Mid-Upper-Arm and Calf Circumferences are Useful Predictors of Underweight in Women of Reproductive Age in Northern Vietnam. Issue 3 (September 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Nguyen, Phuong; Ramakrishnan, Usha; Katz, Benjamin; Gonzalez-Casanova, Ines; Lowe, Alyssa E.; Nguyen, Hieu; Pham, Hoa; Truong, Truong; Nguyen, Son; Martorell, Reynaldo
• Is Part Of: Food and nutrition bulletin. Volume 35:Issue 3(2014)
• Page Start: 301
• Page End: 311
• Publication Date: 2014-09
• Subjects: Calf circumference -- indicators -- mid-upper-arm circumference -- undernutrition -- vietnam -- women of reproductive age; Food -- Periodicals; Nutrition -- Periodicals; Agriculture -- Periodicals; Dietary Proteins -- Periodicals; Food Supply -- Periodicals; Nutrition -- Periodicals; Electronic journals; Food; Nutrition; Periodicals; 613.205
• DOI: 10.1177/156482651403500303
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0379-5721

Abstract

Background: Mid-upper-arm circumference (MUAC) and calf circumference (CC) are correlated with body mass index (BMI) in adults and may be useful for screening women with underweight (BMI < 18.5 kg/m 2 ). However, there is no consensus on appropriate MUAC and CC cutoff points in diverse populations, especially in women of reproductive age. Objective: To assess the accuracy of different MUAC and CC cutoff points to screen for underweight and to identify the most appropriate cutoff points in a sample of women of reproductive age from rural northern Vietnam. Methods: Anthropometric measurements (weight, height, MUAC, CC, and triceps and subscapular skinfold thicknesses) were obtained for 4, 981 women of reproductive age who participated in a micronutrient intervention trial (PRECONCEPT) in Thái Nguyên Province, Viet- nam. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to evaluate different cutoff values of MUAC and CC and identify the most appropriate cutoff values to predict underweight. Results: The overall prevalence of underweight was 32%. The MUAC value of 23.5 cm and the CC value of 31 cm were identified as the best cutoffs based on low misclassification (16% for MUAC and 21% for CC) and good balance of sensitivity (89% and 85%, respectively) and specificity (71% and 67%, respectively. The ROC curves were similar across different ethnic groups, with the area under the curve (AUC) values reaching 0.89 to 0.93 for MUAC and 0.83 to 0.89 for CC. Conclusions: MUAC and CC perform adequately in screening for underweight in women. The utility of these measurements in predicting functional outcomes should be examined.