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Failure to Thrive in Children: Causes & Management

Failure to thrive is a chronic life-threatening disorder in infants and children characterized by inadequate growth or weight gain resulting from an inability to obtain or use sufficient calories for growth. Common causes include organic factors like malnutrition, infection, or genetic disorders as well as environmental and psychological factors such as poverty, poor social support, or disturbed parent-child relationships. Children with failure to thrive often exhibit delayed development, reduced muscle and fat stores, listlessness, and signs of physical and emotional deprivation. Treatment focuses on reversing the underlying causes through correcting malnutrition, addressing any organic issues, providing family support, and modifying caregiver behavior.

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Sana Siddiq
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114 views5 pages

Failure to Thrive in Children: Causes & Management

Failure to thrive is a chronic life-threatening disorder in infants and children characterized by inadequate growth or weight gain resulting from an inability to obtain or use sufficient calories for growth. Common causes include organic factors like malnutrition, infection, or genetic disorders as well as environmental and psychological factors such as poverty, poor social support, or disturbed parent-child relationships. Children with failure to thrive often exhibit delayed development, reduced muscle and fat stores, listlessness, and signs of physical and emotional deprivation. Treatment focuses on reversing the underlying causes through correcting malnutrition, addressing any organic issues, providing family support, and modifying caregiver behavior.

Uploaded by

Sana Siddiq
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Failure to thrive is a chronic life threatening dis&der which

affects infants and children. They show inadequate growth or


weight (growth failure) which results from inability to obtain
or use calories required for growth. Usually this term is used
when the weight of the child is below the third to fifth
percentile.

Etiology

Organic causes such as as m absorption syndrome,


gastroesophageal reflux, anemia, cystic fibrosis, neurologic
defects, congenital heart defects, chronic renal failure ,
endocrine dysfunction or acquired immunodeficiency
syndrome (AIDS), lead toxicity, helminthiasis Non Organic
factors mainly environmental and psychological factors such
inadequate nutritional information, Inadequate breast milk,
Poverty, Inadequate social support, Disturbed mother child
relationship, Family stress, Deficient maternal care, Illiteracy
ofcare givers, Mental or physical problems of care givers It
may be a combination of both organic and non organic FTT.
Whatever the cause, child may be suffered by an organic
insult due to inadequate nutritional status.
Clinical Manifestation

failure to gain weight


Weight and height is below third to fifth percentile
Delayed development

Reduced muscle mass and loss of subcutaneous fat

Apathy, listlessness, Expressionless face,

Poor eye contact; termed as “radar gaze”

Stools may be infrequent and scanty, may have


diarrhea

Flattened occiput

Signs of physical and emotional deprivation such as


Poor hygiene, withdrawn behaviour, pica, anorexia
etc

Vomiting, regurgitation

Hypotonia
Occult BloodManaqcunent

The primary goal is to reverse the cause o growth


failure.

Correct the underlying organic cause if any.

Correct malnutrition

Family therapy may be needed

Refer to welfare agencies or to supplementar: food


programs

Behaviour modification of care givers 1 essential.

Only sévere cases need to be hospitalised


These children may need 150% of the
recommended daily calories based on the expected
weight, not as the actual weight.COMMUNICABLE
DISEASES

Children are liable to get communicable diseases


more often than adults. Communicable diseas the
illnesses that are caused by infectious its toxins
which are transmitted to sus ividuals either
through direct contact or
CHICKEN POX (VARICELLA)
Chicken pox is a viral infection caused by varicella
zoster virus .1t occurs commonly during late winter
and early spring. Children below 10 years of age
are

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