Anthropometric measurements of term neonates from a state hospital in Turkey

To determine regional percentile values and compare them with currently used national and international curves, we determined the birth weight, height and head and chest circumference of 3688 term neonates born in a state hospital in the Anatolian part of Istanbul, Turkey. Mean birth weight, height and head and chest circumference were 3334 (SD 494) g, 48.3 (SD 2.2) cm, 34.4 (SD 1.3) cm and 32.8 (1.9) cm respectively. For both boys and girls, the current Turkish national percentile curves overestimate the birth weight, height and head circumference at the 10th percentile. For boys, the national curves and those from the USA underestimate birth weight of neonates above the 90th percentile.