Dear Robert I do not have experience of using the SECA 250 but WFP/UNHCR were recently supplied with SECA 217 height boards for measuring adults and children in a refugee settlement. (They were MoH property but had not been used). Whilst they were great for carrying around - they came in back-packs and were easy to assemble - we had issues with accuracy mostly related to their stability. The board cannot be placed against a vertical surface for support as the shape of the stand does not allow this. This height column does move slightly depending on the pressure put on it but this has the effect of adding or removing around 1 cm (soemtimes more) on the height. In addition the headpiece is quite small and in the case of a female adult with large hips for example the headpiece does not sit well on her head again problematic for accuracy. Does any else have experience with this measuring board? Other than being very strict on enumerator training and supervision we had no solution to ensure accuracy. Thanks

Im dr allen municipal health officer of trento, agusan del sur philippines. I want to share with you my innovation for height ang lenght measurement it s called "allenstick" its a portable ,durable, accurate lightwt safe and easy to use. It was presented at the canadian global health conference recently.

Im dr allen municipal health officer of trento, agusan del sur philippines. I want to share with you my innovation for height ang lenght measurement it s called "allenstick" its a portable ,durable, accurate lightwt safe and easy to use. It was presented at the canadian global health conference recently.

As of now I have no link for allenstick. It was developed thru experience as implementor of WHO cgs prog as an alternative to bulky, heavy and unsafe wooden board. It is lighter coz its made up of alluminum. Much more durable compare to wood. Portable. Safe ( no risk of accidental fall of the heavy headboard) and it easy to use. Weighing 2kg

Here are a couple of links: [url=https://www.facebook.com/AllenstickPH]Facebook page[/url] [url=http://allenstick.wordpress.com/2011/07/20/hello-world]A blog[/url] I have used aluminium height sticks and height boards several times and find that they can get very hot. Sometimes too hot to use without the use of blanket material to protect the child. I have also found issues with cursors jamming because of differential expansion of metal parts and so would disagree about reliability. My experience is that the wooden tool is more durable, less prone to mechanical failure, and not prone to heating. I agree that the conventional wooden board is somewhat cumbersome but I would not typify them as being "unsafe". I cannot recommend the use of metal height boards / sticks for use in surveys in warm climate countries. These sorts of boards might have in-clinic applications but height measurement and W/H are not parts of IMCI. Want something quick, cheap, light, and useful? Get a MUAC strap!

Yes metal expand when heated. These are measuring instrument that need xtra care in of terms of handling and doing the procedure. Failure to these gives you Erroneous results rle of thumb...allenstick is an alternative tool for rough field and for mobile purposes in the Philippines. Several accidents have been noted with wooden htboard that the headpiece Accidentally release causing head injury to the child May be our woodenht board are not the same. Muac is great tool I aggre with that. Monitoring the ht is a good indicator such as stunting for chronic malnutrition

Dear all, Several NGO's (eg MSF) use an aluminium measuring board for research purposes (ICAM board: infant, child, adult measuring board). It is a very precise instrument (precision 1 mm), also used by universities. We never had an issue about heat, although it was used in temperatures of over 40 degrees Celsius. It is portable , for measuring length, height in children and adults. The ICAM board is very robust, we have used these boards in DRC and later transported them to North Nigeria, and still they are very well functioning after about 20 000 measurements in dust, hot and damp conditions. for more info and pictures: infopromes@planet.nl

I can imagine that dropping the headpiece could fetch the child a nasty clonk on the head. I've measured lots (i.e. many thousands) of children and never done this or heard of this being a problem. The height board shown on the link above looks pretty standard to me. I have some questions ... We usually measure children 65-110 cm in (e.g.) SMART surveys. How do you do this with a 100 cm device? We usually measure younger children supine. How do you do this with your device? And an observation ... The problem with H/A is that IMCI does not cover height measurement and height boards are not commonly part of essential clinic equipment packs. This restricts the use of any indicator that uses height. Better IMO, to monitor weight over time as in a growth monitoring program and use MUAC to identify wasting.

My device is 150 cm far beyond the recommended standard of WHO. I will not argue with you and I think we have different instrument. Safety is our concern and we need to address that.

Ah ... I see now ... there is a retractable extension to take it to 150 cm. Any problems with supine measurements?

Hi all, NGO’s (eg MSF) and several universities have used an aluminium measuring board (ICAM: Infant, child, adult measuring board made by the company Promes) for research purposes. The board is very precise (1 mm), robust, hygienic, portable and can be used for children and adults. It can be used for measuring length and height and the device is extendable to 2.10 meter, while the precision is still intact. We have used it in hot (> 40 degrees Celsius), damp and sandy conditions without any problems (or complaints about boards being too hot) and the boards are still in good condition. Email for pictures in information to infopromes@planet.nl

no problem with supine. no sense of compression unlike the wooden ht board wherein the infant head is placed against the fixed foot plate.