Extrauterine growth restriction was associated with short stature and thinness in very low birthweight infants at around six years of age.

AIM: The effect that intrauterine or extrauterine growth restriction (EUGR) had on the build of very low birthweight (VLBW) infants was investigated before Japanese children started school.

METHOD: Between 2005 and 2017, the National Hospital Organization, Saga, Japan, carried out preschool checks on 322 children born with a VLBW at approximately six years of age. Growth restriction was defined as being born small for gestational age (SGA) or EUGR if they were born at term. The prevalence of short stature, thinness and obesity was determined, and associations between SGA or EUGR and subsequent body build were investigated.

RESULTS: In this study, 77 of 322 (23.9%) infants were SGA and 153 of 322 (47.5%) were EUGR: 14 of 77 (18.2%) SGA infants caught up in growth to the 169 non-EUGR infants, while 90 of 245 (36.7%) appropriate for gestational age infants subsequently demonstrated EUGR. There were 38 (11.8%) short stature, 38 (11.8%) thin and six (1.9%) obese subjects in the total cohort and growth hormone deficiencies in nine (2.8%) cases. We found significant associations between EUGR and both short stature and thinness.

CONCLUSION: Extrauterine growth restriction was significantly associated with short stature and thinness in VLBW infants at around six years, irrespective of the degree of SGA.