Prevalence of Wasting in Children Under Five Years Admitted at the Pediatric Ward in Kitale County Referral Hospital

Abstract

The term wasting is used to describe a child who is too small for his or her weight. It results from sudden or acute malnutrition, where the child does not get enough calories from food and is therefore exposed to risk of death. This study assessed the prevalence of wasting in under five years’ children admitted in the pediatric ward in Kitale County Referral Hospital. Study design was based on a descriptive cross-sectional study. Prevalence of severe wasting was 14.2% and 18.4% for moderate wasting. The overall diet quality was inadequate due to budget for patient food, low priority for nutrition as part of medical treatment and failure to adhere to the hospital menu. It is recommended that all children aged 6-60 months admitted should be provided with the recommended toto diet. The ministry of health should deploy more qualified nutrition personnel to similar facilities to assist in taking anthropometric measurements for the children on admission, regularly after admission and upon discharge from the hospital to enable them capture malnourished children in the hospital.