Children hospitalised with severe malnutrition have high mortality and readmission rates post-discharge. Current milk-based formulations target restoring ponderal growth but not the modification of gut barrier integrity or microbiome which increases the risk of gram-negative sepsis and poor outcomes. We propose that legume-based feeds rich in fermentable carbohydrates will promote better gut health and improve overall outcomes. We conducted an open-label phase II trial at Mbale and Soroti Regional Referral Hospitals, Uganda, involving 160 children aged 6 months to 5 years with severe malnutrition (mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) < 11·5 cm and/or nutritional oedema). Children were randomised to a lactose-free, chickpea-enriched legume paste feed (LF) (n 80) v. WHO standard F75/F100 feeds (n 80). Co-primary outcomes were change in MUAC and mortality to day 90. Secondary outcomes included weight gain (> 5 g/kg/d), de novo development of diarrhoea, time to diarrhoea and oedema resolution. Day 90 MUAC increase was marginally lower in LF v. WHO arm (1·1 cm (interquartile range (IQR) 1·1) v. 1·4 cm (IQR 1·40), P = 0·09); day 90 mortality was similar (11/80 (13·8 %) v. 12/80 (15 %), respectively, OR 0·91 (95 % CI 0·40, 2·07), P = 0·83). There were no differences in any of the other secondary outcomes. Owing to initial poor palatability of the LF, ten children switched to WHO feeds. Per-protocol analysis indicated a trend to lower day 90 mortality and readmission rates in the LF (6/60 (10 %) and 2/60(3 %)) v. WHO feeds (12/71(17·5 %) and 4/71(6 %)). Further refinement of LF and clinical trials are warranted, given the poor outcomes in children with severe malnutrition.

Tackling malnutrition is a major health priority for a developing country like Bangladesh. This study explored the differences in prevalence of having only one form, and multiple forms, of severe malnutrition (stunting, wasting and underweight) among under-5 children in Bangladesh, and aimed to identify the important factors affecting these. Data were extracted from the Bangladesh Demographic Health Surveys conducted in 2007, 2011 and 2014. The outcome measures were ‘only one form’ and ‘multiple forms’ of severe malnutrition in children aged under 5 years. A Chi-squared test was performed to find the association of outcome variables with selected socio-demographic factors and logistic regression models were applied to identify risk factors. A total of 19,874 children aged under 5 years were included in the analysis. The overall proportion with one form of severe child malnutrition was approximately 12%, and the proportion with multiple forms was 8%. Age, mother’s education, father’s occupation, mother currently working, watching television, source of water, solid waste used in cooking, intimate partner violence (IPV), wealth index, urban/rural place of residence and birth cohort were found to be significant factors for both having only one and having multiple forms of severe child malnutrition. Children with an uneducated mother of poor socioeconomic class had a higher risk of severe malnutrition. Children of fathers with a professional occupation were at lower risk of having multiple forms of severe malnutrition. The proportions of children aged under 5 years with one or multiple forms of severe malnutrition were shown to be high in Bangladesh. The prevention of malnutrition in the country should be seen as a significant public health issue and given top priority.

We studied changes in species distribution and antimicrobial resistance patterns of Shigella during 1980–2008, using the Diarrhoeal Diseases Surveillance system of Dhaka Hospital of ICDDR,B. In hospitalized patients Shigella prevalence decreased steadily from 8–12% in the 1980s to 3% in 2008. Endemic S. flexneri was the most commonly isolated species (54%). Epidemic S. dysenteriae type 1 had two peaks in 1984 and 1993, but was not found after 2000, except for one case in 2004. The therapeutic options are now limited: in 2008 a total of 33% of S. flexneri were resistant to ciprofloxacin and 57% to mecillinam. In the <5 years age group, severely underweight, wasted and stunted children were more at risk of shigellosis compared to well-nourished children (P<0·001). Although hospitalization for Shigella diarrhoea is decreasing, the high levels of antimicrobial resistance and increased susceptibility of malnourished children continue to pose an ongoing risk.

The systematic failure to recognise and appropriately treat children with severe malnutrition has been attributed to the elevated case-fatality rates, often as high as 50%, that still prevail in many hospitals in Africa. Children admitted to Kilifi District Hospital, on the coast of Kenya, with severe malnutrition frequently have life-threatening features and complications, many of which are not adequately identified or treated by WHO guidelines. Four main areas have been identified for research: early identification and better supportive care of sepsis; evidence-based fluid management strategies; improved antimicrobial treatment; rational use of nutritional strategies. The present paper focuses on the identification of children with sepsis and on fluid management strategies.