Abstrak:
Latar Belakang: Tuberkulosis (TB) masih menjadi masalah kesehatan global dan Indonesia menempati peringkat kedua dengan beban TB tertinggi di dunia. Balita merupakan kelompok rentan karena sistem imun yang belum matang, sehingga infeksi TB pada balita dapat memengaruhi status gizi. Status gizi balita berperan penting dalam menentukan kesehatan dan kemampuan tubuh melawan infeksi. Balita dengan TB berisiko mengalami penurunan status gizi, sementara gizi buruk dapat memperburuk perjalanan penyakit. Tujuan: Mengetahui gambaran status gizi balita penderita TB di Indonesia. Metode: Penelitian cross-sectional ini menggunakan data 1.030 balita penderita tuberkulosis dari SSGI 2024. Status gizi balita sebagai variabel dependen diukur menggunakan indikator Berat Badan menurut Tinggi Badan/Panjang Badan (BB/TB atau BB/PB). Analisis bivariat deskriptif dilakukan untuk menggambarkan perbedaan distribusi status gizi berdasarkan faktor lingkungan, perilaku, pelayanan kesehatan, dan faktor individu, dengan uji chi-square. Nilai p digunakan untuk menunjukkan signifikansi perbedaan distribusi antar kategori variabel. Hasil: Dari 1.030 balita penderita TB yang dianalisis, 17,4% memiliki status gizi kurang, 75% gizi normal, dan 6,7% gizi lebih. Proporsi gizi kurang secara signifikan lebih tinggi pada balita dengan riwayat berat badan lahir rendah (25,1%) dibandingkan balita tanpa riwayat BBLR (15,3%) (p-value = 0,022), serta pada balita yang tidak mendapatkan ASI eksklusif (21,6%) dibandingkan balita yang mendapatkan ASI eksklusif (10,7%) (p-value = 0,013). Variabel lain, yaitu jenis kelamin, usia, pendidikan orang tua, status imunisasi, pemantauan perkembangan, dan perilaku konsultasi gizi, tidak menunjukkan perbedaan signifikan terhadap status gizi balita. Secara geografis, proporsi gizi kurang tertinggi ditemukan di Papua (29,2%) dan secara signifikan lebih tinggi di wilayah pedesaan dibandingkan wilayah perkotaan (p-value = 0,040). Kesimpulan: Upaya perbaikan perlu diarahkan pada penguatan dukungan ASI, pemantauan dan intervensi khusus bagi bayi BBLR, peningkatan akses gizi dan layanan kesehatan di wilayah pedesaan.
Background: Tuberculosis (TB) remains a major global health problem, and Indonesia ranks second among countries with the highest TB burden worldwide. Children under five are a vulnerable group due to their immature immune systems, making TB infection in this age group more likely to affect nutritional status. Nutritional status plays a critical role in determining health outcomes and the body’s ability to fight infection. Children with TB are at increased risk of experiencing nutritional decline, while poor nutritional status can further worsen the progression of the disease. Objective: To describe the nutritional status of children under five with tuberculosis in Indonesia Methods: This cross-sectional study used data from 1,030 children under five with tuberculosis from SSGI 2024. Nutritional status of the children, as the dependent variable, was measured using the Weight-for-Height/Length (WH/L) indicator. Descriptive bivariate analysis was conducted to illustrate differences in the distribution of nutritional status based on environmental factors, behaviors, healthcare services, and individual factors, using the chi-square test. The p-value was used to indicate the significance of differences in distribution across variable categories. Results: Among the 1,030 children analyzed, 17.4% had undernutrition, 75% had normal nutrition, and 6.7% were overweight. The proportion of undernutrition was significantly higher among children with a history of low birth weight (25.1%) than among those without low birth weight (15.3%) (p-value = 0.022), and among children who did not receive exclusive breastfeeding (21.6%) than among those who received exclusive breastfeeding (10.7%) (p-value = 0.013). Other variables, including sex, age, parental education, immunization status, growth monitoring, and nutrition consultation behavior, did not show significant differences in nutritional status. Geographically, the highest proportion of undernutrition was observed in Papua (29.2%) and was significantly higher in rural areas than in urban areas (p-value = 0,040). Conclusion: Improvement efforts should focus on strengthening support for exclusive breastfeeding, enhancing monitoring and targeted interventions for low-birth-weight infants, and improving access to nutrition and health services in rural areas.