Association of measles antibody titres with nutritional status in paediatric population

Objectives: To find out any association of measles antibody titres with nutritional status in children 1 to 12 years. Material and Methods: This hospital based cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2012 to November 2014 on children between 1-12 years of age attending the Pediatric O.P.D. of Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, A.M.U, Aligarh with the objective of finding any association of measles antibody titres with nutritional status. Results: A highly statistically significant relationship (p=0.002) was observed between BMI Z scores (in subjects aged ?5yrs) and seropositivity, with higher seropositivity being noted in children with higher BMI z scores. Similarly, a statistically significant relationship (p=0.024) was observed between height for age Z scores and seropositivity, with higher seropositivity being noted in children with higher height for age higher scores. However, no significant relationship was observed between serpositivity and either weight for height z scores or weight for age z scores. Conclusion: Nutritional status of children has an association with measles antibody titres as well GMT of measles specific IgG antibody, with those with better nutritional status having higher measles antibody titres. Keywords: Measles, Vaccine, Antibody, Vaccination, Malnourished, Anthropometry