A Low-Cost Tool for Traditional Birth Attendants to Identify Low-Birth-Weight Infants

Abstract

One of the most important strategies in health development is inter-sectoral collaboration. This study is an example of collaboration between a medical doctor and an animalproduction scientist to develop an easy, low-cost, rapid method for the assessment of birth weight. In developing countries where neonatal and infant mortality are high, birth weight could be a useful measure for identifying high-rise; neonates who need special attention. However, weighing a newborn is often not possible because more than three-fourths of deliveries take place at home. Most are attended by village midwives or traditional birth attendants who do not have weighing scales. Our study in the Wad Medani teaching hospital showed that chest circumference is the best predictor of birth weight (R 2 82%, corresponding to a correlation coefficient of .91). A tape was developed with chest circumference measurements corresponding to predicted birth weights. The tape is coloured so that it can be used by illiterate midwives. Both the midwives and their instructors in the midwifery school found this method easy to learn and use.

Correlation between several anthropometric measurements to birth weight

“…The mean birth weight did not differ between male and female in this study, in contrast to other investigators which reported the different mean birth weight among male to female group. 15,19,20 Low birth weight in this study (6.3%) is less than reports by Alisyahbana (14%) 16 or Gazali (19.8%). 21 Of all the subjebts, no one is small for gestational age (SGA).…”

“…Gozal and Sasanow noted MAC strongly correlated to birth weight, 10.12 Magzoub found ChC correlated well to birth weight. 15 Our present study found four anthropomoteric parameters correlated strongly to birth weight (r > 0.81), namely ChC, AC, CC and MAC with the highest correlation coefficient is noted for CC (r = 0.92, p < 0.001).…”

“…Alano found 43.2% low birth weight on her study were SGA, 9 while other study stated that in the developing countries 70% of low birth weight will be SGA. 3 Magzoub and Hamid did not find different mean values of anthropometric parameters between male and female newborn babies in terms of BL, HC, ChC and MAC, 15,22 while Bafak noted the different values at the observation of BL, head length and width as well as face length and width between different sexual groups. 14 All anthropometric parameters in this study revealed no different mean value among male and female, one another present positive correlation with the correlation coefficient varied from 0.46 (BL to AC) to 0.95 (CC to MAC), p < 0.001.…”

“…Some observers reported the simple anthropometric measurement could be used to predict birth weight, then it could explain the possibility of intrauterine growth retardation and metabolic risk of newborn babies. 3,7,[9][10][11][12][13][14][15] This study evaluated the correlation between birth length (BL), head circumference (HC), chest circumference (ChC), abdominal circumference (AC), mid arm circumference (MAC), calf circumference (CC) and foot length (FL) to birth weight (BW), determined the anthropometric parameter correlation to birth weight and determined the cut of value of such anthropometric parameter reflecting low birth weight.…”

To Study the Anthropometric Measurements of the Neonates between 28 to 42 Weeks of Gestational Age at the Tertiary Health Care Center, Bhavnagar, Gujarat

“…The correlation of the various anthropometric parameters was made in comparison to weight as a constant. Hence the best predictor of the low birth weight can be made [3][4][5].…”