title: Infants' growth charts for southern Iran.
abstract: Currently there are no growth charts based on local norms available for infants in Iran, and their growth is assessed by the National Centre for Health Statistics (NCHS) reference data, which is misleading. Growth charts for a cohort of 317 infants (164 girls and 153 boys) born in Shiraz (Southern Iran) in 1996 and followed for 2 years from birth are presented. All the centiles of length and weight charts are slightly above those of the NCHS charts under the age of 6 months and fall substantially below those over the age of 6 months. However, the spread is similar, so there is no suggestion that the difference is due to the prevalence of gross malnutrition. The difference shows that the use of locally based growth charts are essential for assessing the growth of children in Iran. The representativeness of our data leads us to conclude that the charts presented here are likely to be applied to the urban infant population of Iran.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Islamic Republic of Iran.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Ayatollahi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ahmadi
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000886:Anthropometry; D001827:Body Height / Q000502:physiology; D001835:Body Weight / Q000502:physiology; D015362:Child Nutrition Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D002669:Child Welfare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003906:Developing Countries; D005260:Female; D006128:Growth / Q000502:physiology*; D006130:Growth Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D015233:Models, Statistical; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012016:Reference Values; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014798:Vital Statistics