Express assessment of physical development of school-age children by body mass index

Abstract

Objective — to compare the informativity of methods for assessing physical development by body mass index (BMI) and regression scales from the standpoint of detecting and predicting obesity in school‑age children.Materials and methods. A cross‑sectional study of the physical development of 3,265 school‑age children (aged 7 to 17, including 1,579 boys and 1,686 girls) living in a large industrial city was conducted. Indicators of length and body mass were studied according to standard methods. Evaluation of physical development was carried out by centile BMI tables as well as the national Ukrainian standards according to the order of Ministry of Health of Ukraine «On Approval of The Criteria for assessing the physical development of children of school age» and «On approval of The Protocols of treatment for children with endocrine diseases». Statistical data processing was performed using the method of statistical aggregation and t‑test in software package SPSS Statistics v.20 and Microsoft Excel.Results. According to the results of the assessment of the level of physical development using aggregate centile tables of BMI as recommended by the WHO to create national standards, it was found that children with normal body weight (15 — 85th percentile) exceed 50 %, except for boys of 10 and 13 years. The risk groups for obesity included 6.9 — 15.4 % of boys with the largest number at 11 — 13 years of age and 7.9 — 14.1 % of girls aged 10, 13 and 14 years. Among boys aged 8 — 10 and 14 years, obesity was identified in more than 20 %, and among girls aged 8 — 10 years — in 16.2 %. Comparing the results of the assessment according to WHO standards and national criteria for assessing physical development revealed a «tougher» approach to the selection of obese children aged 12 — 17 years with a difference of up to 7 % among boys and up to 19 % among girls. Among children aged 8 — 9 years, obesity was more often identified by centile tables.Conclusions. The body mass index should be used for an approximate express assessment of the child’s physical development, subject to further clarification during a more detailed medical examination using national regression scales to detect and predict childhood obesity. There is a need to create an automated algorithm for assessing the physical development of school‑age children in the workplace of medical staff.