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Down syndrome birth weight in England and Wales: Implications for clinical practice

Joan K Morris1, Tim J Cole2, Anna L Springett1

  • 1Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom.

American Journal of Medical Genetics. Part A
|September 27, 2015
PubMed

Insights

Syndrome-specific birth weight charts are beneficial for babies with Down syndrome after 38 weeks gestation. Before this, standard UK-WHO charts are appropriate for monitoring Down syndrome infant growth.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Genetics
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Birth weight charts are crucial for monitoring infant growth and identifying potential health issues.
  • Existing growth charts may not accurately reflect the growth patterns of infants with specific genetic conditions like Down syndrome.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the utility of syndrome-specific birth weight charts for infants with Down syndrome in England and Wales.
  • To compare the birth weight of Down syndrome neonates with that of unaffected infants.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized birth weight data from 8,825 infants with Down syndrome (1989-2010) from the National Down Syndrome Cytogenetic Register.
  • Applied the LMS method to fit birth weight centiles for 30-42 weeks gestation by sex.
  • Compared Down syndrome growth data with UK-WHO growth charts for unaffected infants.

Main Results:

  • Infants with Down syndrome had a modal gestation of 38 weeks, two weeks earlier than unaffected infants.
  • At 38 weeks gestation, Down syndrome infants were slightly lighter than unaffected infants (boys: 159g, girls: 86g).
  • By 40 weeks gestation, the weight deficit increased significantly for Down syndrome infants (boys: 304g, girls: 239g).

Conclusions:

  • Standard UK-WHO birth weight charts are suitable for monitoring Down syndrome infants up to 38 weeks gestation.
  • Syndrome-specific UK Down syndrome growth charts are recommended for plotting birth weight after 38 weeks gestation due to observed growth differences.

Keywords:
Down syndromebirth weightgestational agegrowth chartstrisomy 21

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