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Measuring Cardiac Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) Activity in Children
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Resting heart rate does not predict growth in preterm infants

Valerie Ruth1, Christine Kennedy, Roberta Rehm

  • 1Dominican University of California, United States; Neonatal and Developmental Medicine, Stanford University Medical Center, USA. imnotahippo@yahoo.com <imnotahippo@yahoo.com>

Early Human Development
|January 22, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Resting heart rate (HR) in preterm infants does not predict weight gain. This study found no significant relationship between HR and growth after accounting for birth weight and gestational age.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatalogy
  • Pediatric Growth and Development
  • Clinical Research

Background:

  • Previous studies suggested a correlation between higher baseline heart rate (HR) and greater weight gain in preterm infants.
  • The potential of resting HR as a marker for extrauterine growth restriction (EUGR) risk was explored.
  • This study included preterm infants born between 27 and 36 weeks gestation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To verify the correlation between resting heart rate (HR) and weight gain in preterm infants.
  • To assess the utility of resting HR as a predictive marker for extrauterine growth restriction (EUGR).

Main Methods:

  • A retrospective chart review was conducted.
  • Heart rate (HR) and growth data were collected for 156 infants.
  • Infants were between 27.0 and 34.0 weeks gestation, from birth to hospital discharge.

Main Results:

  • A significant increase in weight gain was observed from day 10 in infants with higher resting HR compared to those with lower resting HR.
  • However, after controlling for birth weight and gestational age, no significant relationship between HR and weight gain was found across all gestational age groups.
  • The initial correlation did not hold when key confounding factors were considered.

Conclusions:

  • Contrary to prior reports, resting heart rate (HR) is not a significant predictor of growth in preterm infants when birth weight and gestational age are controlled.
  • The search for reliable clinical markers to identify preterm infants at risk for poor growth is crucial.
  • Identifying such markers can facilitate timely nutritional interventions to improve growth and developmental outcomes.
Abstract

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