Broens, J. (2014) De invloed van de body mass index van zorgverleners op de perceptie van gewicht op de kinderleeftijd. thesis, Medicine.
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Abstract
Introduction: Clinical recognition of overweight and obesity is important for the prevention and treatment of childhood obesity. The aim of this study is (1) to assess accurateness of obesity diagnosis in children and (2) whether clinical view and perceptions on childhood obesity vary by BMI and profession of child health professionals. Methods: Health professionals (HP) including paediatricians, GP’s, child abuse workers and youth health care workers were asked to rate 7 preschool children (underweight to morbid obese) on a verbal scale (very light to very heavy) and based on sketches (too thin to too thick) to diagnose the child’s body shape. In addition, health professionals’ characteristics and attitudes on childhood obesity were assessed. Results: 49% (353/706) of questionnaires were returned. In general, weight of children was underestimated. Slightly overweight children were rated as normal by 76% and as ‘slightly overweight’ by 23% of HP. Obese children were rated as slightly overweight by 38%, obese by 48%, and normal by 14% of HP. Only morbidly obese children were accurately rated (95% correct). Diagnosis did not vary significantly according to HP’s BMI, although trends were visible, e.g. obese rated as obese by 52% of low BMI HP and by 44% of high BMI HP, P=0.19. In contrast, attitudes on childhood obesity differed by profession and HP BMI. For example, childhood obesity was considered as ‘child neglect’ in 62% of HP with BMI<21.5 kg/m2 and in 42% of HP with BMI>25.0 kg/m2 (P=0.04). Conclusion: Health professionals are unlikely to correctly diagnose the weight status of overweight and obese children based on their clinical view. Furthermore, perceptions of childhood obesity may differ according to health professionals BMI and profession.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Thesis) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Bocca, dr. G. and Epidemiologie/Kindergeneeskunde, UMCG |
| Faculty: | Medical Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 25 Jun 2020 10:41 |
| Last Modified: | 25 Jun 2020 10:41 |
| URI: | https://umcg.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/264 |
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