Background: Clinical audit is a process by which physicians or other health care professionals perform a regular and systematic review of their clinical practice and amend it, when necessary. An internal audit allows to review the activities carried out by professionals, in order to assess the appropriateness, effectiveness, efficiency and safety of the services provided. Aim of this study was to apply the process of clinical audit to the obesity/overweight care in young children. After the correction of the nutritional errors that were considered potentially responsible for the excess weight gain, the effect of the changes of dietary advices on the frequency of overweight/obesity was assessed in a cohort of children aged 24-36 months.
Methods: Three Italian primary care pediatricians have applied the audit strategy by recognizing the high prevalence of overweight and obesity in the entire cohort of children born in 2005, 2006 and 2007 (Pre-Audit group, age 24-36 months old) under their care. By reviewing their clinical practice, they changed the protocol of weaning and feeding up to 36 months, mainly reducing the protein intake. The change involved the cohorts of children born in the years 2010, 2011 and 2012 (Post-Audit group).
Results: Changes in children’s diet yielded a reduction of the frequency of overweight and obesity between 24 and 36 months of life in the Post-Audit group.
Conclusion: Clinical audit can be an effective tool in identifying inaccuracies in medical procedures and helpful in revising them.