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[Growth patterns of premature infants up to 40th term week of corrected age]
Youngmee Ahn1, Min Sohn, Sangmi Lee
1Department of Nursing, Inha University, Incheon, Korea. aym@inha.ac.kr
Insights
Premature infants measured at birth (GA group) showed larger growth than those measured at corrected age (CA group). Smaller infants, even with accelerated growth, remained smaller, suggesting continued intra-uterine effects up to 40 weeks corrected age.
Area of Science:
- Neonatalogy
- Pediatric Growth Studies
- Infant Development
Context:
- Premature infants require careful monitoring of growth post-birth.
- Understanding growth trajectories is crucial for assessing infant health and development.
- Corrected age (CA) is a key metric for evaluating growth in preterm infants.
Purpose:
- To describe the growth patterns (weight, length, head circumference) of premature infants from birth to 40 weeks corrected age (CA).
- To identify factors influencing these growth patterns in premature infants.
- To compare growth between infants measured at birth (gestational age - GA) and at corrected age (CA).
Summary:
- A longitudinal study of 267 premature infants compared growth measurements based on gestational age (GA) at birth versus corrected age (CA).
- The GA group exhibited larger measurements than the CA group at equivalent weeks.
- Infants born earlier (Group 1 CA) showed the highest growth rates, while those born later (Group 3 CA) had initially higher measurements that normalized later, indicating persistent intrauterine influences.
Impact:
- Findings suggest the intrauterine environment significantly impacts premature infant growth, potentially overriding NICU care quality.
- The study highlights that initial growth acceleration does not always lead to catching up, with smaller infants remaining smaller.
- Results imply a continued 'thrifty phenotype' originating in utero, persisting up to 40 weeks corrected age in some premature infants.
Purpose:
Study purpose were to describe growth patterns of premature infants in weight, length and head circumference from birth to 40th week of corrected ages (CA) and to explore factors affecting patterns.
Methods:
A longitudinal descriptive study was conducted with 267 premature infants. They were categorized into 2 groups; GA group with measurements at birth and the CA group with measurements at CA, which was categorized into 3 groups (group 1-3) by WHO guideline for gestational age (GA) at birth.
Results:
GA group presented greater measures in all than CA group at same week of life. Among CA groups, group 3 showed the highest measurements, up to 37 weeks of life, though this disappeared at 38-40 weeks. Reversely, group 1 revealed the highest growth rates in all measures, followed by group 2 and group 3. Significant interaction was observed in all measures between week of life and any type of groups.
Conclusion:
Higher measures in GA group, as well group 3 among CA groups, supported the superiority of intra-uterine environment overriding quality of regimen from NICU. Regardless of growth acceleration, smaller infants remain smaller, indicating that intra-uterine thrifty phenotype may continue at least up to the 40th week of CA.
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