Relationship between age and serum lipids in malnourished and well-fed pre-school children in Zaria, Nigeria.

OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between age and serum total cholesterol (TC) and triglyceride (TG) in malnourished and well-fed pre-school Nigerian children in Zaria, northern Nigeria. MATERIALS AND METHODS Serum total cholesterol (TC) and TG concentrations were measured in 115 malnourished and 115 age- and gender-matched well-fed children aged one (1)-three (3) years. These consisted of 25, 30, 30 and 30 children with kwashiorkor, marasmic-kwashiorkor, marasmus and underweight, respectively with their corresponding age- and gender-matched well-fed children. There were 60 males and 55 females each of malnourished and well-fed children. Concentrations of TC and TG were measured by enzymatic colorimetric method using reagent kits supplied by HUMAN, Gesel Für Biochemical Und Diagnostica mbH (Wiesbaden, Germany). RESULTS There was no correlation between age and serum TC in malnourished children (r = 0.0101, p = 0.9250), while the correlation was negative and significant in well-fed children (r = 0.3599, p = 0.3110). Similarly, there was no correlation between age and serum TG in malnourished chidren (r = 0.0605, p = 0.4623) but negative and significant correlation in well-fed children (r = 0.3210, p = 0.0001). CONCLUSION The findings of this study demonstrate that in well-fed pre-school children, serum lipids decrease with advancing age and that this pattern was abolished in malnourished children. This contribution should be noted and considered when interpreting serum lipid results in children.