90 https://www.id-press.eu/mjms/index
Scientifc Foundation SPIROSKI, Skopje, Republic of Macedonia
Open Access Macedonian Journal of Medical Sciences. 2020 Sep 25; 8(T2):90-93.
https://doi.org/10.3889/oamjms.2020.5235
eISSN: 1857-9655
Category: T2 - Thematic Issue “Public Health and Nutrition Sciences in the Current Millennial Era”
Section: Public Health Disease Control
Accuracy of Actual Weight Measurement Using Upper arm
Circumference in South Sulawesi Ethnics
Citrakesumasari Citrakesumasari
1
, Yessy Kurniati
2
, Andi Imam Arundhana
1
, Abdul Salam
1
1
Nutrition Science Study Program, Faculty of Public Health, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia;
2
Public Health Study
Program, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universitas Islam Negeri Alauddin, Makassar, Indonesia
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Assessment of nutritional status in hospital patients is important to do. However, due to the
patient’s condition, the measurement must use an estimation formula. This study wanted to know the accuracy of the
measurement of body weight from the formula commonly used in hospitals.
AIM: This study wants to see how accurate the actual body weight predictions are based on measurements of UAC
in the ethnics in the province of South Sulawesi.
METHODS: The design of this study was cross-sectional. The population of this study was young adults aged 20–29
years. Number of sample is 896 respondents. Sampling consists of 2 stages, namely sample area and research
sample. The sampling used was systematic random sampling. The sample size in this study was calculated using
the Stanley Lemeshow formula.
RESULTS: The results showed that the formula used to predict the patient’s weight, if the formula is calculated using
the formula 100% Patient Upper Arm Circumference (PUAC), it is suitable for ethnic Bugis and Mandar male. The
formula 90% PUAC is suitable for ethnic Bugis and Mandar and male ethnic Makassarese and Toraja. The formula
85% is suitable for women for all ethnicities.
CONCLUSION: It can be concluded that the accuracy of measuring body weight depends on gender and ethnicity,
so it is expected that health practitioners in the hospital can adjust the use of formulas according to gender and
ethnicity.
Edited by: Branislav Filipović
Citation: Citrakesumasari, Kurniati Y, Arundhana AI,
Salam A. Accuracy of Actual Weight Measurement Using
Upper arm Circumference in South Sulawesi Ethnics.
Open Access Maced J Med Sci. 2020 Sep 25; 8(T2):90-93.
https://doi.org/10.3889/oamjms.2020.5235
Keywords: Ethnicity; Accuracy; Weight;
Upper arm circumference; Patient
*Correspondence: Citrakesumasari, Nutrition Science
Study Program, Public Health of Faculty, Hasanuddin
University, Makassar, Indonesia.
E-mail: citeku@gmail.com
Received: 10-Jul-2020
Revised: 11-Sep-2020
Accepted: 15-Sep-2020
Copyright: © 2020 Citrakesumasari Citrakesumasari,
Yessy Kurniati,
Andi Imam Arundhana, Abdul Salam
Funding: This research did not receive any fnancial
support
Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no
competing interests exist
Open Access: This is an open-access article distributed
under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-
NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Introduction
Assessment of the nutritional status of
hospitalized patients in hospitals is currently difcult
because of the condition of patients who have to lie
in bed. Adult and child patient body weight is usually
difcult to measure before being given frst aid/
intervention [1]. Based on secondary data from Wahidin
Sudirohusodo Hospital, from all patients in September–
December 2015, only new patients who could measure
their weight were only 23.33%. Some studies found
that nearly 47% of patients who had just been admitted
to hospital were sufering from malnutrition, and after
being treated would increase to 69% [2].
Body weight is needed in the assessment of
nutritional status, and determining the nutritional needs
of patients. Measurement of body weight every week
is an objective parameter, but what is an obstacle is
that not all patients treated can be measured in body
weight by weight scales. Weight has a relationship with
other measurements, such as upper arm circumference
(UAC) and body mass index (BMI). Several studies
have shown that weight has a very strong relationship
with UAC and BMI [3]. With this very strong relationship,
weight, UAC, and BMI have the ability to be used as
predictors of nutritional status [4].
Research on patients at Stanford University
Hospital, San Francisco, United States, has obtained
prediction results for UAC predictors and knee height [1].
In addition, there is a formula for predicting body weight
from the calculation of combined knee height and UAC
for blacks and whites. In China, studies have been
conducted to predict body weight from the calculation of
combined UAC and hip circumference. These formulas
cannot be used as standards for Indonesia because the
formula used is the result of research using samples
that are physically diferent from Indonesian people [1].
In Indonesia, research has been carried out
in the Nutrition Installation of the DR Hospital. Cipto
Mangunkusumo for 1 week with a sample of adult age
19–56 years by obtaining formula equations in adults
based on UAC with hip circumference and based on
UAC with knee height to predict body weight. WHO
stressed that adjustments to anthropometric standards
in a country must be based on the results of research in
the country concerned so that it is necessary to obtain
an appropriate formula for Indonesian people. In the