Association of growth status and the incidence of nutrition deficiency signs.

The validity of using the index weight--height in the assessment of nutritional status was evaluated. The suitability of the index and its relation to growth status and nutritional deficiency signs were assessed through the: 1) comparison of incidence rates of nutrition deficiency signs and growth rates by scales of overall weight--height values less than or above 0.15; 2) comparison of growth rates and incidence of nutrition deficiency signs by classification of children depending on the frequency with which they maintained the index above or below 0.15; and 3) intercorrelations between growth rates, incidence rates of PCM, and absolute values of weight--height index.