ESPE Abstracts (2022) 95 P1-133

ESPE2022 Poster Category 1 Growth and Syndromes (85 abstracts)

Postnatal growth of infants born < 2.5 kg: small for gestational age (SGA) vs appropriate for gestational age (AGA)

Fawzia Alyafei , Ashraf Soliman , Doaa AlYousef , Mona Shaat , Maya Itani , Hamdy Ali , Nada Alaaraj , Noor Hamed & Shayma Ahmed


Hamad General Hospital, Doha, Qatar


We studied anthropometric measures (z scores) from birth to 2 years in 115 infants who were born with birth weight <2.5 kg but > 1.5 kg. They were divided into two groups based on Fenton's preterm growth standards at birth. Group 1 (AGA) with weight z score (WAZ) > -2 (n = 100), and group 2 (SGA) with WAZ < -2 (n = 15). Postnatal growth data were evaluated based on the WHO growth standard without correction for prematurity.

Results: The gestational age (GA) was 32.2 +/- 2.5 weeks for the AGA group and 36.5 +/- 2.5 weeks for the SGA group. AGA infants had a progressive gain in WAZ during the first 18 months (from -3.15 to -0.0). This was followed by stable WAZ thereafter. SGA infants had a progressive gain in WAZ (from -2.8 to -0.75) during the first 3 years of life and were still catching up during the 3rd year. At the end of the second and 3rd years, SGA infants had lower WAZ compared to AGA infants. AGA infants had a progressive gain in LAZ during the first 24 months (from -3.5 to -0.17). This was followed by stable LAZ thereafter. SGA had a progressive gain in LAZ during the first 3 years of life (from -2.7 to -0.45) and was still catching up during the 3rd year of life. At the end of the second year, they were significantly shorter than AGA infants. In the 2nd year, the SGA group had a significantly smaller head size (HCZ) compared to the AGA group.

WAZ   2 mon 4 mon 6 mon 12 mon 18 mon 24 mon 3 years
AGA Mean -3.15 -1.84 -1.27 -0.43 0.00 -0.24 -0.20
n = 100 SD 1.11 1.13 1.24 1.21 9.01 1.29 1.35
SGA Mean -2.82 -2.35 -2.00 -1.87 -1.59 -1.06 -0.74
n = 15 SD 1.54 1.79 2.14 2.16 3.01 0.94 0.89
LAZ   2mon 4 mon 6 mon 12 mon 18 mon 24mon 3 years
AGA Mean -3.50 -2.43 -1.78 -1.06 -0.65 -0.17 -0.26
n = 100 SD 1.35 1.21 1.23 1.24 11.27 2.03 1.21
SGA Mean -2.71 -2.49 -2.01 -1.53 -1.20 -0.78 -0.45
n = 15 SD 1.05 1.51 2.11 2.11 2.50 0.53 0.40

In conclusion: Infants born <2.5 kg classified as AGA and SGA showed different patterns of postnatal growth in WAZ, LAZ, and HCZ. At the end of the 3rd year, SGA infants were lighter but not shorter compared to the AGA group.

Volume 95

60th Annual ESPE (ESPE 2022)

Rome, Italy
15 Sep 2022 - 17 Sep 2022

European Society for Paediatric Endocrinology 

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