Assessment of Prevalence and Factors Associated with Malnutrition Among Under-five Children in West Shoa Zone, Oromia Region, Ethiopia

Malnutrition is a primary cause of child mortality and morbidity in developing countries, particularly during the first 5 years of life. Worldwide, under nutrition contributes to one third of under-five deaths which also plays a significant role as an underlying cause for growth problem in 230 million children and severe wasting in 50 million children. Hence, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and factors associated with malnutrition among under-five year children in West Shoa Zone, Ethiopia. Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted on 374 under-five year children. Systematic random sampling was utilized to include study subjects into the study. Data were collected by using pre-tested structured questionnaire. The data were entered into epi data and transferred into SPSS and World Health Organization Anthro software for analysis. In order to identify significant predictors of malnutrition both bivariate and multivariable logistic regression models were used. The prevalence of stunting, underweight and wasting were 40%, 24.9% and 13.8% respectively. Magnitude of wasting and underweight was higher for female children while stunting was higher for male children. In addition, malnutrition was more prevalent among rural children than urban dwellers. Antenatal care attendance was predictor of wasting whereas place of residence and growth monitoring were found to be predictors of stunting. In conclusion stunting was more prevalent among study subjects and antenatal care attendance, place of residence and growth monitoring were variables that showed significant association with malnutrition. Hence, there is a need to implement nutritional interventions in the study area giving priority to these identified factors