Baseline nutritional status of children on ketogenic diet and the awareness of ketogenic dietary therapies in the primary caregivers
Objective To investigate the baseline nutritional status of children prior to commencing of ketogenic diet therapies(KDTs)and the level of awareness regarding KDTs among primary caregivers,providing a foundation for subsequent effective treatment and exploration of long-term management strategies.Methods A prospective cohort study design was adopted.The study included children who underwent KDTs at the Department of Neurology,Children's Hospital of Fudan University from July 2021 to January 2024 and their primary caregivers.The children underwent nutritional screening and assessment.A questionnaire survey was administered to the primary caregivers to assess the daily dietary behaviors of the children and their caregivers'awareness of KDTs in the early stages.Results A total of 104 children were enrolled in this study,achieving a questionnaire recovery rate of 100％.All children exhibited nutritional risks.Regarding daily dietary behaviors,picky eating and partial eating problems were observed in 55.3％of the children.During initial stages of KDTs,specialist visits at the Department of Neurology accounted for knowledge acquisition by 89.4％of primary caregivers;WeChat/internet/books or patient groups contributed 25.0％and 10.6％,respectively.Regarding the implementation of KDTs,a significant majority(72.1％)of primary caregivers expressed concerns regarding their children's potential challenges in accepting such a specialized dietary regimen.Moreover,28.8％expressed concerns regarding their lack of ability in managing the clinical implementation process,while 22.1％had concerns about accurately comprehending the teachings provided by the KDTs team.In terms of expected therapeutic outcomes,all primary caregivers anticipated effective seizure control for their children,with an additional 79.8％hoping for improvements in cognitive behavior and 77.9％expecting a reduction or cessation of all antiepileptic medications simultaneously.Conclusion Children initiating KDTs are at a moderate to high nutritional risk,with some experiencing issues related to undernutrition or overnutrition.The proportion of unbalanced dietary intake is high.The primary caregivers have a high expectation for curative effect.The KDTs team should pay attention to the nutritional status of children throughout the routine diagnostic and therapeutic process,while intensifying the dissemination and education on ketogenic diet therapy to ensure its safe and efficacious implementation.
ketogenic dietnutritional statusprimary caregiversurvey of current situation
国家科技期刊平台
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