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Review
. 2022 Sep 15:9:978271.
doi: 10.3389/fnut.2022.978271. eCollection 2022.

Preterm birth and metabolic implications on later life: A narrative review focused on body composition

Amanda Casirati  1 , Alberto Somaschini  2 , Michela Perrone  3 , Giulia Vandoni  4 , Federica Sebastiani  5 , Elisabetta Montagna  1 , Marco Somaschini  6 , Riccardo Caccialanza  1
Affiliations
Review

Preterm birth and metabolic implications on later life: A narrative review focused on body composition

Amanda Casirati et al. Front Nutr. .

Abstract

Preterm newborn infants are characterized by low body weight and lower fat mass at birth compared with full-term newborn neonates. Conversely, at term corrected age, body fat mass is more represented in preterm newborn infants, causing a predisposition to developing metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular diseases in later life with a different risk profile in men as compared with women. Postnatal growth is a complex change in anthropometric parameters and body composition. Both quantity and quality of growth are regulated by several factors such as fetal programming, early nutrition, and gut microbiota. Weight gain alone is not an optimal indicator of nutritional status as it does not accurately describe weight quality. The analysis of body composition represents a potentially useful tool to predict later metabolic and cardiovascular risk as it detects the quality of growth by differentiating between fat and lean mass. Longitudinal follow-up of preterm newborn infants could take advantage of body composition analysis in order to identify high-risk patients who apply early preventive strategies. This narrative review aimed to examine the state-of-the-art body composition among born preterm children, with a focus on those in the pre-school age group.

Keywords: body composition; early nutrition; fetal programming; microbiota; preschool; preterm.

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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
Potential mechanisms explaining the relationship between LBW and metabolic consequences in adult life. IUGR, intrauterine growth restriction; LBW, low birth weight; BC, body composition; Δ, altered; HPA, hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
(A) The five levels describe body composition and the different techniques used according to levels. ADP, air displacement plethysmography; DXA, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; US, ultrasound imaging. (B) The multi-compartment models and the different techniques used according to models. 2-C, two-compartment model; 3-C, three-compartment model; 4-C, four-compartment model; ADP, air displacement plethysmography; DXA, dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; US, ultrasound imaging.
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Birth weight and body fat% assessed by ADP. Comparison between preterm neonates at birth, preterm at TEA, and full-term at birth. Each column refers to a bibliography reference [number]. The mean birth weights of each study are reported upper their respective column. Mean body fat% in each study is represented as a blue circle on the respective column. ADP, air displacement plethysmography; TEA, term equivalent age.
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