Citation Information :
Selvagandhi PK, Dhruw S, Phuljhele S. Study the Prevalence of Bacterial Infection in Under-five Malnourished Children. Pediatr Inf Dis 2025; 7 (2):50-53.
Background: Malnutrition means both undernutrition and overnutrition. Under-five children who are malnourished are at increased risk of bacterial infection and sepsis, which contribute to morbidity and mortality.
Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 155 under-five malnourished children through a consecutive sampling method in the Department of Pediatrics at Pt JNM Medical College, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, India, after obtaining informed consent from their respective parents.
Results: The prevalence of bacterial infection in my study was 11.6%. Prevalence was higher in children with severe acute malnutrition (14.4%) compared to children with moderate acute malnutrition. The most common organism isolated was methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.
Conclusion: A significant proportion of under-five malnourished children were complicated by serious bacterial infections, the majority in the form of respiratory illness, like bronchopneumonia. There is a need for intervention to improve the nutritional status of under-five malnourished children.
WHO. Management of Severe Malnutrition: A Manual for Physicians and Other Senior Health Workers. Geneva: World Health Organization; 1999.
World Health Organization. WHO Child Growth Standards and the Identification of Severe Acute Malnutrition in Infants and Children. WHO; 2009. Available from: http://www.who.int/nutrition.
National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4, State and District Factsheets, Chhattisgarh. Mumbai: IIPS.
National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5, State and District Factsheets, Chhattisgarh. Mumbai: IIPS.
Meera S, Gragnolati M, Das Gupta M, et al. India's Undernourished Children: A Call for Reform and Action. Washington, DC: World Bank; 2005. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/10986/13644.
Kavosi E, Rostami ZH, Kavosi Z, et al. Prevalence and determinants under-nutrition among children under six: a cross-sectional survey in Fars province, Iranof. Int J Health Policy Manag 2014;3(2):71–76. DOI: 10.15171/ijhpm.2014.63
Msafiri CL, Lilunguru A, Kimaro F, et al. Bacteremia among Febrile under Five Children at Makole Health Centre, Dodoma City, Tanzania. 2019.
UNICEF. State of the World's Children: Child Survival. New York: United Nations Children's Fund; 2007.
Neumann CG, Gewa C, Bwibo NO. Child nutrition in developing countries. Pediatr Ann 2004;33:658–674. DOI: 10.3928/0090-4481-20041001-09
Kuppermann N. Occult bacteremia in young febrile children. Pediatr Clin North Am 1999;46(6):1073–1109. DOI: 10.1016/s0031-3955(05)70176-0
Oyedeji GA. The pattern of infection children with severe protein energy malnutritionin. Niger J Paediatr 1989;16:55–61.
Alcoba G, Kerac M, Breysse S, et al. Do children with uncomplicated severe acute malnutrition need antibiotics? A systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One 2013;8(1):e53184. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0053184
Schaible UE, Kaufmann SHE. Malnutrition and infection: complex mechanisms and global impacts. PLoS Med 2007;4:e115. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.0040115
Ambrus JL Sr, Ambrus JL Jr. Nutrition and infectious diseases in developing countries and problems of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 2004;229:464–472. DOI: 10.1177/153537020422900603
Phillips I, Wharton B. Acute bacterial infection in kwashiorkor and marasmus. Br Med J 1968;1(5589):407–409. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.1.5589.407
Nimri LF, Rawashdeh M, Meqdam MM. Bacteremia in children: etiologic agents, focal sites, and risk factors. J Trop Pediatr 2001;47(6):356–360. DOI: 10.1093/tropej/47.6.356
Berkowitz FE. Infections in children with severe protein-energy malnutrition. Pediatr Infect Dis J 1992;11:750–759. DOI: 10.1097/00006454-199209000-00015
Noorani N, Macharia WM, Oyatsi D, et al. Bacterial isolates in severely malnourished children at Kenyatta National Hospital, Nairobi. East Afr Med J 2005;82:343–348. PMID: 16167706.
Abrha A, Abdissa A, Beyene G, et al. Bacteremia among severely malnourished children in Jimmah University Hospital, Ethiopia. Ethiop J Health Sci 2011;21(3):175–182. PMID: 22434997.
Okomo UA, Garba D, Fombah AE, et al. Bacterial isolates and antibiotic sensitivity among Gambian children with severe acute malnutrition. Int J Pediatr 2011;2011:825123. DOI: 10.1155/2011/825123
Norton EB, Archibald LK, Nwanyanwu OC, et al. Clinical predictors of bloodstream infections and mortality in hospitalized Malawian children. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2004;23(2):145–151. DOI: 10.1097/01.inf.0000109258.82988.40
Reed RP, Wegerhoff FO, Rothberg AD. Bacteraemia in malnourished rural African children. Ann Trop Paediatr 1996;16(1):61–68. DOI: 10.1080/02724936.1996.11747805
Francis F, Robertson RC, Bwakura-Dangarembizi M, et al. Antibiotic use and resistance in children with severe acute malnutrition and human immunodeficiency virus infection. Int J Antimicrob Agents 2023;61(1):106690. DOI: 10.1016/j.ijantimicag.2022.106690
Roy MP, Gaind R, Aggarwal KC, et al. Pattern of pediatric bacterial infection and antibiotic resistance in New Delhi. Indian Pediatr 2017;54(2):153–154. DOI: 10.1007/s13312-017-1022-5
Ahmed M, Mirambo MM, Mushi MF, et al. Bacteremia caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria among hospitalized malnourished children in Mwanza, Tanzania: a cross sectional study. BMC Res Notes 2017;10(1):62. DOI: 10.1186/s13104-017-2389-z
Nyamurenje L, Archary M. Bacterial infections in hospitalised severely malnourished children in Durban, South Africa†. S Afr J Infect Dis 2018;33:1–5. DOI: 10.1080/23120053.2018.1504531
Walson JL, Berkley JA. The impact of malnutrition on childhood infections. Curr Opin Infect Dis 2018;31(3):231–236. DOI: 10.1097/QCO.0000000000000448
