Evaluation of Calf circumference as a procedure to screen low birth weight babies: a hospital based cross sectional study

Abstract

Background: In spite of the interventions being taken, low birth weight still persists as a public health problem in low and middle-income countries. World Health Organization defines low birth weight as birth weight less than 2500 gm. There is a constant search to find newer methods to detect low birth weight babies so that early methods can be instituted. This study was conducted to evaluate calf circumference as procedure to screen low birth weight babies in tertiary care hospital in Nagpur. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted in tertiary care hospital of Nagpur, Maharashtra for a period of 4 months. The study subjects were babies delivered at the hospital. Birth weight was recorded using a digital weighing scale within 24 hours of the delivery. Length, calf circumference, head and chest circumference were measured according to standard guidelines. Results: Majority of mothers were in the age group of 20 to 24 years of age group, were educated up to primary school and belonged to Hindu religion. The mean calf circumference of low birth weight babies was 9.64±1.13 cm and was 10.96±1.01 cm in normal weight babies. The mean values of calf circumference were significantly lower in low birth weight babies (p <0.001). The sensitivity and specificity for the best cut off of calf circumference was found to be 89.97% and 42.86% respectively.Conclusions: Measuring calf circumference was found to be a good test with higher sensitivity but lower specificity. Hence, calf circumference can be used as an alternative method to screen babies born in remote areas, where the facility of weighing the baby at birth is not available.

Accuracy of foot length, head, chest, mid-arm and calf circumference for the diagnosis of low birth weight in Ile-Ife

“…This may diminish its utility as a tool to screen for low birth weight. Calf 11,36 The cut-off value of 9.8cm for calf circumference derived from the present study was similar to a value of 9.75 cm found by Sheikh et al 36 Despite the high diagnostic ability of calf circumference in the present study, the validity of this anthropometric parameter as a surrogate to birth weight may be hampered by the subjective nature of its measurement. The prominence of the calf is not a definite landmark thereby making replication of measurements challenging on a large scale.…”

PERBANDINGAN LINGKAR BETIS DAN LINGKAR LENGAN ATAS SEBAGAI UKURAN PENGGANTI BERAT LAHIR <br><i> [Comparison between Calf and Mid-Upper Arm Circumference Alternative of Birthweight Measurement]</br></i>

“…Berat lahir yang tidak ditimbang maupun bayi yang tidak memiliki catatan penimbangan juga menjadi masalah pada beberapa negara berkembang lain (Hadush et al, 2017;Marchant et al, 2010;Nabiwemba et al, 2013;Otupiri et al, 2014;Sreeramareddy et al, 2008). Oleh karena itu berbagai penelitian dilakukan untuk menemukan ukuran pengganti berat lahir untuk dapat mendeteksi kasus BBLR diantaranya panjang telapak kaki (Marchant et al, 2010;Nabiwemba et al, 2013), lingkar dada (Chukwudi et al, 2018;Hadush et al, 2017;Mullany et al, 2007;Otupiri et al, 2014;Sreeramareddy et al, 2008), lingkar kepala (Hadush et al, 2017;Taksande et al, 2007), lingkar lengan atas (Goto, 2011;Neeluri & Pamarthi, 2018;Otupiri et al, 2014;Vaik P et al, 2017;Verma et al, 2014), dan lingkar betis (Otupiri et al, 2014;Sheikh et al, 2017;Suneetha & Kavitha, 2016;Sunil Kumar, Sudarshan, & Vatsala, 2013) Pendeteksian BBLR secara cepat dan penanganan yang tepat merupakan hal yang penting terutama dalam kelangsungan hidup bayi (Administrative Committee on Coordination/ Subcommittee on Nutrition, 2000; Pojda & Kelley, 2000), namun sulit dilakukan jika persalinan terjadi di rumah dan tidak ditolong oleh non tenaga kesehatan yang disebabkan karena ketidaktersediaan alat penimbangan atau tidak adanya tenaga pengukur yang terlatih (Kusharisupeni et al, 2013;Neeluri & Pamarthi, 2018;Suneetha & Kavitha, 2016). Oleh karenanya diperlukan alternatif metode pendeteksian BBLR yang cepat, akurat dan mudah dilakukan.…”

“…Hal ini mengindikasikan bahwa lingkar betis memenuhi syarat sebagai ukuran pengganti yang baik. Temuan ini sejalan dengan sejumlah penelitian terkait ukuran pengganti berat lahir baik di Indonesia maupun di luar Indonesia (Kusharisupeni et al, 2013;Kusharisupeni & Marlenywati, 2011;Nur et al, 2001;Otupiri et al, 2014;Putra, 2012;Sheikh et al, 2017;Suneetha & Kavitha, 2016;Sunil Kumar et al, 2013), yang menemukan lingkar betis sebagai alternatif terbaik ukuran pengganti berat lahir untuk mendeteksi BBLR. Namun demikian terdapat variasi dalam ukuran cut off untuk mendeteksi BBLR mulai dari 9,5 sampai 10,6 cm.…”