Cross-ectional analysis of the effects of the Rojiroti microfinance programme on nutritional status of children under 5 years of age at 18-month follow-up
| Intervention | n | Control | n | Unadjusted* β/OR† (95% CI) Intervention versus control at follow-up | P value | ICC‡ | Intervention n | Control n | Adjusted* β/OR† (95% CI) Intervention versus control at follow-up | P value | ICC‡ | |
| WHZ (mean, SD) | −1.02 (1.11) | 674 | −1.37 (1.10) | 703 | β=0.38 (0.16 to 0.61) | 0.001 | 0.108 | 259 | 300 | β=0.25 (-0.03 to 0.53) | 0.08 | 0.175 |
| HAZ (mean, SD) | −2.37 (1.29) | 674 | −2.53 (1.25) | 703 | β=0.17 (−0.04 to 0.37) | 0.1 | 0.053 | 259 | 300 | β=−0.07 (−0.24 to 0.10) | 0.4 | 0.068 |
| WAZ (mean, SD) | −2.13 (1.03) | 842 | −2.37 (1.05) | 871 | β=0.27 (0.11 to 0.43) | 0.001 | 0.051 | 356 | 433 | β=0.26 (0.04 to 0.49) | 0.02 | 0.212 |
| MUAC (mean, SD) | 13.6 (1.10) | 811 | 13.4 (1.12) | 828 | β=0.22 (0.03 to 0.40) | 0.02 | 0.063 | 331 | 379 | β=0.12 (−0.14 to 0.38) | 0.4 | 0.279 |
| Wasted (n, %) | 122 (18) | 674 | 200 (29) | 703 | OR=0.46 (0.28 to 0.74) | 0.002 | 0.134 | 259 | 300 | OR=0.61 (0.33 to 1.14) | 0.1 | 0.135 |
| Stunted (n, %) | 421 (63) | 674 | 465 (66) | 703 | OR=0.82 (0.60 to 1.12) | 0.2 | 0.044 | 259 | 300 | OR=0.97 (0.57 to 1.64) | 0.9 | 0.056 |
| Underweight (n, %) | 446 (53) | 842 | 545 (63) | 871 | OR=0.63 (0.47 to 0.84) | 0.002 | 0.042 | 356 | 433 | OR=0.51 (0.29 to 0.89) | 0.02 | 0.155 |
| MUAC <12.5 cm (n, %) | 102 (13) | 811 | 152 (18) | 828 | OR=0.65 (0.41 to 1.05) | 0.08 | 0.116 | 331 | 379 | OR=0.78 (0.27 to 2.23) | 0.6 | 0.320 |
| MUAC <11.5 cm (n, %) | 24 (3) | 811 | 37 (5) | 828 | OR=0.70 (0.36 to 1.33) | 0.3 | 0.097 | 331 | 379 | OR=0.79 (0.10 to 6.14) | 0.8 | 0.289 |
Not all outcome measures could be recorded for each child and so the number of children contributing to each outcome is listed.
Supine length or standing height was measured in 81% of children at baseline and 79% at follow-up. Weight was measured in 99% of children at baseline and 99% at follow-up. In children aged 6–59 months, MUAC was measured in 99% of children at baseline and 99% at follow-up.
Control=delayed Rojiroti.
Intervention=immediate Rojiroti.
*Adjusted for baseline values of the outcome, age, sex and number of children under 5 in family.
†β is the regression coefficient for continuous outcomes, and OR is the odds ratio, both adjusted for clustering.
‡ICC is the intracluster correlation coefficient (proportion of the total variance of the outcome that can be explained by the variation between clusters).
HAZ, height for age Z score; MUAC, mid-upper arm circumference; WAZ, weight for age Z score; WHZ, weight for height Z score.