Height as a substitute for weight for estimating praziquantel dosage

Area of Science:

• Pediatrics
• Public Health
• Tropical Medicine

Background:

• Accurate anthropometric measurements are crucial for pediatric drug dosing, particularly in resource-limited settings.
• Praziquantel is a key anthelmintic medication used in mass drug administration programs for schistosomiasis control.
• Community health workers (CHWs) are integral to the delivery of public health interventions in rural areas.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the reliability of anthropometric measurements (height and weight) taken by trained community distributors for pediatric Praziquantel dose determination.
• To evaluate the correlation between measurements taken by community distributors and a research team.

Main Methods:

• 750 school children from five rural Nigerian communities were included.
• Trained community members (distributors) took height and weight measurements.
• Measurements were compared against those taken by a research team to determine correlation coefficients.

Main Results:

• A strong correlation (r=0.97) was found for weight measurements between distributors and the research team.
• A significant correlation (r=0.87) was observed for combined weight and height measurements.
• Height measurements demonstrated potential utility for dose determination by community distributors.

Conclusions:

• Trained community distributors can reliably measure child weight for Praziquantel dosing.
• Child height measurements show promise as a viable alternative to weight for accurate Praziquantel dose determination in Nigerian rural communities.
• This finding supports the integration of height-based dosing protocols to enhance public health interventions delivered by CHWs.