Peer-reviewed article
Prevalence of composite indicator anthropometric failures and associated factors among 6-59 month children living in Mojo Town, Oromia, Ethiopia.
Deybasso HA, Belda ES, Habtewold EM ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study measured malnutrition in 461 children aged 6-59 months in Mojo Town, Ethiopia, using a composite indicator that captures children with multiple forms of undernutrition at the same time. One quarter of children showed composite anthropometric failures. The research found that larger families, fever, poor diet diversity, food insecurity, and older age were all linked to higher rates of malnutrition.
Key points
- Prevalence of composite anthropometric failures was 24.5% among 6-59 month children
- Family size of 5 or more people increased odds of composite failures by 75%
- Presence of fever increased odds by 137%
- Low dietary diversity score increased odds by 120%
- Household food insecurity increased odds by 121%
Limitations
This is a cross-sectional study, so it can only show associations, not prove cause and effect. The study was limited to one town in Oromia, so findings may not represent rural areas or other regions of Ethiopia.
Abstract
Background Multiple anthropometric failures are now used to describe children who exhibit anthropometric failures, such as stunting, underweight, and wasting, all of which can occur simultaneously in children under the age of five due to common causal factors. Compared to children with an isolated anthropometric failure, the risk of death for children with composite indicator anthropometric failures is higher and is analogous to being severely wasted. The objective of this study was to assess the prevalence of composite indicator anthropometric failures and associated factors among children aged 6-59 months in Mojo Town, Oromia Regional State in Ethiopia. Methods A community-based cross-sectional study was conducted among randomly selected 461 children and mothers/caregivers. Data were collected using structured interviewer-administered questionnaires and anthropometric measurements. The collected data were checked, coded, and entered into Epi info 7 version 3.1 and exported to the statistical package for Social Science version 25 for further analysis. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the study population. Bivariate logistic regression analysis was conducted to select candidate variables for multivariate logistic regression analysis at a p-value < 0.25. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the associations between independent and dependent variables. The strength of association was estimated using an adjusted odds ratio with a 95% confidence interval. Statistical significance was declared at p-value < 0.05. Result The prevalence of composite indicator anthropometric failures was 24.5% [95% CI: 20.8, 28.8] among 6-59 month children. Family size of > = 5 [AOR = 1.75, 95% CI: 1.04, 2.97], presence of fever [AOR: 2.37, 95% CI: 1.39-4.08], low dietary diversity score [AOR: 2.20; 95% CI: 1.23, 4.108], children age category of 48-59 month [AOR: 2.59; 95%CI: 1.06, 6.37] and household food insecurity [AOR: 2.21; 95%CI: 1.38, 3.55] were significantly associated with composite index anthropometric failures. Conclusion A quarter of children aged 6-59 months in the study area were exposed to composite indicator anthropometric failures. Family size, the presence of fever, dietary diversity, household food status, and child age were positively associated with composite index anthropometric failures.