Paediatric case study (Indigenous community) Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Paediatric (Indigenous community) - Case Study Example Bradley thus has multiple problems namely, failure to thrive, delayed psychomotor development, scabies, head louse infestation and worm infestation. He also has mild dehydration which needs to be corrected immediately. Failure to thrive in Bradley is most likely to be due to protein energy malnutrition. According to the World Health Organization or WHO (cited in Scheinfeld and Mokashi, 2008), malnutrition is the cellular imbalance between the supply of nutrients and energy and the bodys demand for them to ensure growth, maintenance, and specific functions." When malnutrition arises predominantly due to protein deficiency, the term protein-energy malnutrition is used. Marasmus, kwashiorkar and intermediate states of marasmus-kwashiorkar fall into this category of malnutrition. Bradley is affected with kwashiorkar. This condition typically appears at the time of weaning and hence is known as "sickness of the weaning" (Scheinfeld and Mokashi, 2008). Children with kwashiorkar present with weight loss or poor weight gain, slow linear growth, behavioral changes like irritability and apathy and psychomotor changes. Other symptoms include diarrhoea, edema, easy fatigability, nonhealing wounds, multisystem ic impairment, distension of abdomen, cutaneous changes like dark and dry skin, depigmentation of hair and inflammatory bowel conditions. Clinical features in Bradley which point to Kwashiorkar are failure to thrive, distension of abdomen and psychomotor changes. Bradley will need proper evaluation and admission to hospital. One of the most important aspects of evaluation in Bradley is assessment of extent of dehydration. This is important for the purpose of calculation of rehydration fluids. Dehydration in children can be classified as mild, moderate and severe. Mild dehydration occurs when