Malaria and nutritional status in children living on the coast of Kenya

Abstract

Background: The relation between malnutrition and malaria is controversial. On the one hand, malaria may cause malnutrition, whereas on the other hand, malnutrition itself may modulate susceptibility to the disease. Objective: The objective was to investigate the association between Plasmodium falciparum malaria and malnutrition in a cohort of Kenyan children. Design: The study involved the longitudinal follow-up of children aged 28-60 mo for clinical malaria episodes and anthropometric measurements through 4 cross-sectional surveys. We used Poisson regression analysis to investigate the association between malaria and nutritional status. Results: The crude incidence rate ratios (IRRs) for malaria during the 6-mo period before assessment in children defined as malnourished on the basis of low height-for-age or low weight-for-age z scores (