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Updated: Mar 7, 2026
Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
Published on: February 2, 2017
Validity of a simplified screening instrument for assessing overweight children in a dental setting: a cross
Amir Azarpazhooh1,2,3,4, Anoushe Sekhavat5, Michael J Sigal5,6
1Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, 710F-481 University Ave, Toronto, ON, M5G 2P1, Canada. amir.azarpazhooh@dentistry.utoronto.ca.
Background:
Obesity, with its rising prevalence among Canadians and its estimated cost of $2 billion annually in Canada, is no longer considered a cosmetic issue, but a major health issue that imposes a great burden on the healthcare system and economy. This cross sectional study aims to evaluate the feasibility of identifying the weight status of 6 to 11 year-old children in a university dental clinic using a simplified overweight screening instrument.
Methods:
One hundred sixty eight healthy children were enrolled. Weight and height were measured and overweight/obesity status was assessed using two techniques: 1) the 2007 World Health Organization Body Mass Index (BMI)-for-age reference Tables, 2) simplified overweight screening instrument without BMI calculation. Measures of overall, positive, and negative percent agreement between the two approaches were computed.
Results:
The children's average weight, height, BMI and BMI z-score were respectively 32.6 ± 9.5 kg, 133.8 ± 10.7 cm, 17.8 ± 3.2, and 0.4 ± 1.0. The overall, positive, and negative percent agreement between the two screening approaches were respectively, 89%, 100%, and 83%.
Conclusion:
This study demonstrated the feasibility and parental acceptance of weight, height and BMI measurement in a dental setting and evidence that supports the validity of a new simplified approach to assess children's weight status without having to compute BMI.
Trial Registration:
NCT02637752 . Registered 18 December 2015.
