Nutritional Support using High Energy Infant Formula in Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease Patients with Faltering Growth

Abstract

C ongenital cardiac defects have a wide spectrum of severity in infants, it occurs in approximately 0.8% of live births. ¬¬¬¬At the global level excluding India, population based epidemiological studies on CHDs have indicated a prevalence ranging from 1.01(Egypt) to 17.5(Central Australia) per 1000 live births. Malnutrition and growth failure in infants with CHD continues to be a significant concern, so early and effective nutritional intervention with a high energy formula for increasing energy intake and promoting weight gain is crucial for them.. The potential detrimental effects of HP diets (as in HEIF) on kidney function are still discussed controversially. This study aimed to investigate the impact of nutritional support with HEIF in pediatric patients with congenital heart disease suffering from faltering growth and its impact on renal function compared to those receiving regular standard formula. This follow up case control study was performed at Ain-Shams University, Children´s Hospital, Pediatric Cardiology Clinic. It included 40 infants who were divided into two groups, 20 patients with congenital heart disease suffering from faltering growth who received HEIF (HEIF group), and 20 age, sex and weight percentile matched patients who received regular standard formula (STD group). In the HEIF group, their age ranged from 3 to 14 months with a mean age of (8.50 ± 3.35 months). Their initial weight ranged from 3.5 to 7.5 kg with a mean weight of (5.37 ± 1.20 kg), with age, sex and weight percentile matched patients in STD group.