Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34755192›Full record

ArticleJournal of tropical pediatrics2021

The Impact of Undernutrition on Cognition in Children with Severe Malaria and Community Children: A Prospective 2-Year Cohort Study.

Waruiru Mburu, Andrea L Conroy, Sarah E Cusick, Paul Bangirana, Caitlin Bond, Yi Zhao, Robert O Opoka, Chandy C John

Open access · bronzeAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of tropical pediatrics, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 38% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Malaria Incidence, Growth, and their Relationship among a Cohort of Malawian Children.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Prenatal Hemoglobin Concentration and Long-Term Child Neurocognitive Development.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2025
    Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Waruiru MburuDivision of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55454, USA.
Andrea L ConroyDepartment of Pediatrics, Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
Sarah E CusickDivision of Global Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, and Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
Paul BangiranaDepartment of Psychiatry, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda.
Caitlin BondDepartment of Pediatrics, Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
Yi ZhaoDepartment of Biostatistics, Fairbanks School of Public Health, Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
Robert O OpokaDepartment of Pediatrics and Child Health, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda.
Chandy C JohnDepartment of Pediatrics, Ryan White Center for Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Global Health, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA.
Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis · USMakerere University · UGUniversity of Minnesota · US

Funding

Severe Malaria And Risk to The Brain (SMART Brain)R01NS055349 · NINDS · UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA · PI Chandy C. John, Ruth Namazzi · 2008 to 2026
$11.2M
Research training in infection, nutrition and neurodevelopment in UgandaD43TW010928 · FIC · INDIANA UNIVERSITY INDIANAPOLIS · PI Chandy C. John · 2018 to 2026
$1.9M
FIC NIH HHS D43 TW010928FIC NIH HHS D43TW010928NINDS NIH HHS R01 NS055349NINDS NIH HHS R01NS055349
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe frequency of recovery from undernutrition after an episode of severe malaria, and the relationship between undernutrition during severe malaria and clinical and cognitive outcomes are not well characterized.

methodsWe evaluated undernutrition and cognition in children in Kampala, Uganda 18 months to 5 years of age with cerebral malaria (CM), severe malarial anemia (SMA) or community children (CC). The Mullen Scales of Early Learning was used to measure cognition. Undernutrition, defined as 2 SDs below median for weight-for-age (underweight), height-for-age (stunting) or weight-for-height (wasting), was compared with mortality, hospital readmission and cognition over 24-month follow-up.

resultsAt enrollment, wasting was more common in CM (16.7%) or SMA (15.9%) than CC (4.7%) (both p < 0.0001), and being underweight was more common in SMA (27.0%) than CC (12.8%; p = 0.001), while prevalence of stunting was similar in all three groups. By 6-month follow-up, prevalence of wasting or being underweight did not differ significantly between children with severe malaria and CC. Undernutrition at enrollment was not associated with mortality or hospital readmission, but children who were underweight or stunted at baseline had lower cognitive z-scores than those who were not {underweight, mean difference [95% confidence interval (CI)] -0.98 (-1.66, -0.31), -0.72 (-1.16, -0.27) and -0.61 (-1.08, -0.13); and stunted, -0.70 (-1.25, -0.15), -0.73 (-1.16, -0.31) and -0.61 (-0.96, -0.27), for CM, SMA and CC, respectively}.

conclusionIn children with severe malaria, wasting and being underweight return to population levels after treatment. However, being stunted or underweight at enrollment was associated with worse long-term cognition in both CC and children with severe malaria.

Indexed as

Malaria, CerebralMalnutritionChildCognitionCohort StudiesGrowth DisordersHumansInfantPrevalenceProspective StudiesThinnessUgandacognitionsevere malariaundernutritionunderweightwasting

Identifiers

PMID34755192
PMCPMC8578678
OpenAlexW3211996785

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.