Author
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Motil, Kathleen |
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Submitted to: International Journal of Cancer
Publication Type: Review Article Publication Acceptance Date: 11/1/1998 Publication Date: N/A Citation: N/A Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Protein-energy malnutrition and obesity are the most common nutritional disorders that complicate the clinical course of children with neoplastic diseases. Sensitive measures of nutritional status should be used to detect these problems in children with cancer. Height and weight measurements are the mainstay of the nutritional assessment of the child. These measurements scan be converted to growth velocities or to height-for-age and weight-for- height Z-scores or percent of expected values to provide a measure of the degree of under- or over-nutrition in the child. Skinfold thickness and circumference measurements of the arms, legs, and/or trunk may be useful to characterize the changes in peripheral fat depots and muscle mass, respectively. However, the assessment of body composition using these measurements is subject to methodological error because selected skinfold sites are excluded. Whole-body potassium, measured by 40K counting, and total body water, measured by deuterium or 18O dilution, serve as "gold standards" to determine the lean body mass and body fat status of the child, but these techniques may not be practical in all settings. The assessment of the nutritional status of the child serves as a guide to early nutritional intervention. Early nutritional intervention is essential to restore normal body composition, reverse linear growth arrest, promote tolerance to chemotherapeutic and radiation regimens, and improve the quality of life in children with cancer. |
