Validation of the STAMP Screening Tool
Condition: Malnutrition
MeSH terms: Malnutrition
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Insufficient nutritional intake, with or without concomitant morbidity, leads to weight loss
      or insufficient weight gain, is related to an increase in morbidity and mortality and exposes
      the child to medical complications. In addition, obesity is also related to complications
      during hospitalization and complications in general, and therefore early identification of
      these children is extremely important. Studies show that malnutrition is frequent among
      children upon hospitalization, where the risk of pediatric nutritional deterioration
      increases, even in the presence of mild stress factors. This risk is frequent mainly among
      children that arrive at the hospital with an initial poor nutritional status. Improving the
      nutritional status as part of the standard of care already at the ambulatory setting might
      improve the prognosis of children when ill. In Israel, nutritional screening in not conducted
      among children since there is no proper validated screening tool. Study objectives: To test
      the accuracy of the STAMP Screening Tool for pediatric nutritional risk which is designed to
      be used by nurses, and to compare it to a complete nutritional assessment conducted by a
      dietician in Clalit Health Care Services clinics. In addition, the investigators wish to
      examine the effects of using a screening tool for nutritional risk on the medical staff's
      attention to the nutritional status; this is measured by the collection of nutritional
      status-related data and their recording in the patient file.

      Methods: 100 boys and girls aged 1 to 6, attending Clalit Health Care Services Pediatric
      Centers, will undergo an assessment using the STAMP Tool; a questionnaire including 3
      questions with a summary score, according to which the nutritional risk level shall be
      determined. These children shall also undergo a complete dietician assessment in order to
      examine the validity of the STAMP Tool. In addition, 150 files shall be reviewed in the
      beginning of the research and after 6 months in order to estimate the change in medical
      staff's attention to nutritional status, by way of noting relevant diagnoses, reference to
      nutritional status- related tests and recording of anthropometric measurements.

      A statistical analysis to examine the validity of the STAMP Tool shall be carried out using
      the kappa test (K) (30). The effect of the STAMP Tool use shall be calculated using the chi
      square test.
    


Intervention name(s): questionnaire STAMP and dietary; No STAMP using
Intervention type(s): Other; Other
Intervention description(s): Children will undergo a complete evaluation by an investigating dietician and assessment by the STAMP tool in order to determine the extent of the nutritional risk on a numerical scale. According to findings children will get the dietary recommendations.; No intervention
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Supportive Care
Keywords: Nutritional assessment; children; malnutrition