![\"A](\"https:\/\/uwm.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/41\/2019\/07\/Polfuss300x200-300x200.jpg\")
\u201cChildren with spina bifida are known to have a decreased level of energy expenditure, although we cannot specify how much less as compared to their typically developing peers,\u201d Polfuss said. \u201cOur hypothesis is that the number of calories we currently recommend parents feed their children may be higher than it should be, inadvertently contributing to excess weight gain.\u201d<\/p>\n
For people who are not disabled, health providers can get a fairly accurate assessment of a person\u2019s weight status by measuring the person\u2019s height and weight, and then using this information to calculate a body mass index. That doesn\u2019t work well for children with spina bifida who may be unable to stand or have orthopedic complications that challenge their ability to have an accurate measure of height or weight performed, said Polfuss. If the measure of height or weight is not accurate, then the BMI is inaccurate.<\/p>\n
The aim of the project is twofold, said Polfuss. \u201cWe want to find a feasible method of measuring body fat that can be conducted cost-effectively and accurately in the clinic \u2013 and to provide better guidance to the family on nutritional intake recommendations, with the ultimate goal of preventing and treating obesity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The project team includes health professionals from four pediatric spina bifida programs at children\u2019s hospitals across the United States \u2013 Children\u2019s Hospital of Wisconsin, Children\u2019s Hospital of Los Angeles, Children\u2019s Hospital of Alabama-Birmingham and Children\u2019s Hospital of Pittsburgh \u2013 who are working with 232 children.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are happy to help lead the effort on this important and needed research,\u201d said Nancy Korom, chief nursing officer and vice president at Children\u2019s Hospital of Wisconsin.\u00a0\u201cOur mission is to have the healthiest children in the state, and through this multi-site initiative, we can improve the health of children across the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n
The five-year grant comes from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, part of the National Institutes of Health. Additional support is provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Spina Bifida Patient Registry and the Spina Bifida Association.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Michele Polfuss, an associate professor at 51ÁÔÆæ, is leading a research team in a $3.6 million federal grant to investigate methods of accurately measuring patients\u2019 body composition in a clinical setting.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":836,"featured_media":72941,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","uwm_wg_additional_authors":[]},"categories":[174,200],"tags":[249],"section":[135],"display_categories":[],"related-coverage":[307],"uwmnews-feed":[343,163],"class_list":["post-72940","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-news-in-brief","tag-community-engagement","section-health","related-coverage-public-health","uwmnews-feed-health-professions-sciences","uwmnews-feed-nursing"],"yoast_head":"\n