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The Impact of Small-for-Gestational-Age on Pulmonary Function in Infancy, a Retrospective Cohort Study

Avigdor Hevroni1,2, Nadav Juven Wetzler3, Alex Gileles-Hillel1,4

  • 1Pediatric Pulmonary Unit and Cystic Fibrosis Center, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.

Pediatric Pulmonology
|March 30, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infants showed no significant differences in pulmonary function compared to appropriate-for-gestational-age infants. These findings suggest SGA may not impair infant lung function, but further population studies are needed.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Pulmonology
  • Neonatal Health
  • Growth and Development

Background:

  • Low birth weight, specifically small-for-gestational-age (SGA) status, is linked to reduced lung function in adulthood.
  • The impact of SGA on pulmonary function during infancy is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effect of being born small-for-gestational-age (SGA) on infant lung function.
  • To compare pulmonary function tests (PFTs) in infants aged 3 months to 2 years based on their gestational age classification.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective cohort study of infant pulmonary function tests (iPFTs) from 2008-2023.
  • Compared iPFT results of 161 SGA infants with 545 appropriate/large-for-gestational-age (AGA/LGA) infants.
  • Excluded infants with chronic diseases other than prematurity.

Main Results:

  • No significant differences in key PFT measures (FEV0.5, FVC) between SGA and AGA/LGA infants.
  • SGA infants were not more likely to exhibit restrictive or obstructive lung patterns.
  • Findings remained consistent when stratified by prematurity and term birth.

Conclusions:

  • The study challenges the hypothesis that SGA is associated with impaired infant pulmonary function.
  • Observed subtle differences were not statistically or clinically significant.
  • Findings may not apply to asymptomatic infants; population-based studies are recommended to confirm respiratory outcomes of intrauterine growth restriction.
Abstract

Keywords:
lung developmentpediatricsphysiological measurements

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