SynthesisPublic health nutrition2020
Determining a global mid-upper arm circumference cut-off to assess underweight in adults (men and non-pregnant women).
Synthesis in Public health nutrition, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 59 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
59 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 110 citations in OpenAlex.
- Determining a global mid-upper arm circumference cut-off to assess underweight in adults (men and non-pregnant women).Public health nutrition · 2020Pooled it
- Design and methodology of a cluster-randomised controlled trial on cash plus interventions for preventing child wasting in Somalia.Journal of global health · 2026Trial
- Trial
- Trial
- Maternal mid-upper arm circumference to predict small for gestational age: Findings in a Zambian cohort.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2023Trial
- Prevalence and associated factors of malnutrition among adults living with HIV on ART: a pilot study.Metabolism open · 2026Article
- Article
- Malnutrition prevalence at hospital admission and discharge based on the two-step Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition: A prospective observational study in Malawian adult patients.Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 2026Observational
- The Impact of Malnutrition on Host Responses to Severe Infection in Adults: A Multicenter Analysis from Uganda.medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences · 2026Article
- Association of phase angle with malnutrition and sarcopenia in interstitial lung disease: a cross-sectional analysis of body composition and functional decline.BMC pulmonary medicine · 2026Observational
- A Cross-sectional Study to Determine the Nutritional Status of Pregnant Women using Mid-upper Arm Circumference and Neck Circumference.Indian journal of community medicine : official publication of Indian Association of Preventive & Social Medicine · 2026Article
- Maternal intake of inadequate dietary folate, and low serum folate levels during pregnancy are associated with increased risk of preterm birth in rural Ethiopia: a prospective cohort study.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Arm circumference predicts 12-month mortality in older adults with hip fracture.European geriatric medicine · 2026Article
- Diet and nutrition status of adult multidrug-resistant tuberculosis cases, household controls, and community controls in Mumbai, India.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines for Periodic Health Examination: Screening for Renal, Metabolic, Nutritional, and Endocrine Disorders.Acta medica Philippina · 2026Article
- Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines for Periodic Health Examination: Screening for Prenatal Disorders.Acta medica Philippina · 2026Article
- Mid-upper arm circumference cut-offs identifying malnourishment and risk of mortality among patients with tuberculosis.BMC public health · 2025Observational
- Risk of malnutrition, food insecurity, dietary quality, and associated factors among Malawian older adults at hospital admission: a cross-sectional study.BMC geriatrics · 2025Article
- Mid-Upper Arm Circumference as a Surrogate for Nutritional Assessment in Surgical Patients: Insights from Global Leadership Initiative on Malnutrition Criteria Screening.The Malaysian journal of medical sciences : MJMS · 2025Article
- Association between mid-upper arm circumference and perceived stress in Chinese adults and older adults: a cross-sectional study.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
15 authors at 9 institutions in 7 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo determine if a global mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) cut-off can be established to classify underweight in adults (men and non-pregnant women).
designWe conducted an individual participant data meta-analysis (IPDMA) to explore the sensitivity (SENS) and specificity (SPEC) of various MUAC cut-offs for identifying underweight among adults (defined as BMI < 18·5 kg/m2). Measures of diagnostic accuracy were determined every 0·5 cm across MUAC values from 19·0 to 26·5 cm. A bivariate random effects model was used to jointly estimate SENS and SPEC while accounting for heterogeneity between studies. Various subgroup analyses were performed.
settingTwenty datasets from Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia, North America and South America were included.
participantsAll eligible participants from the original datasets were included.
resultsThe total sample size was 13 835. Mean age was 32·6 years and 65 % of participants were female. Mean MUAC was 25·7 cm, and 28 % of all participants had low BMI (<18·5 kg/m2). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the pooled dataset was 0·91 (range across studies 0·61-0·98). Results showed that MUAC cut-offs in the range of ≤23·5 to ≤25·0 cm could serve as an appropriate screening indicator for underweight.
conclusionsMUAC is highly discriminatory in its ability to distinguish adults with BMI above and below 18·5 kg/m2. This IPDMA is the first step towards determining a global MUAC cut-off for adults. Validation studies are needed to determine whether the proposed MUAC cut-off of 24 cm is associated with poor functional outcomes.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.