Comparison of growth of an elite [norm] group of Sudanese children with the NCSH/CDC reference population

ABSTRACT

Comparison of three anthropometric growth indices, weight for height, weight for age and height for age from an elite group of children in Khartoum [Sudan] with the international NCHS/CDC American reference population showed a small difference. The three indices were presented as Z - scores using the NCHS/CDC reference. The overall mean Z - score was the same for the three indices, - 0.2, - 0.2 [SD = 0.95] for the weight for height index, - 0.2 [SD = 1.3] and - 0.2 [SD = 0.95] for the weight for age and height for age indices respectively. The difference was small, although the ethnic and geographical background of the studied group and the American reference were vastly different. Thus the use of the NCHS/CDC American standard is recommended