Original Article Received: July 7, 2015; Accepted for publication: November 30, 2015 DOI: 10.1515/anre-2016-0004 © 2016 Polish Anthropological Society AnthropologicAl review • Vol. 79 (1), 47–57 (2016) Predictive equations for height estimation using knee height of older Bengalees of Purba Medinipur, West Bengal, India Binoy Kuiti, Kaushik Bose Department of Anthropology, Vidyasagar University, West Bengal, India AbstrAct: For nutritional assessment work for older population, it is important to be able to estimate body height based on knee height. The present report describes three equations for height estimation among older Bengalees based on knee height and compares the results with knee height based formulae developed for several other populations. Anthropometric measurements were analyzed from 114 (62 men and 52 women) older subjects aged >= 55 years. The subjects were randomly selected from two blocks (Contai I and Ramnagar I), at coastal area of Purba Medinipur District in West Bengal, India. A population speciic formula for height was created based on knee height of the subjects. These estimated formulae from the present study and fourteen other previously reported formulae were also applied to these older population and the mean estimation errors were statistically compared. Analysis indicated that our derived formulae gave accurate estimation of height among the subjects. Key words: Bengalees, height estimation, knee height Introduction Anthropometric values are closely relat- ed to nutrition, genetic makeup, environ- mental characteristics, social and cultur- al condition, lifestyle, functional status and health. Anthropometric evaluation is an essential feature of geriatric nutrition- al evaluation for determining malnutri- tion, being overweight, obesity, muscu- lar mass loss, fat mass gain and adipose tissue redistribution. Anthropometric in- dicators are used to evaluate the progno- sis of chronic and acute diseases, and to guide medical intervention in the elderly (Grinker et al. 2000; Froster et al. 2005; Villareal et al. 2005). The biological aging process is characterized by a progressive decline in functional capacity in all tis- sue and organs of the body, as well as by a decrease in the ability to respond and adjust to environmental changes (Adams Binoy Kuiti, Kaushik Bose Predictive equations for height estimation Unauthenticated Download Date | 3/16/16 9:15 AM