Interpretation of low birth weight babies by anthropometric measurements in South India

Abstract

Introduction: Low birth weight is seen most commonly in developing countries. In India majority of births are conducted at home by the Traditional Birth Attendants (TBA) or relatives, where the estimation of birth weight is not done because of lack of weighing machines. Therefore, an early identification and prompt referral of LBW newborns is vital in preventing neonatal deaths. Objective: To determine the magnitude of low birth weight babies and to correlate birth weight and other anthropometric measurements. Methodology: This is a cross sectional study done at Christian fellowship hospital,Oddanchatram, Dindigal, Tamilnadu from 1st Dec 2011 to 31st Nov 2012. 500 newborns were examined within 24 hours of their birth in this hospital during this period. Antenatal history and anthropometric measurements were recorded. Results: The male newborn (57.2%) were more than of female (42.8%). The magnitude of the low birth weight was 262 (52.4%). It was observed that correlation coefficients of all the parameters are positive and are statistically significant (p < 0.001). Maximum and minimum positive correlation was observed in case of thigh circumference (r = 0.776) and Foot length (r = 0.460) respectively.