Determination of Stature From Arm Span Among Students of Benue State University
Chapter One
Objectives of the study
Main objective
The main objective of the study is to determine stature from arm span among students of Benue state university.
Specific objectives
Specifically, the study sought to;
- Determine arm span dimensions Benue state University students.
- Investigate sexual dimorphism in arm span dimensions among Benue state University students.
- Determine the relationship between stature and arm span dimensions among Benue state University students.
- Generate predictive equations for stature estimation for the study population.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
The measurement of stature is important in many settings. Stature measurement is required for the evaluation of children’s growth, calculation of nutritional indices of children and adults, prediction and standardization of physiological variables such as lung volumes (Golshan, Crapo, Amra, Jensen, & Golshan, 2007), muscle strength, glomerular filtration, metabolic rate, and for the tailoring of drug dosage in patients (Zverev, 2003). However, in some cases the accurate stature cannot be determined directly because of deformities of the limbs or in patients who have undergone amputations. Measuring stature can also be difficult in physically and mentally frail nursing home patients, e.g. patients that are wheelchair-bound or bedridden and those with osteoporosis, sequelae after hip fractures, or stroke. In such situations, an estimate of stature has to be derived from other reliable anthropometric indicators. These estimations help in predicting age-related loss in stature, identifying individuals with disproportionate growth abnormalities and skeletal dysplasia or stature loss during surgical procedures on the spine. These measurements have also found application in normalizing pulmonary function in scoliosis (Golshan, et al., 2007). It could also be utilized in sport settings in estimating the stature of wheelchair athletes or other sports individuals with disabilities involving amputation of a leg, or other deformities. Additionally, in many older people it is difficult, if not impossible, to measure standing stature accurately because of mobility problems and kyphosis (Hickson & Frost, 2003). Therefore, measurements of other body segments like arm span (Hickson & Frost, 2003; Jalzem & Gledhill, 1993; Yun, et al., 1995; Mohanty, Babu, & Nair, 2001), demi-span (Hickson & Frost, 2003; Weinbrenner, Vioque, Barber & Asensio, 2006), knee height (Hickson & Frost, 2003; Neruda, 2004), skull (Bidmos & Asala, 2005; Bidmos, 2006), scapula (Campobasso, Di-Vella, & Introna, 1998) and vertebral column length (Nagesh & Pradeep, 2006) can be used as an alternative to estimate standing stature.
Several studies have reported the effectiveness of using various body variables in estimating stature (Jalzem & Gledhill, 1993; Yun, et al., 1995; Mohanty, Babu, & Nair, 2001; Hickson & Frost, 2003) and arm span was found to be the most reliable. However, correlations between arm span and stature have been shown to vary in different ethnic groups (Steele & Chenier, 1990; Reeves, Varakamin, & Henry, 1996; Brown, Feng, & Knapp, 2002). Even though several studies of this nature are available on western populations, hardly has such a study been reported for Nigerian students. Therefore the purpose of this study was to determine the stature of students from arm span in Benue state University.
CHAPTER THREE
Methodology
This study will employ a descriptive design in carrying out the research work. This study will embark on a descriptive research design because it can be used to describe characteristics of a population or phenomenon being studied.
Population and sampling
A study population is a group of elements or individuals as the case may be, who share similar characteristics. This study will focus solely on students in Benue state University. A study sample is simply a systematic selected part of a population that infers its result on the population. Therefore, this study will utilize a purposive sample method to select students from Benue state University.
CHAPTER FOUR
Conclusion
The research makes proposes the determination of stature from arm span among students of Benue state university. In conclusion, arm span can be used to measure the stature and predict the height of people. Findings from previous literature show that arm span has the strongest correlation with actual height compared to compare to other anthropometric dimensions.
References
- Bidmos, M., & Asala, S. (2005). Calcaneal measurement in estimation of stature of South African blacks. American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 126(3), 335-342.
- Bidmos, M. (2006). Adult stature reconstruction from the calcaneus of South Africans of European descent. Journal of Clinical Forensic Medicine, 13(5), 247-252.
- Brown, J.K., Feng, J.Y., & Knapp, T.R. (2002). Is self-reported height or arm span a more accurate alternative measure of height? Clinical Nursing Research, 11(4), 417-432.
- Campobasso, C.P., Di-Vella, G., & Introna, F. (1998). Using scapular measurements in regression formulae for the estimation of stature. Bollettino dellà Societa Italiana di Biologia Sperimentale, 74(7-8), 75-82.
- Golshan, M., Crapo, R.O., Amra, B., Jensen, R.I., & Golshan, R. (2007). Arm span as an independent predictor of pulmonary function parameters: validation and reference values. Respirology, 12(3), 361-366.
- Hickson, M., & Frost, G. (2003). A comparison of three methods for estimating height in the acutely ill elderly population. Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietitian, 16(1), 13-20.
- Jalzem, P.F., & Gledhill, R.B. (1993). Predicting height from arm span measurements. Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics, 13(6), 761-765.
- Kwok, T., & Whitelaw, M.N. (1991). The use of arm span in nutritional assessment of the elderly. Journal of American Geriatrics Society, 39(5), 492-496.
- Marfell-Jones, M., Olds, T., Stew, A., & Carter, L. (2006). International standards for anthropometric assessment. The International Society for the Advancement of Kinanthropometry.
- Mohanty, S.P., Babu, S.S., & Nair, N.S. (2001). The use of arm span as a predictor of height. A study of South Indian women. Journal of Orthopedics Surgery (Hong Kong), 9(1), 19-23.
