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Neonatal malnutrition, body composition, and childhood obesity in critically ill infants

Allison D Ta1,2, Ting Ting Fu1,2, Gillian R Goddard1

  • 1Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA.

Maternal Health, Neonatology and Perinatology
|November 5, 2025
PubMed

Insights

Neonatal malnutrition diagnosis is linked to reduced fat-free mass in critically ill infants. This finding highlights the importance of monitoring body composition in hospitalized newborns.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatalogy
  • Pediatric Nutrition
  • Body Composition Analysis

Background:

  • Established malnutrition indicators exist for healthy infants.
  • The applicability of these indicators to hospitalized neonates remains unclear.
  • Assessing nutritional status in critically ill neonates is crucial.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between malnutrition diagnosis in hospitalized neonates and their body composition.
  • To determine if neonatal malnutrition indicators predict later body mass index (BMI) in toddlers.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 84 term infants in a neonatal intensive care unit.
  • Extracted body composition metrics (fat percent, fat mass, fat-free mass z-scores) and anthropometric data.
  • Utilized linear regression to assess associations between malnutrition status, body composition, and toddler BMI.

Main Results:

  • Neonatal malnutrition diagnosis showed a significant negative association with fat-free mass z-score (-0.83).
  • No significant association was found between neonatal malnutrition and body fat percent or fat mass.
  • Infant body composition metrics did not significantly predict toddler BMI z-score.

Conclusions:

  • Neonatal malnutrition diagnosis is associated with decreased fat-free mass in critically ill infants.
  • Body composition, specifically fat-free mass, is a relevant indicator in hospitalized neonates.
  • Further research is needed to understand long-term implications.
Abstract

Keywords:
AnthropometryBody compositionBody mass indexInfantMalnutrition

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