MID-UPPER ARM CIRCUMFERENCE (MUAC): AN INDICATOR TO IDENTIFY, WASTING IN INFANTS LESS THAN SIX MONTHS OF AGE.

Abstract

Objective:

Malnutrition under six month of age is one of the major challenging issues and highly prevalent in developing countries. The significance of mid upper arm circumference, and its cutoff value, in less than six months of age is still under research. The present study was done to determine the MUAC cut-off value for severe acute malnutrition, to distinguish between severe moderate malnutrition in infants less than six months of age in a tertiary care hospital.

Study Design: Cross-Sectional Study

Place and Duration of Study: Department of Paediatrics, Dow University of health Sciences, Civil Hospital Karachi, from January to December 2021    

 Material Methods:

A total of 249 infants of either gender, between the ages of two to six months, were included. In our study. To assess the diagnostic accuracy and to identify optimal MUAC cut-offs for screening, severe and moderate wasting, the receiver operating characteristic curve was used.

Results: The MUAC cutoff value was determined for infants divided in two groups, two months up to four months and infants above four months of age, in males ranging from two up to four months of age it was, 10.26cm. On the other hand, the cut off for females in both the age group was the same 9.25 cm. A combined MUAC cut off value , between two months up to four months age, was calculated to be 10.25 cm whereas it was  9.25 cm, ,above four months of age

Conclusion: The   MUAC cutoffs values presented in this study will contribute to assess the severity of malnutrition among infants up to six months of age.