Measuring growth in critically ill neonates and children.

Creator(s)

Julia M. Bracken, Children's Mercy HospitalFollow
Lucy Pappas, Children's Mercy Kansas CityFollow
Jamie Wilkins, Children's Mercy Kansas CityFollow
Kelly Tracy, Children's Mercy Kansas City
Taiseer R. Al-Rajabi
Ruba A. Abdelhadi, Children's Mercy HospitalFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

10-2023

Identifier

DOI: 10.1002/ncp.11057

Abstract

Critical illness increases the risk of malnutrition in both infants and children. Malnutrition risk is multifactorial and includes premorbid factors as well as changes in nutrient metabolism and energy demands during critical illness. Inadequate nutrition has been linked to poor health outcomes and prolonged length of stay in the intensive care unit, demonstrating the importance of both recognizing and addressing malnutrition in this population. Assessing growth and identifying malnutrition requires methodical measurement of growth and a collaborative, multimodal approach to nutrition assessment. Among the nutrition assessment and growth evaluation tools, neonatal, preterm, pediatric, and disease-specific growth charts remain an important component of growth assessment and should be used along with a nutrition-focused physical examination. Routine measurement promotes the identification of potential growth delays that may require interventions. Indirect calorimetry adds an additional layer of detail for a complete picture of each infant or child's unique nutrition status and progress. Quality improvement research on a national level is urgently needed to assess the adequacy and availability of resources in neonatal and pediatric critical care units and to further the development of standard clinical outcome measures for nutrition assessment and intervention in the critically ill neonate and child.

Journal Title

Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition

Volume

38

Issue

Suppl 2

First Page

28

Last Page

38

MeSH Keywords

Infant; Infant, Newborn; Humans; Child; Critical Illness; Nutritional Status; Malnutrition; Nutrition Assessment; Growth Disorders; Intensive Care Units, Pediatric

Keywords

critical care; growth charts; malnutrition; newborn infants; nutrition assessment; pediatrics; premature infants

Comments

Grants and funding

• The production of this publication was financially supported in part by a grant from Reckitt Mead Johnson Nutrition, which had no involvement in the editorial decisions, content, or writing of this supplement.

Recommended Citation

Bracken JM, Pappas L, Wilkins J, Tracy K, Al-Rajabi TR, Abdelhadi RA. Measuring growth in critically ill neonates and children. Nutr Clin Pract. 2023;38 Suppl 2:S28-S38. doi:10.1002/ncp.11057