ESPE Abstracts

Objective: To do longitudinal assessment of fat mass (FM)% of term, healthy Indian infants by stable isotope dilution method and skinfold thicknesses.

Methods: Term healthy singleton newborns, with birth weight between 1.8 to 4.0 Kg, were followed from birth to 2 years. Anthropometry and skinfold thickness measurement at biceps, triceps, subscapular and supra-iliac sites was done serially at 10 days, 3 months, 1 and 2 years. Anthropometric data was converted to z-scores using WHO Anthro software. Body composition was assessed by deuterium dilution method in a subset of infants at all these time points. FM% was also calculated from the sum of skinfolds using Weststrate and Deurenberg’s equations.

Results: 147 boys and 103 girls were enrolled. Anthropometry and FM% is summarized in Table. The median z-scores of weight, length as well as BMI were negative at all points, but showed gradual improvement. FM% measured by skinfold thickness and deuterium were significantly different from each other, and did not show any correlation. The difference was the greatest at 10 days and minimum at 3 months.

Conclusion: FM% of term Indian infants by deuterium dilution technique is 11.5±7.2% at birth, nearly doubles by 3 months, and then remains relatively stable till 2 years. It is not correlated with skinfold thickness derived FM%.