Failure to Thrive in Childhood

The commonly seen diagnosis of Failure to Thrive is an easily preventable disease state but when ignored, it can lead to serious complications. Dr. Rebecca Yang and Dr. Kathryn McLeod joins medical student Sheenu Chirackel to discuss the evaluation and management for failure to thrive in childhood. Listen to this week’s podcast to:

• Recognize common history and physical exam findings associated with Failure to Thrive
• Formulate a differential diagnosis for FTT
• Identify potential risk factors and causes for FTT
• Initiate appropriate therapy for FTT
• Special thanks to Dr. Rebecca Pierce for peer reviewing this episode

FREE CME Credit (requires sign-in):  https://mcg.cloud-cme.com/course/courseoverview?P=0&EID=10784  

Thank you for listening to this episode from the Department of Pediatrics at the Medical College of Georgia. Remember that all content during this episode is intended for informational and educational purposes only. It should not be used as medical advice to diagnose or treat any particular patient. Clinical vignette cases presented are based on hypothetical patient scenarios. Thank you for your support!

References:

• Berwick DM, Levy JC, Kleinerman R. Failure to thrive: diagnostic yield of hospitalisation. Arch Dis Child. 1982;57(5):347-351. doi:10.1136/adc.57.5.347
• Bithoney WG, Van Sciver MM, Foster S, Corso S, Tentindo C. Parental stress and growth outcome in growth-deficient children. Pediatrics. 1995 Oct;96(4 Pt 1):707-11. PMID: 7567335.
• O'Brien LM, Heycock EG, Hanna M, Jones PW, Cox JL. Postnatal depression and faltering growth: a community study. Pediatrics. 2004 May;113(5):1242-7. doi: 10.1542/peds.113.5.1242. PMID: 15121936.
• Danner E, Joeckel R, Michalak S, Phillips S, Goday PS. Weight velocity in infants and children. Nutr Clin Pract. 2009 Feb-Mar;24(1):76-9. doi: 10.1177/0884533608329663. PMID: 19244151.
• Homan GJ. Failure to Thrive: A Practical Guide. Am Fam Physician. 2016 Aug 15;94(4):295-9. PMID: 27548594.
• Estrem HH, Pados BF, Park J, Knafl KA, Thoyre SM. Feeding problems in infancy and early childhood: evolutionary concept analysis. J Adv Nurs. 2017 Jan;73(1):56-70. doi: 10.1111/jan.13140. Epub 2016 Sep 23. PMID: 27601073.
• Larson-Nath, C., & Biank, V. F. (2016). Clinical review of failure to thrive in pediatric patients.Pediatric Annals, 45(2), e46-49. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.3928/00904481-20160114-01
• Cole, S. Z., & Lanham, J. S. (2011). Failure to thrive: An update. American Family Physician, 83(7), 829-834. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/failure-thrive-update/docview/2454417000/se-2?accountid=12365