From the Neonatology Unit of Lady Hardinge Medical College and Kalawati Saran Children's Hospital, New Delhi 110 001.

Reprint requests: Dr. Sudarshan Kumari, 23B/6, P-2 Guru Gobind Singh Marg, New Delhi 110 005.

Manuscript received: February 21, 1997; Initial review completed: March 25, 1997; Revision accepted: October 31, 1997

Objective: Clinical assesment 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.
Key words: CAN score, Fetal malnutrition.