Comparison of locally prepared versus industrially produced therapeutic milk for management of severe acute malnutrition in Basra

Abstract EN

-Objective: A retrospective descriptive study was carried out to evaluate the therapeutic effectiveness of F75 and F100 prepared locally in comparison to industrially produced milk and its relation to their outcome.

Methods: Data of 264 infants and children aged 1-36 months with severe acute malnutrition in the nutrition rehabilitation ward; were analyzed during the period from May 2013 till December 2014.

The admission criteria and treatment plan was according to World Health Organization guidelines.

The industrially produced milk was available from May 2013 till March 2014 then locally prepared milk was used as alternative till the end of December 2014.

Results: One hundred fifty nine patients received industrially produced F75 and F100 (group 1) and (105) patients received locally prepared therapeutic milk (group 2) were studied; their mean ages are 9.91 months and mean weight was 5.362±1.913.

All admitted children were complicated cases of severe acute malnutrition; weight for height Z score; ≤3SD and ≤4SD is 33.3% and 21.6% respectively, only 6.4% of admitted patients have edema, and 44.7% are infants under 6 months of age with severe wasting as criteria for admission with (50.9%, 35.2% in group 1 and 2) with statistically significant result.

Females and males distribution was 55.7% and 44.3% respectively.

Comparison of indicators for monitoring therapeutic effect of industrially and locally prepared formula shows that the mean weight ± SD is 5.107±1.79, 5.749±2.064 respectively, good and moderate weight gain is recorded in 71.4% and 71%, duration of hospitalization and death show no significant differences in both groups.

The mortality in nutrition rehabilitation centre is 5.67% and sepsis constitutes 60% of all deaths with high frequency of death recorded in patients with poor weight gain and those with severe wasting; with significant result of p-value, 0.008 and 0.000 respectively.

Conclusions: Locally prepared F75 and F100 formula has the same therapeutic effect as the industrially produced F75 and F100 in the management and outcome of patients with severe malnutrition.