Association between nutritional status and socio-economic status among school children aged 9-17 years in a semi-urban area of Nepal.

BACKGROUND: In many low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), childhood overweight is increasing, while underweight remains a problem. This study aimed to investigate the association between socio-economic status (SES) and nutritional status among Nepalese school children. METHODS: This cross-sectional study used a multistage random cluster sampling method and included 868 students aged 9-17 years from both public and private schools located in a semi-urban area of Pokhara Metropolitan City, Nepal. SES was determined based on a self-reported questionnaire. Body weight and height were measured by health professionals and body mass index (BMI) was categorized based on the World Health Organization BMI-for-age cut-offs. The association between Lower and Upper SES and BMI was assessed using mixed-effects logistic regression model estimating the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) with a corresponding 95% confidence interval (CI) and compared to Middle SES. RESULTS: The proportion of obesity, overweight, underweight, and stunting among school children was 4%, 12%, 7%, and 17%, respectively. More girls were overweight/obese compared with boys (20% vs. 13%). The mixed-effects logistic regression model showed that both participants from Lower SES households and Upper SES households had a higher tendency to be overweight compared to participants from Middle SES; aOR = 1.4; 95% CI 0.7-3.1 and aOR = 1.1; 95% CI 0.6-2.1, respectively. Furthermore, stunting and overweight occurred simultaneously. CONCLUSIONS: This study found that about one out of four children and adolescents in the study setting was malnourished. There was a tendency that both participants from Lower SES and Upper SES had higher odds of being overweight compared to participants from Middle SES. Furthermore, both stunting and overweight were present simultaneously in some individuals. This emphasizes the complexity and importance of awareness of childhood malnutrition in LMICs like Nepal.

Evaluating Vitamin D levels in Rheumatic Heart Disease patients and matched controls: A case-control study from Nepal.

BACKGROUND: Diagnosis and treatment for Rheumatic Heart Disease (RHD) is inaccessible for many of the 33 million people in low and middle income countries living with this disease. More knowledge about risk factors and pathophysiologic mechanisms involved is needed in order to prevent disease and optimize treatment. This study investigated risk factors in a Nepalese population, with a special focus on Vitamin D deficiency because of its immunomodulatory effects. METHODS: Ninety-nine patients with confirmed RHD diagnosis and 97 matched, cardiac-healthy controls selected by echocardiography were recruited from hospitals in the Central and Western region of Nepal. Serum 25(OH)D concentrations were assessed using dried blood spots and anthropometric values measured to evaluate nutritional status. Conditional logistic regression analysis was used to define association between vitamin D deficiency and RHD. RESULTS: The mean age of RHD patients was 31 years (range 9-70) and for healthy controls 32 years (range 9-65), with a 4:1 female to male ratio. Vitamin D levels were lower than expected in both RDH and controls. RHD patients had lower vitamin D levels than controls with a mean s-25(OH)D concentration of 39 nmol/l (range 8.7-89.4) compared with controls 45 nmol/l (range 14.5-86.7) (p-value = 0.02). People with Vitamin D insufficiency had a higher risk (OR = 2.59; 95% CI: 1.04-6.50) of also having RHD compared to people with Vitamin D concentrations >50 nmol/l. Body mass index was significantly lower in RHD patients (22.6; 95% CI, 21.5-23.2) compared to controls (24.2; 95% CI, 23.3-25.1). CONCLUSION: RHD patients in Nepal have lower Vitamin D levels and overall poor nutritional status compared to the non-RHD controls. Longitudinal studies are needed to explore the causality between RHD and vitamin D level. Future research is also recommended among Nepali general population to confirm the low level of vitamin D as reported in our control group.

Mid-upper arm circumference as an indicator of underweight in adults: a cross-sectional study from Nepal.

BACKGROUND: Undernourished people have an increased risk of premature mortality from both infectious and non-communicable diseases. Aside from screening purposes, assessment of nutritional status is a useful tool in management and evaluation of various chronic diseases. Body-Mass-Index (BMI) is today the most commonly used marker of nutritional status however, this method presents a challenge in many low resource settings and immobile patients. Mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) is another anthropometric measure that requires minimal equipment and little training. So far, MUAC cutoffs for undernutrition are well established in children < 5 years but there is still no consensus for a specific cutoff in adults. The objective of this study was to compare MUAC with BMI and suggest a MUAC cut-off corresponding to a BMI of 18.5 kg/m2 to identify underweight in adults. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted at two urban public hospitals in Nepal. The following variables where collected: MUAC, weight, height, sex, age and self-reported medical history. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: < 19 years of age, pregnancy and oedema. Sensitivity and specificity for a MUAC value corresponding to BMI < 18.5 was calculated. ROC analysis was performed for male and female as well as Pearson's correlation of MUAC and BMI. RESULTS: A total of 302 people between 18 and 86 years of age, 197 women and 105 men, were included. Of these, 90 people suffered from rheumatic heart disease. MUAC was highly correlated with BMI in both women r = 0.889 and men r = 0.846. Best statistically derived MUAC cutoff corresponding to a BMI < 18.5 kg/m2 was 24.5 cm (Youdens Index = 0.75; sensitivity 92.86; specificity 82.48), with high predictive value (AUROCC> 0.9). The setting based optimal MUAC cutoff was also 24.5 cm. No considerable variation was found in sex- and disease specific subgroups. CONCLUSION: MUAC is strongly correlated with BMI in adults in Nepal. For simplicity, a MUAC of 24.5 cm is the optimal statistically and setting based cutoff in both women and men to identify underweight (BMI < 18.5 kg/m2).

Subjective evaluation of psychosocial well-being in children and youths with overweight or obesity: the impact of multidisciplinary obesity treatment.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of a multidisciplinary childhood obesity treatment programme on subjective evaluations of psychosocial well-being and quality of life. METHODS: This longitudinal observational study included 1291 children, adolescents and young adults, 6-22 years of age, with overweight or obesity. At entry and after 2-82 months of obesity treatment, the patients evaluated the following domains of psychosocial well-being on a visual analogue scale: quality of life, mood, appetite, bullying, motivation for weight loss and body image satisfaction. The degree of overweight was calculated using a body mass index (BMI) standard deviation score (SDS) at each visit. RESULTS: At entry, the mean BMI SDS was 2.81 (range: 1.35-6.65, 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 2.44-3.18). After a median of 14 months of treatment, the median reduction in BMI SDS was 0.29 (95% CI: 0.26-0.31, p < 0.0001). Improvements were observed in the domains of quality of life, mood, appetite, bullying and body image satisfaction (p < 0.0001). Larger reductions in BMI SDS were associated with greater improvements in the domains of quality of life (p = 0.001), mood (p = 0.04) and body image satisfaction (p < 0.0001), independent of BMI SDS at entry. However, improvements in psychosocial well-being were also observed in those increasing their BMI SDS (n = 315). CONCLUSIONS: In a large group of children and youths, psychosocial well-being improved during a multidisciplinary childhood obesity treatment programme, irrespective of the degree of obesity at treatment entry. Greater reductions in BMI SDS were associated with greater improvements in psychosocial well-being, but even in the group increasing their BMI SDS improvements were observed.