THE UTILITY OF CROSS‐SECTIONAL MEASUREMENTS OF WEIGHT AND LENGTH FOR AGE IN SCREENING FOR GROWTH FAILURE (CHRONIC MALNUTRITION) AND CLINICALLY SEVERE PROTEIN‐ENERGY MALNUTRITION

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Abstract
The accuracy of identifying children with growth failure and/or clinically severe protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) from a single measure of length or weight for age from birth to 36 mo. was determined. Growth data were treated cross-sectionally and compared with National Center for Health Statistics growth standards in order to determine the sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive value of a single cross-sectional measure of weight-for-age or length-for-age in identifying children diagnosed via longitudinal records. Under 6 mo. of age, neither weight nor length for age was an adequate predictor of growth failure or clinical malnutrition; from 12-36 mo., screening measures based on anthropometry were much improved. A single measure of weight or length for age taken close to the 1st birthday could identify up to 78% of the future 2nd and 3rd yr cases of clinically severe PEM. Implications and limitations are discussed.