Keywords
Malnutrition
Pediatric ICU
Cardiac surgery
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Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the impact of risk and nutritional status on the clinical outcome of patients in a pediatric cardiology intensive care unit (ICU) in São Luís, Maranhão. Methods: Longitudinal, retrospective study with patients of both sexes and ages between 1 month and 15 years, in the postoperative period of cardiac surgery. After approval by the Research Ethics Committee, data were collected through electronic medical records, including sociodemographic and clinical data, nutritional risk assessment by STRONGkids and nutritional status by the World Health Organization (WHO) curves. Results: A total of 125 patients participated, with a prevalence of males (50.4%), preschoolers (53.6%) and acyanotic heart disease (82.4%). The medium risk by STRONGkids showed the highest prevalence (82.4%). Infants had a higher prevalence of malnutrition according to all indicators of the WHO curves. BMI/age was significantly associated with length of hospital stay (p=0.010) and weight/height (p=0.006). Conclusion: Malnutrition by weight/height and BMI/age was associated with longer hospital stay. Medium nutritional risk by STRONGkids was more prevalent and suggests a prevalence of nutritional vulnerability in this group.
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