Nutritional Assessment Tool and Nutritional Intervention in Childhood Chronic Liver Disease

Children (Exclusively breast fed: 6mo - 3yrs, and who are not exclusively breast fed 3mo to 3 yrs) with infantile cholestasis syndrome will be randomized to either recieve indigenously prepared oral nutritional supplement (energy dense supplement appox. 2 kcal/mL, prepared from locally available, affordable, socially acceptable food items - milk, sugar, edible coconut oil, egg and custard powder as base) in addition to standard nutritional counseling by a trained dietician (Group A). The control group (Group B) in comparison will receive standard nutritional counseling from a trained dietician but will not receive any additional nutritional supplement. All the children will be followed up at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months and 1 year after inclusion. Clinical, nutritional assessment and laboratory data will be collected at each visit. Additionally IL-6 levels will be done at each visit in children of both arms of the intervention group.

The outcomes of interest will be growth and improvement of nutritional status parameters, hepatic morbidity (ascites, gastrointestinal bleeding, encephalopathy, {SBP (Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis), HRS (Hepatorenal Syndrome), etc and outcome (improvement, death or Liver Transplantation}.

All children will receive individualized standard treatment for infantile cholestasis syndrome including vitamin supplements/endotherapy/ beta blockers/ prophylaxis for SBP (Spontaneous Bacterial Peritonitis)/cholangitis (to at risk children) and drug therapy wherever indicated (steroids/ copper chelation/ UDCA).