title: Comparative analysis of height estimation methods in hospitalized adults and elders.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Height is one of the measurements required for the assessment of body composition and for devising a nutritional plan for hospitalized patients. Due to the impossibility to measure the height of such patients in various situations, alternative estimation methods are necessary.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare the self-reported height and different height estimation methods with the real height of adults and elders hospitalized in a public teaching hospital of Santa Catarina.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study subjects were 241 adults and elders of both genders. Real height (gold standard), recumbent height, knee height, arm length and demi-span were measured, as well as the self-reported height, which was recorded. Self-reported height and estimated height by different methods were compared to real height through a paired t-test and Bland-Altman analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The most accurate and concordant results were estimated through recumbent height, which was no statistically significant difference (p > 0.05) between real height and all study groups. The height obtained through a formula that uses arm length and demi-span and the self-reported height also had satisfactory results among certain groups. The formulae that uses knee height was the only one that resulted in underestmation of height for all study groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The height estimation method that stood out as the most accurate was recumbent height assessed with a stadiometer. The best results in this study were found with methods of easy applicability and low cost.
authors.affiliation: Federal University of Santa Catarina. Department of Nutrition. Florianópolis, Santa Catarina. Brazil. raquel.k@ufsc.br.
authors.forename: Ana Paula
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Ferreira-Melo
authors.forename: Raquel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kuerten-de-Salles
authors.forename: Francilene Gracieli Kunradi
authors.initials: FG
authors.lastname: Vieira
authors.forename: Marilyn Gonçalves
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Ferreira
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000886:Anthropometry; D001132:Arm / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D001827:Body Height; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007717:Knee / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D057566:Self Report; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Anthropometry.  Estimation  techniques. Body  height.