Related Experiment Videos
A perinatal growth chart for international reference
Insights
This study introduces a simple S-shaped curve model for infant weight gain, focusing on the linear growth phase between 28 weeks gestation and 18 weeks postnatal. This model aids in creating a versatile reference chart for tracking healthy infant growth internationally.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Human Growth and Development
- Biostatistics
Background:
- Infant weight and age follow an S-shaped curve, with a linear phase from 28 weeks gestation to 18 weeks postnatal.
- Fetal growth curve flattening after 40 weeks gestation is often due to growth constraints and typically excluded from standard growth references.
- Assumptions of normal weight distribution and similar growth velocity in fetuses and infants during this period are key.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a simple, memorable, and constructible reference chart for tracking infant growth.
- To establish a standardized method for assessing normal infant weight gain across diverse populations.
- To account for biological variables like sex and maternal height in growth assessments.
Main Methods:
- Utilized the linear portion of the weight-age curve (28 weeks gestation to 18 weeks postnatal) to define a reference line.
- Developed a versatile reference chart based on assumptions of normal weight distribution and consistent growth velocity.
- Incorporated allowances for biological variables such as infant sex and maternal height.
Main Results:
- A versatile reference chart for international use was created, simplifying the assessment of infant growth.
- The chart allows for categorization of infants, longitudinal growth studies, and population comparisons.
- The model emphasizes that differences in weight at 28 weeks gestation are the primary differentiator for normally growing fetuses and infants.
Conclusions:
- The developed reference chart provides an easy-to-use tool for monitoring infant growth.
- This method facilitates standardized comparisons of infant growth across different populations and settings.
- The chart's adaptability allows for consideration of key biological variables, enhancing its clinical utility.
Abstract:
The relation between weight and age in the two years following conception describes a gentle S-shaped curve. Between 28 weeks' gestation and 18 weeks' postnatal age the relationship appears linear, indicating a uniform incremental weight gain. The linear part of this curve has been used to help select an arbitrary reference line to reflect the normal average growth of a healthy population during this period. The flattening in the fetal growth curve usually observed after 40 weeks' gestation is considered to be due to the constraint of fetal growth and is therefore ignored. Arguments are advanced for believing that there is a normal distribution of weight around the central tendency at this time, and that, for practical purposes, normally growing fetuses and infants have an almost identical potential growth velocity during this period and differ for the most part only in the weight they have achieved at 28 weeks' gestation. Using these assumptions a versatile reference chart for international use has been created that is easy to remember and to construct. Allowance may be made for biologic variables such as sex and maternal height. It may be used to categorize groups of infants, to study longitudinal growth following delivery, as well as to compare different populations.