Decreased developmental stability as assessed by fluctuating asymmetry of morphometric traits in preterm infants.
Fluctuating asymmetry (FA) of 8 morphometric traits was studied in 113 preterm infants (26-36 wk of gestation), 103 term infants (37-41 wk), and their respective parents. With 3 different measures of FA, the highest values were obtained from extremely preterm infants (26-29 wk), and the lowest from the group of term infants. The estimates of FA values among parents, particularly mothers, showed a similar, albeit less pronounced, trend. Multiple regression analysis of individual mean FA values, calculated in infants for the 8 studied bilateral traits, documented a significant inverse correlation with gestational age and with the health status of the infants and their mothers, as well as a positive correlation with the mothers' mean FA values.
Livshits
G
G
Department of Anatomy, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Beilinson Medical Center, Petah Tikva, Israel.
Davidi
L
L
Kobyliansky
E
E
Ben-Amitai
D
D
Levi
Y
Y
Merlob
P
P
D000886:Anthropometry; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007226:Infant Mortality; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012641:Selection, Genetic