Public Health Practitioner
Normal user
24 Oct 2014, 15:56
Dear Experts,
Besides MUAC <21.0 cm and checking the weight gain of pregnant woman, are there any assessment that can be done to determine if a pregnant woman is undernourished?
Thanks.
Regards,
Derich
en-net moderator
Forum moderator
24 Oct 2014, 17:14
Dear Frederich,
I presume you have seen this previous discussion on anthropometric assessment of pregnant women here which culminated in the link to a paper written by Mija-Tesse Ververs etc al. ?
Best wishes,
Tamsin
Consultant Epideomiologist
Frequent user
24 Oct 2014, 20:25
The referenced paper puts forward 23 cm not 21 cm as the threshold for intervention.
MUAC and weight are gross anthropometry. Micronutrient status is key in pregnancy for both the mother and the growing foetus and supplements are usually given. Important micronutrient deficiencies should be detected and corrected by supplementation either directly or by proxy (e.g. low dietary diversity). It is common to assume deficiency and supplement all pregnant women either with 'medicinal' preparations (e.g. FeFol tablets) and/or with mass fortification of staples such a bread flour.
I hope this helps.