Clinical assessment of nutritional status at birth.

OBJECTIVE Clinical assessment of nutritional status of neonate using CAN score and comparison with other methods of determining intrauterine growth. DESIGN Cross sectional study. SETTING Tertiary care hospital. SUBJECTS 637 consecutive, liveborn singleton neonates with known gestational age and no major congenital malformation. METHODS Birth weight, length, midarm circumference and head circumference recorded in newborns. Ponderal index and mid arm to head circumference ratio was calculated. Clinical assessment of nutritional status was done on the basis of CAN score and compared with other methods. RESULTS CAN score < 25 separated 60% of the babies as well nourished and 40% as malnourished. Weight for age and Ponderal Index classified 70-75% of babies as well nourished (AGA) and 25-30% as malnourished. Also MAC/HC classified nearly half the babies as well nourished and half as malnourished. CONCLUSION CAN score may be a simple clinical index for identifying fetal malnutrition and for prediction of neonatal morbidity associated with it, without the aid of any sophisticated equipments.