Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Nov 12:9:660111.
doi: 10.3389/fped.2021.660111. eCollection 2021.

Neonatal Problems and Infancy Growth of Term SGA Infants: Does "SGA" Definition Need to Be Re-evaluated?

Saygin Abali  1 , Serdar Beken  2 , Eda Albayrak  2 , Aysegul Inamlik  3 , Burcu Bulum  3 , Ezgi Bulbul  4 , Gulten Zeynep Eksi  4 , Zeynep Alize Ay  4 , Melis Karabay  4 , Didem Kaya  4 , Muge Halici  4 , Serap Semiz  1 , Ayse Korkmaz  2
Affiliations

Neonatal Problems and Infancy Growth of Term SGA Infants: Does "SGA" Definition Need to Be Re-evaluated?

Saygin Abali et al. Front Pediatr. .

Abstract

Introduction: The exact definition of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) infant is still controversial among clinicians. In this study, we aimed to understand which definition is better in terms of establishing both early postnatal problems and growth. In this way, we compared early neonatal problems and infancy growth of term infants with birth weight (BW) < -2 SDS and with BW between 10th percentile (-1.28 SDS) and -2 SDS. Methods: A single center retrospective cohort study was conducted. Preterm infants, multiple gestations and newborns with any congenital anomalies were excluded from the study. Study group was defined as Group 1 (n = 37), infants BW < -2.00 SDS; Group 2 (n = 129), between -1.28 and -2.00 SDS; and Group 3 (n = 137), randomly selected newborns with optimal-for-gestational-age (BW between -0.67 and +0.67 SDS) as a control group. Results: The incidence of severe hypoglycemia was highest in Group 1 (%10.8) and Group 2 and 3 had similar rates of severe hypoglycemia (0.8 and 0.7%, respectively). The incidence of polycythemia was 5.4% in Group 1 and was significantly higher than Group 3 (0.0%) while it was 2.3% in Group 2. Short stature (length < -2 SDS) ratio at the age of 1 and 2 years were similar in each group. Overweight/obesity ratio at the age of 1 were 9.5, 20.8 and 16.7% in each group, respectively (p = 0.509). Conclusion: This study was planned as a pilot study to determine potential differences in the problems of hypoglycemia, polycythemia, and growth according to the differences in definition. Short term disturbances such as hypoglycemia and polycythemia are found to be higher in infants with a BW SDS below -2. From this point of view, of course, it will not be possible to change the routine applications immediately, however this study will be an initiative for discussions by making long-term studies.

Keywords: hypoglycemia; obesity; overweight; short stature; small for gestational age.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Sample selection and study design.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Comparison of serum glucose levels of the groups.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Comparison of weight and length SDs of the groups.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. McIntire DD, Bloom SL, Casey BM, Leveno KJ. Birth weight in relation to morbidity and mortality among newborn infants. N Engl J Med. (1999) 340:1234–8. 10.1056/NEJM199904223401603 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Hwang IT. Long-term care, from neonatal period to adulthood, of children born small for gestational age. Clin Pediatr Endocrinol. (2019) 28:97–103. 10.1297/cpe.28.97 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. WHO Expert Committee on Physical Status: the Use and Interpretation of Anthropometry (?1993: Geneva Switzerland)? & World Health Organization ? . Physical Status: The Use of and Interpretation of Anthropometry, Report of a WHO Expert Committee? (1995). Available online at: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/37003 (accessed December 15, 2020).
    1. Clayton PE, Cianfarani S, Czernichow P, Johannsson G, Rapaport R, Rogol A. Management of the child born small for gestational age through to adulthood: a consensus statement of the International Societies of Pediatric Endocrinology and the Growth Hormone Research Society. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. (2007) 92:804–10. 10.1210/jc.2006-2017 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Zeve D, Regelmann MO, Holzman IR, Rapaport R. Small at birth, but how small? The definition of SGA revisited. Horm Res Paediatr. (2016) 86:357–60. 10.1159/000449275 - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources