trained personnel can constrain the number of children that receive treatment. Alternative models of care that shift the responsibility for routine clinical and anthropometric surveillance from the health facility to the household could reduce the burden of care associated with frequent facility‐based visits for both healthcare providers and caregivers. To assess the feasibility of shifting clinical surveillance to caregivers in the outpatient management of SAM, we conducted a pilot study to assess caregivers' understanding and retention of key concepts related to the surveillance of clinical danger signs and anthropometric measurement over a 28‐day period. At the time of a child's admission to nutritional treatment, a study nurse provided a short training to groups of caregivers on two topics: (a) clinical danger signs in children with SAM that warrant facility‐based care and (b) methods to measure and monitor their child's mid‐upper arm circumference. Caregiver understanding was assessed using standardized questionnaires before training, immediately after training, and 28 days after training. Knowledge of most clinical danger signs (e.g., convulsions, edema, poor appetite, respiratory distress, and lethargy) was low (0–45%) before training but increased immediately after and was retained 28 days after training. Agreement between nurse–caregiver mid‐upper arm circumference colour classifications was 77% (98/128) immediately after training and 80% after 28 days. These findings lend preliminary support to pursue further study of alternative models of care that allow for greater engagement of caregivers in the clinical and anthropometric surveillance of children with SAM.