Evidence mapPaperPMID 41908780Full record

ArticleFrontiers in public health2026

Reducing relapses after acute malnutrition treatment: evidence from a simplified approach in emergency settings of Mali.

Pilar Charle-Cuéllar, Luis Javier Sánchez-Martínez, Sara Tulipani, Mamadou Saidou Diallo, Abdel Nasser Maïga, Amadou Tila Kebe, Fatimata Karabenta, Mahamadou N'tji Samake, Mohamed Ibrahim Mahmoud, André Briend and 2 more

Abstract readControlled Clinical Trial
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in public health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Pilar Charle-CuéllarNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Madrid, Spain.
Luis Javier Sánchez-MartínezEPINUT Research Group (ref. 920325), Unit of Physical Anthropology, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
Sara TulipaniNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Madrid, Spain.
Mamadou Saidou DialloNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Bamako, Mali.
Abdel Nasser MaïgaNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Bamako, Mali.
Amadou Tila KebeNutrition Cluster, Bamako, Mali.
Fatimata KarabentaNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Bamako, Mali.
Mahamadou N'tji SamakeMinistry of Health, Bamako, Mali.
Mohamed Ibrahim MahmoudMinistry of Health, Bamako, Mali.
André BriendDepartment of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Antonio VargasNutrition and Health Department, Action Against Hunger, Madrid, Spain.
Noemí López-EjedaEPINUT Research Group (ref. 920325), Unit of Physical Anthropology, Department of Biodiversity, Ecology and Evolution, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Acute malnutrition remains a critical public health issue, particularly in emergency settings. While simplified treatment protocols show promise in improving access and cost-effectiveness, evidence on their impact on relapse rates remains limited. This study aimed to compare relapse incidence among children treated for severe acute malnutrition (SAM) using a simplified protocol versus the standard Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) protocol in the emergency context of Gao, Mali. Methods: This is a non-randomized controlled trial conducted between December 2022 and December 2023, involving 506 children aged 6-59 months discharged as cured from SAM. The intervention group ( Results: Relapse incidence was significantly lower in the simplified protocol group (5.6%) compared to the standard one (39.8%). The simplified protocol also had longer length of stay, used lower quantity of RUTF, and fewer comorbidities at discharge. We found similar results when analyzing the sub-sample with those children admitted with MUAC-only in the control group. Multivariate analysis identified treatment with the simplified protocol, older age at discharge, and greater MUAC gain as protective factors. Comorbidities during follow-up were the strongest predictor of relapse. Conclusion: Simplified protocols may reduce relapse rates after SAM treatment, even with reduced RUTF doses. Strengthening discharge procedures and post-discharge monitoring, particularly in emergency settings, is essential to sustain recovery and prevent relapse.

Indexed as

Secondary PreventionSevere Acute MalnutritionChild, PreschoolFemaleHumansInfantMaleMaliRecurrencechildrencommunity health workermid-upper arm circumferenceready-to-use therapeutic foodsimplified protocolwasting

Identifiers

PMID41908780
PMCPMC13020562

What Socratic holds

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.