Publication: Recommendations for monitoring and evaluating vitamin A programs: Outcome indicators
Issued Date
2002-09-01
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ISSN
00223166
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2-s2.0-0036712520
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Mahidol University
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SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Journal of Nutrition. Vol.132, No.9 SUPPL. (2002)
Suggested Citation
Emorn Wasantwisut Recommendations for monitoring and evaluating vitamin A programs: Outcome indicators. Journal of Nutrition. Vol.132, No.9 SUPPL. (2002). Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/19972
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Title
Recommendations for monitoring and evaluating vitamin A programs: Outcome indicators
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Abstract
Monitoring and evaluation are essential components of vitamin A intervention programs. They enable program managers to track progress in achieving their goals. Recommendations for outcome indicators are based on suggestions from the International Vitamin A Consultative Group Meeting (IVACG) workshop in late October 2000 in Annecy, France, followed by a pre-XX IVACG meeting in Hanoi, Vietnam. In areas with detectable xerophthalmia or eye signs, a fall in the prevalence of Bitot's spots to <0.5% and a decrease in night blindness during pregnancy to <5% indicates that vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is no longer a public health problem, although it still may be responsible for excess morbidity and mortality. Pupillary dark adaptation has been proposed as an objective indicator of vitamin A status. A program is considered to have made progress when the mean pupillary threshold improves to better than - 1.24 log cd/m2. For biochemical indices, the shift of mean or median values or the frequency distribution of preschool children with serum retinol concentration below 0.70 μmol (20 μg/dL), lactating mothers with breast milk retinol values below 0.70 μmol (6 μg per g of milk fat) or below 1.05 μmol (8 μg per g of milk fat) are useful to monitor program progress.