Publication:

Assessment of plasma electrolytes like sodium, potassium, and chloride in severely malnourished children: a cross-sectional study

Background Malnutrition is defined as an imbalance between the supply of nutrients and energy and the body's demand for normal growth and development. The most serious kind of undernutrition is known as severe acute malnutrition (SAM). Children who are malnourished frequently develop electrolyte imbalances. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the plasma electrolytes (sodium, potassium, and chloride) in severely acute malnourished children.

Methods This was a cross-sectional study conducted in the Department of Biochemistry, Mymensingh Medical College in collaboration with the Department of Paediatrics, Mymensingh Medical College, and Community Based Medical College Bangladesh, Mymensingh, Bangladesh for a period of 1 year from July 2008 to June 2009. This study included 50 children as the cases of malnourishment, and 50 healthy children were taken as control group.

Results The mean age of cases and controls were 3.7±1.3 years and 4.1±0.9 years respectively. The mean±SD of serum sodium between Group I (case) and Group II (control) were 134.2±2.6 and 138.4±4.1 with a p-value of <0.001 respectively. The mean±SD of serum potassium and chloride between Group I and Group II were 4.2±0.4 and 4.5±0.4 and 101.1±2.9 and 102.6±3.2 respectively. The electrolyte levels were significantly lower in Group I than in Group II.

Conclusions This study found a significant (p<0.05) decrease in the mean ± SD of blood electrolyte levels (sodium, potassium, and chloride) in the case group as compared to the controls.