Lecture 11 Failure To Thrive (FTT)
Lecture 11 Failure To Thrive (FTT)
Lecture 11 Failure To Thrive (FTT)
Objectives
To understand the definition and criteria of patient with failure to thrive (FTT) To understand the cause or pathophysiology of patient with failure to thrive (FTT)
Definition
A term Failure to thrive: first was used to describe the malnourished1 and depressed condition of many institutionalized infants2 in the early 1900s. It remain a descriptive rather than a diagnostic label applied to children whose attained weight3 or rate of weight gain is significantly below that of other children of similar age and same sex4.
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Rate of growth
Depressed rate of weight gain
< 20 g/d from 0-3 months of age < 15 g/d from 3-6 months of age
(Height)
normal
(Head circumference)
Etiology(1)
Growth failure in infancy and childhood can result from a wide range of factors, including:
Serious medical disease Dysfunctional child-caregiver interactions Poverty Parental misinformation Child abuse
In majority of cases an underlying organic etiology is not found; when one is identified, it rarely presents with growth failure as its only manifestation.
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Etiology(2)
Psychosocial problems resulting in growth failure are common and should no longer be preserved as diagnoses of exclusion. Whether the condition is primary organic or psychosocial in origin, all children who are failing to thrive suffer the physical and psychological consequences of malnutrition and are at significant risk for long-term physical and psychodevelopmental squelae.
Abnormal bands
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F2 :
F3 :
F4 :
3. Increased caloric requirements: Congenital heart disease, chronic respiratory disease, neoplasm, hyperthyroidism, chronic or recurrent infection.
4. Altered growth potential/regulation: prenatal insult, chromosomal abnormality, endocrinopathies.
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Pathologic
Dentition
Dysphagia, swallowing problems Diseases (cancer, CHF, COPD, diabetes, ESRD, thyroid) Medication (diuretic, antihypertensive, dopamine agonist, antidepressant, antibiotic, antihistamine) Alcoholism Dementia
Sociologic
Ability to shop for food
Ability to prepare food Financial status Low socioeconomic Impaired activities of daily living skills
Psychologic
Depression
Anxiety Loneliness
Grief Dysphoria
CHF = congestive heart disease; COPD = chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; ESRD = end stage renal disease
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Diagnosis(1)
A child who growing poorly should focused on:
Identifying signs and underlying disease. Severity of malnutrition. Important concomitant findings such as evidence of physical abuse/neglect or the presence of deprivational behaviors.
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Distended abdomen
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Diagnosis(3)
Laboratory diagnostic should be guided by:
Concern rise in the history, physical examination, and review of growth data. Organic disease presenting only with growth failure is extremely uncommon. Depending on the length and severity of growth failure, additional laboratory studies may be useful to help assess nutritional status and the presence of concomitant problems such as iron deficiency anemia Most children receive a complete blood count, serum electrolyte, serum creatinine, total protein/albumin, urinalysis, urine culture, and bone age (if height growth also poor).
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Management(1)
Most of children with growth failure can be evaluated and manage as out patients, with several important exceptions. Children with psychosocial failure to thrive should be hospitalized if they manifest evidence of, or are at high risk for, physical abuse and/or severe neglect, are severely malnourished or medically unstable, or have failed a trial of outpatient management.
The success of treatment often depend on the establishment of positive and caring longitudinal alliance with the child and caretakers.
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Management(2)
Management of psychosocial failure to thrive must be individualized to the specific needs of the child and family. Nutritional rehabilitation: efforts are focused on correcting the dysfunctional child-parent interactions by addressing areas of parental misinformation, providing and helping to implement specific feeding guidelines, and addressing the larger psychosocial needs of the family. A multidisciplinary team approach involving the primarycare provider, nutritionist, social worker, child behavior specialist, and community-based outreach services is often most beneficial.
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Summary
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