[Body segments and height in a group of Venezuelan elders]

The height, tibia length, knee height, arm span and arm demi-span were measured in 344 institutionalized elders (152 males and 192 females), with the purpose of identifying which of these variables is the most adequate to estimate the height in the elderly. Descriptive statistic was calculated and a Student's test was used to establish significant differences between sex and age groups. A simple Pearson correlation analysis was used to obtain the association between height and body segments. Sexual dimorphism was evidenced, with male predominance in all the variables (p < or = 0.001). 60-79 year-old women were taller than women of 80 of older (p < or = 0.05). The knee height showed the highest correlation with men's height, but this variable showed a lower correlation in women, especially in the 80 year-old or older group. The arm-span variable had the highest correlation with women's height. The tibia lenght was the body segment with the lowest correlation with height, both in males and females. These results suggest the need to develop predictive equations using the knee height, since it is the body segment that showed the greatest associaction with the height in elders.