This paper explores the fitting of multi-level models to growth data over a wide age range using a new class of extended spline models. These extend conventional splines based on a '+' function representation by allowing variable order functions and by including fractional polynomial terms. The work focuses on modelling human growth in height and head circumference with example data sets. The p...

OBJECTIVE To determine the effects of prenatal cocaine exposure on child development. METHODS This prospective, longitudinal study recruited 154 pregnant cocaine users who were matched on race, parity, socioeconomic status, and perinatal risk to 154 noncocaine users. Drug use status was determined by maternal history and urine screening. At 3 years of age, the child subjects were assessed by ...

background: waist circumference (wc) is an accurate and simple measure of abdominal obesity as compared to waist–hip ratio (whr). the aim of this study was to determine the correlation between body mass index (bmi) with wc and whr and suggest cutoff points for wc among rural malaysian adults. methods: a cross‑sectional study was conducted among 669 respondents from three villages in tanjung kar...

our aim was to evaluate the association of metabolic syndrome (mets) and its components with body fat percentage (bfp) and anthropometric indicesin10 to 18year old adolescents.this was a cross-sectional study conducted on 134 tehranian adolescents, aged 10 to 18 years (66 boys and 68 girls) in 2007. the mets definition proposed by cook et al. was used. logistic regression was used to determine ...

BACKGROUND Achieving Millennium Development Goal 4 is dependent on significantly reducing neonatal mortality. Low birth weight is an underlying factor in most neonatal deaths. In developing countries the missed opportunity for providing life saving care is mainly a result of failure to identify low birth weight newborns. This study aimed at identifying a reliable anthropometric measurement for ...

BACKGROUND The measurement of head circumference (HC) is widely used in clinical and research settings as a proxy of neural growth. Although it could aid data collection, no studies have explored either the reliability of adult self-measurements or parental measurements of young children. This study therefore aimed to examine whether adult self and parental measurement of HC constitute reliable...

A cross-sectional study of adolescent growth was undertaken among the Brahmin girls residing in rural and urban areas of Sagar districts, Madhya Pradesh to evaluate the urban-rural differences. Six anthropometric measurements, such as weight, stature, sitting height, head circumference, upper arm circumference and chest girth are taken into consideration. Though the urban girls show consistentl...