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Severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is the most high-risk form of undernutrition, particularly when children require hospitalization for complications. Complicated SAM is a multisystem disease with high inpatient and postdischarge mortality, especially in children with comorbidities such as HIV; however, the underlying pathogenesis of complicated SAM is poorly understood. Targeted multiplex biomarker analysis in children hospitalized with SAM (n = 264) was conducted on plasma samples, and inflammatory markers were assessed on stool samples taken at recruitment, discharge, and 12 to 24 and 48 weeks after discharge from three hospitals in Zimbabwe and Zambia. Compared with adequately nourished controls (n = 173), we found that at baseline, complicated SAM was characterized by systemic, endothelial, and intestinal inflammation, which was exacerbated by HIV infection. This persisted over 48 weeks despite nutritional recovery and was associated with children's outcomes. Baseline plasma concentrations of vascular endothelial growth factor, glucagon-like peptide-2, and intestinal fatty acid–binding protein were independently associated with lower mortality or hospital readmission over the following 48 weeks. Following principal components analysis of baseline biomarkers, higher scores of a component representing growth factors was associated with greater weight-for-height z score recovery and lower mortality or hospital readmission over the 48 weeks. Conversely, components representing higher gut and systemic inflammation were associated with higher mortality or hospital readmission. These findings highlight the interplay between inflammation, which damages tissues, and growth factors, which mediate endothelial and epithelial regeneration, and support further studies investigating interventions to reduce inflammation and promote epithelial repair as an approach to reducing mortality and improving nutritional recovery. Editor's summary: Complicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) is associated with high mortality even after recovery of nutrition, but the underlying pathophysiology is still poorly understood. Here, Sturgeon and colleagues studied blood, urine, and stool samples from 264 children with SAM from hospitalization to 48 weeks after hospital discharge to better understand the disease. Principal components analyses and structural equation modeling revealed that SAM was characterized by inflammation, endothelial activation, and enteropathy that persisted over the 48 weeks after discharge and that were associated with higher mortality and hospital readmission. Conversely, growth factors indicative of endothelial and epithelial repair were associated with reduced mortality and hospital readmission over 48 weeks. These findings suggest that interventions to decrease inflammation and promote epithelial repair may be beneficial for the treatment of SAM. —Melissa L. Norton [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

HIV and severe wasting are associated with post-discharge mortality and hospital readmission among children with complicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM); however, the reasons remain unclear. We assessed body composition at hospital discharge, stratified by HIV and oedema status, in a cohort of children with complicated SAM in three hospitals in Zambia and Zimbabwe. We measured skinfold thicknesses and bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) to investigate whether fat and lean mass were independent predictors of time to death or readmission. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate the association between death/readmission and discharge body composition. Mixed effects models were fitted to compare longitudinal changes in body composition over 1 year. At discharge, 284 and 546 children had complete BIA and skinfold measurements, respectively. Low discharge lean and peripheral fat mass were independently associated with death/hospital readmission. Each unit Z -score increase in impedance index and triceps skinfolds was associated with 48 % (adjusted hazard ratio 0·52, 95 % CI (0·30, 0·90)) and 17 % (adjusted hazard ratio 0·83, 95 % CI (0·71, 0·96)) lower hazard of death/readmission, respectively. HIV-positive v. HIV-negative children had lower gains in sum of skinfolds (mean difference −1·49, 95 % CI (−2·01, −0·97)) and impedance index Z -scores (–0·13, 95 % CI (−0·24, −0·01)) over 52 weeks. Children with non-oedematous v. oedematous SAM had lower mean changes in the sum of skinfolds (–1·47, 95 % CI (−1·97, −0·97)) and impedance index Z -scores (–0·23, 95 % CI (−0·36, −0·09)). Risk stratification to identify children at risk for mortality or readmission, and interventions to increase lean and peripheral fat mass, should be considered in the post-discharge care of these children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nutritional recovery and hospital readmission following inpatient management of complicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) are poorly characterised. We aimed to ascertain patterns and factors associated with hospital readmission, nutritional recovery and morbidity, in children discharged from hospital following management of complicated SAM in Zambia and Zimbabwe over 52‐weeks posthospitalization. Multivariable Fine‐Gray subdistribution hazard models, with death and loss to follow‐up as competing risks, were used to identify factors associated with hospital readmission; negative binomial regression to assess time to hospitalisation and ordinal logistic regression to model factors associated with nutritional recovery. A total of 649 children (53% male, median age 18.2 months) were discharged to continue community nutritional rehabilitation. All‐cause hospital readmission was 15.4% (95% CI 12.7, 18.6) over 52 weeks. Independent risk factors for time to readmission were cerebral palsy (adjusted subhazard ratio (aSHR): 2.96, 95% CI 1.56, 5.61) and nonoedematous SAM (aSHR: 1.64, 95%CI 1.03, 2.64). Unit increases in height‐for‐age Z‐score (HAZ) (aSHR: 0.82, 95% CI 0.71, 0.95) and enrolment in Zambia (aSHR: 0.52, 95% CI 0.28, 0.97) were associated with reduced subhazard of time to readmission. Young age, SAM at discharge, nonoedematous SAM and cerebral palsy were associated with poor nutritional recovery throughout follow‐up. Collectively, nonoedematous SAM, ongoing SAM at discharge, cerebral palsy and low HAZ are independent risk factors for readmission and poor nutritional recovery following complicated SAM. Children with these high‐risk features should be prioritised for additional convalescent care to improve long‐term outcomes. Key messages: One‐in‐six children managed for SAM were readmitted into hospital over the first year after discharge and one‐in‐eight remained undernourished by 52 weeks of follow‐up.Nonoedematous SAM, ongoing SAM at the time of discharge and underlying cerebral palsy were independent risk factors for hospital readmission and poor nutritional recovery.Low HAZ was a risk factor for hospital readmission and poor nutritional recovery.Postdischarge care should focus on children with disability, nonoedematous SAM at initial hospitalisation and have ongoing SAM at the time of discharge.Stunting should be considered in the management of children with SAM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Children discharged from hospital following management of complicated severe acute malnutrition (SAM) have a high risk of mortality, especially HIV-positive children. Few studies have examined mortality in the antiretroviral therapy (ART) era. Objectives Our objectives were to ascertain 52-wk mortality in children discharged from hospital for management of complicated SAM, and to identify independent predictors of mortality. Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted in children enrolled from 3 hospitals in Zambia and Zimbabwe between July 2016 and March 2018. The primary outcome was mortality at 52 wk. Univariable and multivariable Cox regression models were used to identify independent risk factors for death, and to investigate whether HIV modifies these associations. Results Of 745 children, median age at enrolment was 17.4 mo (IQR: 12.8, 22.1 mo), 21.7% were HIV-positive, and 64.4% had edema. Seventy children (9.4%; 95% CI: 7.4, 11.7%) died and 26 exited during hospitalization; 649 were followed postdischarge. At discharge, 43.9% had ongoing SAM and only 50.8% of HIV-positive children were receiving ART. Vital status was ascertained for 604 (93.1%), of whom 55 (9.1%; 95% CI: 6.9, 11.7%) died at median 16.6 wk (IQR: 9.4, 21.9 wk). Overall, 20.0% (95% CI: 13.5, 27.9%) and 5.6% (95% CI: 3.8, 7.9%) of HIV-positive and HIV-negative children, respectively, died [adjusted hazard ratio (aHR): 3.83; 95% CI: 2.15, 6.82]. Additional independent risk factors for mortality were ongoing SAM (aHR: 2.28; 95% CI: 1.22, 4.25), cerebral palsy (aHR: 5.60; 95% CI: 2.72, 11.50) and nonedematous SAM (aHR: 2.23; 95% CI: 1.24, 4.01), with no evidence of interaction with HIV status. Conclusions HIV-positive children have an almost 4-fold higher mortality than HIV-negative children in the year following hospitalization for complicated SAM. A better understanding of causes of death, an improved continuum of care for HIV and SAM, and targeted interventions to improve convalescence are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]