Length of stay to recover from severe acute malnutrition and associated factors among under-five years children admitted to public hospitals in Aksum, Ethiopia

摘要

Background Severe acute malnutrition is defined by 70% weight for length/height, by visible severe wasting, by the presence of pitting edema, and in children 6 to 59 months of age, mid upper arm circumference 110 mm. Severe acute malnutrition remains to be a worldwide problem, claiming lives of millions of children, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asia. Though the Ethiopian national guideline states the total length of stay in therapeutic feeding units should not be more than four weeks, there is huge difference, varying from 8 to 47 days of stay. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess length of stay to recover from severe acute malnutrition and associated factors among under five children hospitalized to the public hospitals in Aksum Town.