Lecture 4 - Interpreting Anthropometric Data

Question 1

what are the measurements of body size

Answer 1

• weight
• height
• elbow breadth
• mid upper arm circumference
• head circumference
• length

Question 2

what is a normal BMI

Answer 2

18.5-24.9

Question 3

what is overweight BMI

Answer 3

25.0-29.9

Question 4

what is obese BMI

Answer 4

> 30

Question 5

what is obese extreme BMI

Answer 5

> 40

Question 6

what is sensitivity

Answer 6

how good a measure / test is at correctly identifying people who have the disease

Question 7

what are growth indices derived from

Answer 7

from a combination of raw measurements

Question 8

growth indices are essential for

Answer 8

essential for interpretation of measurements

Question 9

growth indices are used to

Answer 9

compare individuals / groups with a growth chart or reference data

Question 10

what does OFC stand for

Answer 10

“occipital frontal circumference”

Question 11

what should be used to measure head circumference

Answer 11

flexible, non stretch tape (fiberglass or steel)

Question 12

how should head circumference be measured

Answer 12

over the most prominent part of the back of head (occiput) and just above the eyebrows (supraorbital ridges) = this is the largest circumference of head

Question 13

head circumference for age is an index of

Answer 13

chronic protein energy deficiency (<2 years)

Question 14

low head circumference for age (<2 years) shows

Answer 14

decreased brain development

Question 15

what is wasting referred to as

Answer 15

sometimes referred to as “acute malnutrition” because it is believed that episodes of wasting have a short duration

Question 16

in contrast to wasting what is stunting regarded as

Answer 16

regarded as indicating chronic malnutrition

Question 17

what does a wasted child look like

Answer 17

thinner than normal

Question 18

what does a stunted child look like

Answer 18

shorter than normal

Question 19

what does a wasted and stunted child look like

Answer 19

thinner and shorter than normal

Question 20

weight for age is used to assess

Answer 20

over or under nutrition

Question 21

what is a limitation of weight for age

Answer 21

• cant distinguish tall thin children who are underweight from those who are short with adequate weight

Question 22

when talking about weight for age, if rates of stunting are high but rates of wasting are low what occurs

Answer 22

under nutrition under estimation

Question 23

the measurement of length is for infants and children that are

Answer 23

younger than 2 years and <85cm

Question 24

what is used to measure length

Answer 24

a calibrated length board

Question 25

how is length measured

Answer 25

measure infant without shoes and wearing light underclothing or nappy

Question 26

what is said if weight for height is high in children

Answer 26

overweight

Question 27

in low income countries if weight for height is low in children it is considered

Answer 27

wasting = failure to gain sufficient weight relative to height

Question 28

in low income countries weight for height is used to identify

Answer 28

children likely to benefit from feeding programme

Question 29

in high income countries what is more likely to be identified using weight for age growth index

Answer 29

growth faltering in infants and children

Question 30

in high income countries weight for height is used clinically to

Answer 30

identify wasting in hospital patients, especially elderly

Question 31

what are limitations for weight for height (stunted)

Answer 31

weight may be appropriate for height > may be classified as normal > need to also use height for age

Question 32

what are limitations for weight for height (oedema)

Answer 32

weight may appear normal for height > need to also use height for age

Question 33

height for age is an index of

Answer 33

past nutritional status

Question 34

stunting is due to

Answer 34

extended period of inadequate food supply, poor dietary quality, increased morbidity in childhood

Question 35

stunting can result in shorter stature in adulthood and therefore

Answer 35

reduced work capacity, poor reproductive outcomes

Question 36

what is a limitation to height for age

Answer 36

cant identify wasted children so also need to use weight for height

Question 37

reference data is used to

Answer 37

- facilitate international comparisons of anthropometric indices across populations - evaluate trends overtime (surveillance studies) - evaluate the effectiveness of intervention programs

Question 38

reference data in clinical settings is used to

Answer 38

- monitor growth - identify those with under or over nutrition - asses the response to treatment

Question 39

is a growth standard and growth reference the same

Answer 39

NO

Question 40

what is a growth reference

Answer 40

growth pattern of a healthy population

Question 41

what is a growth standard

Answer 41

recommended pattern of growth > specific health outcomes and decreased long term health risks

Question 42

the WHO growth standard, how was the population defined

Answer 42

multiple countries - no known health or environmental constraint on growth - mothers do not smoke - singleton birth at term - no significant morbidity

Question 43

how long was the WHO growth standard study and were the children breastfed and when was complementary feeding introduced

Answer 43

- exclusively breastfed to 4 months and continue breast feeding to 12 months - complementary feeding introduced at 6 months

Question 44

why was it important that babies were breastfed in the growth standard study

Answer 44

breastfeeding is ideal method of feeding for infant, exclusively breastfed infants grow differently from formula fed babies

Question 45

how do breastfed babies grow differently to formula fed babies

Answer 45

grow similarly or faster in 1st 2-3 months and then grow less rapidly

Question 46

in high income countries, reference data is used to generate

Answer 46

percentiles

Question 47

especially in low income countries but also in high income countries, reference data is used to generate

Answer 47

z-scores

Question 48

what is a percentile show

Answer 48

position of the measured value in relation to all the measurements for the reference population

Question 49

what are individuals at risk in percentiles

Answer 49

below the 3rd/5th percentiles or above the 97th/95th percentiles

Question 50

when should percentiles not be used

Answer 50

not be used for individuals/populations from low income countries if using reference data from high income countries

Question 51

what is a z-score

Answer 51

a z-score tells us how many standard deviations an individual measurement is away from the population mean

Question 52

what does standard deviation tell us

Answer 52

tells us about the spread of our data around the mean

Question 53

the higher the standard deviation means

Answer 53

the higher the spread or the variability

Question 54

what is the equation for a z-score

Answer 54

(persons measurement - reference mean) / reference standard deviation

Question 55

what does it mean if a z-score is 0

Answer 55

it is on the mean / median

Question 56

if a z-score is +1 it is ..

Answer 56

one standard deviation above the mean

Question 57

if a z-score is +2 it is ..

Answer 57

2 standard deviations above the mean

Question 58

if a z-score is -1 it is ..

Answer 58

1 standard deviation below the mean

Question 59

in low income countries what should be used to measure wasted children

Answer 59

weight for height

Question 60

in low income countries what should be used to measure weight change

Answer 60

weight for height

Question 61

in low income countries what should be used to measure stunted children

Answer 61

height for age