Table 1 PI(E)CO criteria for inclusion and exclusion of studies

Population (P)

Vietnamese infants, young children, and adolescents aged 0–18 years old

Those who have been diagnosed with any chronic or congenital diseases that potentially affect the child’s nutritional status

Exposure (E) and intervention (I)

Any studies that reported the prevalence, determinants of childhood malnutrition, and interventions (including both nutrition specific and sensitive programmes) aiming to address childhood malnutrition

Studies assessing the genetic effects on malnutrition indicators; interventions targeted at mothers or pregnant women with no child outcomes; interventions that only reported the protocol with no outcomes

Comparison (C)

Those who were exposed to the risk factors or interventions related to malnutrition

Not applicable

Outcome (O)

Malnutrition indicators including undernutrition (stunting, wasting, underweight, and thinness), overnutrition (overweight and obesity) and micronutrient deficiencies, assessed by blood biomarkers such as iron (or ferritin, transferrin), vitamin A (or retinol), vitamin B9 (or folate/folic acid), anaemia (haemoglobin (Hb)), zinc, and iodine

Studies that do not assess malnutrition indicators as the primary outcomes or focused on the consequences of malnutrition