Effects of COVID-19 Pandemic on Nutritional Status, Feeding Practices, and Access to Food Among Infants and Children in Lower and Middle-Income Countries: a Narrative Review.

Purpose of Review: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected children across the planet and the consequences on their health, nutritional status, and social structure have been more pronounced in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). This review will focus on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on infant growth and feeding practices and access to food and obesity prevalence among children in LMICs. An electronic search was performed on MEDLINE and Embase to identify relevant articles in the English language. Recent Findings: A higher prevalence of infections by the SARS-CoV-2 virus and a lower mortality rate were found in children in LMICs compared to western countries. In 2020, 22% and 52% of the wasting and deaths in children under 5 years of age in LMICS came from the sub-Saharan Africa region, respectively. Despite the decrease in stunting from 40% in 1990 to 24.2% in 2019, the prevalence remains above 30% in LMICs. Regarding breastfeeding practices in LMICs, many organizations recommend breastfeeding for infants and children born to infected mothers with SARS-CoV-2. This pandemic has resulted in higher food insecurity and disruption to access to health care and nutrition-related programs from schools; this situation has been more detrimental for younger children from LMICs. Summary: Given the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the nutritional status, higher food insecurity, and lack of access to health care for infants and children in LMICs, efforts from government, world organizations, and non-for-profit institutions should be implemented to ameliorate the effects of this pandemic.

Improving recognition and management of children with complicated severe acute malnutrition at a tertiary referral hospital in Malawi: a quality improvement initiative.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is common in low-income countries and is associated with high mortality in young children. OBJECTIVE: To improve recognition and management of SAM in a tertiary hospital in Malawi. METHODS: The impact of multifaceted quality improvement interventions in process measures pertaining to the identification and management of SAM was assessed. Interventions included focused training for clinical staff, reporting process measures to staff, and mobile phone-based group messaging for enhanced communication. This initiative focused on children aged 6-36 months admitted to Kamuzu Central Hospital in Malawi from September 2019 to March 2020. Before-after comparisons were made with baseline data from the year before, and process measures within this intervention period which included three plan-do-study-act (PDSA) cycles were compared. RESULTS: During the intervention period, 418 children had SAM and in-hospital mortality was 10.8%, which was not significantly different from the baseline period. Compared with the baseline period, there was significant improvement in the documentation of full anthropometrics on admission, blood glucose test within 24 hours of admission and HIV testing results by discharge. During the intervention period, amidst increasing patient census with each PDSA cycle, three process measures were maintained (documentation of full anthropometrics, determination of nutritional status and HIV testing results), and there was significant improvement in blood glucose documentation. CONCLUSION: Significant improvement in key quality measures represents early progress towards the larger goal of improving patient outcomes, most notably mortality, in children admitted with SAM.

Risk factors for mortality and management of children with complicated severe acute malnutrition at a tertiary referral hospital in Malawi.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is a major cause of childhood mortality in resource-limited settings. The relationship between clinical factors and adherence to the 'WHO 10 Steps' and mortality in children with SAM is not fully understood. METHODS: Data from an ongoing prospective observational cohort study assessing admission characteristics, management patterns and clinical outcome in children aged 6-36 months admitted to a tertiary hospital in Malawi from September 2018 to September 2019 were analysed. Data clerks independently collected data from patients' charts. Demographics, clinical and nutritional status, identification of SAM and adherence to the 'WHO 10 Steps' were summarised. Their relationship to in-hospital mortality was assessed using multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: Of the 6752 patients admitted, 9.7% had SAM. Mortality was significantly higher in those with SAM (10.1% vs 3.8%, p < 0.001). Compared with independent assessment anthropometrics, clinicians appropriately documented SAM on admission in 39.5%. The following factors were independently associated with mortality: kwashiorkor [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) 5.14, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.27-20.78], shock (aOR 18.54, 95% CI 3.87-88.90), HIV-positive (aOR 5.32, 95% CI 1.76-16.09), SAM documented on admission (aOR 2.41, 95% CI 1.11-5.22), documentation of blood glucose within 24 hrs (aOR 3.97, 95% CI 1.90-8.33) and IV fluids given without documented shock (aOR 3.13, 95% CI 1.16-8.44). CONCLUSION: HIV infection remains an important predictor of mortality in children with SAM. IV fluids should be avoided in those without shock. Early identification of SAM by the clinical team represents a focus of future quality improvement interventions at this facility.

Mobile instant messaging for rural community health workers: a case from Malawi.

BACKGROUND: Mobile instant messaging (MIM) tools, such as WhatsApp, have transformed global communication practice. In the field of global health, MIM is an increasingly used, but little understood, phenomenon. OBJECTIVES: It remains unclear how MIM can be used by rural community health workers (CHWs) and their facilitators, and what are the associated benefits and constraints. To address this gap, WhatsApp groups were implemented and researched in a rural setting in Malawi. METHODS: The multi-site case study research triangulated interviews and focus groups of CHWs and facilitators with the thematic qualitative analysis of the actual conversations on WhatsApp. A survey with open questions and the quantitative analysis of WhatsApp conversations were used as supplementary triangulation sources. RESULTS: The use of MIM was differentiated according to instrumental (e.g. mobilising health resources) and participatory purposes (e.g. the enactment of emphatic ties). The identified benefits were centred on the enhanced ease and quality of communication of a geographically distributed health workforce, and the heightened connectedness of a professionally isolated health workforce. Alongside minor technical and connectivity issues, the main challenge for the CHWs was to negotiate divergent expectations regarding the social versus the instrumental use of the space. CONCLUSIONS: Despite some challenges and constraints, the implementation of WhatsApp was received positively by the CHWs and it was found to be a useful tool to support distributed rural health work.