The accuracy of Broselow pediatric emergency tape in estimating body weight of pediatric patients

Change in Growth Status and Obesity Rates among Saudi Children and Adolescents Is Partially Attributed to Discrepancies in Definitions Used: A Review of Anthropometric Measurements

Anthropometric measurements are the first step in determining the health status in children and adolescents. Clinicians require standardized protocols for proper assessment and interpretation. Therefore, this study aims to review the literature of international and Saudi national guidelines and studies previously conducted in Saudi children and adolescents to provide recommendations to establish Saudi guidelines in line with the Saudi 2030 Vision. Systematic search was conducted in several databases: Medline, PubMed, Saudi Digital Library and Google Scholar from January 1990 to January 2021. Further, 167 studies measured anthropometrics in Saudi children/adolescents; 33 of these studies contributed to the establishment/adjustment of Saudi growth charts or specific cutoffs or studied the trend of growth in representative samples or adjusted the international curves to be used in Saudis. This review warrants updating growth charts and establishing the standard cutoffs of Saudi adolescent anthropometrics to avoid over/underreporting. This review provides insights and recommendations regarding the resources that can be used to establish national guidelines in anthropometric measurements for Saudi children/adolescents. This review will help policymakers and the Ministry of Health to establish standardized protocols to be used in Saudi Arabia for anthropometric measurements that may assist in detecting malnutrition.

Validation of two pediatric resuscitation tapes

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to compare the actual weights of Filipino children with their estimated weights obtained from the Broselow tape and the Pediatric Advanced Weight Prediction in the Emergency Room eXtra Length-Mid-arm Circumference (PAWPER XL-MAC) tape.

METHODS

A prospective, observational, cross-sectional study conducted among Filipino children admitted at the Pediatric Emergency Department (ED) of The Medical City in Pasig City, Philippines. Mean percentage error (MPE) determined bias. Modified Bland-Altman analysis was used to perform a visual comparison of the bias and extent of agreement. The proportion of weight estimates within 10% (p 10) and within 20% (p 20) of actual weight was calculated to determine the overall accuracy.

RESULTS

A total of 220 Filipino children (63.2% male) were recruited. Both the Broselow and PAWPER XL-MAC tapes overestimate the actual weight by an average of 0.4% (95% limit of agreement [LOA] -29.4 to 30.2) and 1.3% (95% LOA -15.3 to 17.9) respectively. Across body mass index (BMI) groups, both tapes overestimate (MPE: +19.2 and +9.3) weight among underweight children and underestimate (MPE: -13.2 and -3.5; MPE: -18.6 and -5.5) weight among overweight and obese children. In measuring estimated weight within 10% and 20% of actual weight, the PAWPER XL-MAC performed best (79.6% and 96.8%).

CONCLUSION

The PAWPER XL-MAC tape performed better as a weight estimation tool compared to Broselow tape across different age groups and BMI-for-age groups of Filipino children. Both tapes tend to overestimate weight among younger and underweight children while underestimating weight among ages 7 to 10 years old, overweight, or obese children.

Weight estimation in Paediatrics: how accurate is the Broselow-tape weight estimation in the Nigerian child

Background

Determination of weight in children is an important aspect of their assessment. It has a wide range of usefulness including assessing their nutritional status and drug dose calculation. Despite its usefulness, weight estimation in children in certain conditions can be challenging particularly in emergency situations or in children who are severely ill or cannot stand on standard scales. The Broselow Tape which is a validated tape that is used to estimate weight based on length was developed using height/weight correlations from Western data. However, considering the variations in anthropometric measurements of children from different geographic locations, there is need to ascertain how accurate it is to estimate weight using the Broselow tape among children in Nigeria.

Aim

The study was carried out to determine the accuracy in the use of the Broselow Tape in weight estimation among Nigerian children.

Method

A total 1456 children aged 1–12 years who satisfied the inclusion criteria were enrolled over a 2½ year period from two tertiary health facilities in Enugu state Nigeria. Weight was taken using standard weighing scale and Broselow tape. Data collected was analysed using SPSS.

Result

Of the 1456 children studied, majority (84.2%) had normal Body-Mass-Index (BMI) while about 4.6% had a low BMI percentile for age. The mean weight difference between the two methods was not significantly different between the 1 to 6 years old category. Significant differences were observed from 7 up to 12 years. The Broselow Tape overestimated weights in 1 year old by 3.88%, 2 years 1.58%, 3 years by 2.13%, 4 years (1.94%) and 5 year (0.07%). After 5 years, the degree of overestimation rises sharply to 4.25% in 6, 9.25% in 7, 7.29% in 8 and 9.29%. 9.18, 11.61% & 6.75% in 9, 10, 11 and 12 years old respectively. The proportion of estimated weights that was within 10- 20% of the actual weight was higher in the 1-6 years age categories compared to weight estimates in older age categories.

Conclusion

Weight estimates obtained using the Broselow tape correlated better in children that are 6 years or younger compared to those in the older age categories. There is need for re-validation and/or adjustments of the Broselow tape especially in children over 6 years old.

The accuracy of Broselow pediatric emergency tape in estimating body weight of pediatric patients

[No Abstract Available].