Publications

Undernutrition remains a significant contributor to child mortality globally, accounting forover 50% of annual deaths among children under five. This study aimed to assess theprevalence, clinical patterns, and determinants of undernutrition in children under fiveyears old attending Rugazi Health Centre IV in Ryeru Sub-County, Bunyaruguru County,Rubirizi District, Southwestern Uganda. Employing a cross-sectional descriptive design,data was gathered from 361 out of 374 children in this demographic. The findings revealedalarming statistics, with 56.2% of the studied children classified as undernourished.Clinically, 27.1% were found to be wasted, indicating acute malnutrition, while 72.9%maintained normal weight for their length. The study noted that 16.6% fell within themoderately wasted category and 6.1% were severely wasted. Additionally, 19.1% weremoderately stunted, while 8.0% were severely stunted. Factors contributing toundernutrition included maternal age, education, employment status, breastfeedingpractices, and issues such as single parenthood, separation/divorce, or living with stepparents.Notably, exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months appeared as a protectivefactor against wasting. This research underscores the prevalence of undernutrition amongchildren under five in this region, highlighting the need for targeted interventionsaddressing socio-economic and maternal factors while promoting optimal breastfeedingpractices to mitigate this pressing health challenge.Keywords: prevalence, clinical patterns, under nutrition