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Updated: Mar 30, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Perceived barriers to anthropometric measurements in critically ill children
Sharon Y Irving1, Stephanie Seiple2, Monica Nagle2
1Sharon Y. Irving is an assistant professor, Department of Family and Community Health, University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Pediatric nurse practitioner, Department of Nursing, Respiratory Care, and Neurodiagnostic Services and Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Stephanie Seiple, Monica Nagle, and Shiela Falk are clinical dietitians, in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Maria Mascarenhas is medical director, Department of Clinical Nutrition, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and associate professor, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Vijay Srinivasan is an attending physician, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and assistant professor, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. ysha@nursing.upenn.edu.
Insights
Barriers to taking anthropometric measurements in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs) are common. Ordering providers and nurses have differing views on these obstacles, impacting patient care.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric critical care medicine
- Clinical assessment
- Healthcare quality improvement
Background:
- Anthropometric measurements are essential for safe and effective care in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs).
- Accurate patient data is crucial for appropriate treatment and monitoring in critical care settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify the barriers encountered when obtaining anthropometric measurements in PICUs.
- To investigate whether ordering providers and nurses perceive these barriers differently.
Main Methods:
- A survey with 21 items was emailed to professionals in pediatric intensive care units.
- The survey aimed to gather perceptions of barriers to anthropometric measurements.
- Respondents included ordering providers and nurses.
Main Results:
- Most respondents (84%) acknowledged the importance of anthropometric measurements, yet only 3% knew if they were routinely obtained.
- Common barriers included medical devices (57%), extracorporeal life support (54%), and hemodynamic instability (52%).
- Significant differences in barrier perception were noted between ordering providers and nurses regarding specific conditions and factors like workload.
Conclusions:
- Obstacles to performing anthropometric measurements are prevalent in pediatric intensive care units.
- Ordering providers and nurses exhibit distinct perceptions regarding the barriers to obtaining these vital measurements.
Background:
Anthropometric measurements are vital for safe care in pediatric intensive care units.
Objective:
To identify barriers to anthropometric measurements and determine if perceptions of barriers differ between ordering providers and nurses.
Methods:
A 21-item survey to elicit perceptions of barriers to obtaining anthropometric measurements was distributed via e-mail to societies with members who provide care in pediatric intensive care units.
Results:
Most of the 258 eligible respondents (46% ordering providers) were from North America (90%). Although 84% agreed that anthropometric measurements are important, only 3% knew if these measurements were obtained upon admission to their unit. Estimates of patients' measurements by parents or caregivers were commonly used (72%) when actual measurements were not obtained. Leading barriers were presence of medical devices (57%), use of extracorporeal life support (54%), and unstable hemodynamic status (52%). More ordering providers than nurses considered osteopenia/fragile bones as a barrier to weight measurement (46% vs 29%; P = .007) and traumatic brain injury a barrier to measurement of head circumference (42% vs 24%; P = .002). More nurses than ordering providers perceived dialysis (21% vs 9%; P = .01) and obesity (26% vs 15%; P = .04) as barriers to measurement of stature. Ordering providers more than nurses perceived nurses' workload (51% vs 33%; P < .001) and lack of importance (43% vs 20%; P < .001) as barriers.
Conclusions:
Barriers to obtaining anthropometric measurements exist in pediatric intensive care units; ordering providers and nurses have different perceptions of what constitutes a barrier.
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