Mothers Understand And Can do it - Mid Upper Arm Circumference Screening for Malnutrition Performed by Mothers (MUAC)

December 8, 2013 updated by: Alliance for International Medical Action

Mothers Understand And Can do it - Mid Upper Arm Circumference Screening for Malnutrition Performed by Mothers of Children < 5 Years Old

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE :

To determine whether mothers, given minimal group training, are capable of using a MUAC (mid-upper arm circumference) bracelet to screen their children for malnutrition and categorise them into one of three groups : 'red' (SAM ; severe acute malnutrition), 'yellow' (MAM ; moderate acute malnutrition) or 'green' (normal nutritional status)

SECONDARY OBJECTIVES :

To establish whether there is a difference in the MUAC value if measured on the right arm as opposed to the left, in young children

To determine whether there is a difference in the MUAC value if the mid upper arm position is determined visually as opposed to being measured in the 'classical' fashion

Study Overview

Detailed Description

Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) and its complications are major causes of death in under 5s in the developing world. A simple, reproducible, scalable way to recognise acute malnutrition and target early intervention would be a huge advance. Can mothers with limited training reliably measure and interpret the results of Mid Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC), a measurement performed with a MUAC measuring tape costing $0.06? MUAC contrasts with Z-score (WHZ), which requires both scales and a height gauge, both health worker interventions susceptible to considerable error, sensitive to non-nutritional factors, requiring calculations and growth curves, yet much less accurate in predicting risk of death compared with MUAC.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

300

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

    • Mirriah
      • Mirria, Mirriah, Niger
        • Mirriah health district

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

6 months to 4 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Children present in the inpatient malnutrition treatment unit and paediatric service of the Mirriah district hospital aged between 6-59 months old

Children aged between 6-59 months old in the two villages of the Mirriah district, Niger; where the community phase of the study was conducted

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • children present in the inpatient malnutrition treatment unit and paediatric service of the Mirriah district hospital aged between 6-59 months old
  • children aged between 6-59 months old in the two villages where the community phase of the study was conducted

Exclusion Criteria:

  • children receiving treatment in the intensive care unit of Mirriah district hospital
  • children with bilateral oedema
  • children whose mothers or fathers refused consent to participate in the study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Observational Models: Cohort
  • Time Perspectives: Prospective

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
inter and intra observer variability
Time Frame: 2 years
Variance in result of screening for malnutrition performed by mothers with minimal training compared to 'gold-standard' fully trained health care workers. Screening will be performed with a MUAC (mid-upper arm circumference) bracelet, results will be expressed by category: SAM (severe acute malnutrition), MAM (moderate acute malnutrition) or 'normal nutritional status
2 years

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
inter and intra observer variability
Time Frame: 2 years
The difference in millimetres in the MUAC value if measured on the right arm as opposed to the left ('classical method'), in young children
2 years
inter and intra observer variability
Time Frame: 2 years
The difference in the MUAC value in millimetres if the mid upper arm position is determined visually as opposed to being measured in the 'classical' fashion
2 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Investigators

  • Study Director: nikki blackwell, FCICM,FRACP, Alliance for International Medical Action

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

August 1, 2011

Primary Completion (Actual)

August 1, 2012

Study Completion (Actual)

August 1, 2012

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 12, 2013

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 12, 2013

First Posted (Estimate)

February 13, 2013

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

December 10, 2013

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 8, 2013

Last Verified

December 1, 2013

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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