Birth weight and lung function in a cohort of Chinese school children.
OBJECTIVE
Evidence on the association between birth weight and lung function is conflicting. We evaluated the children's lung function in relation to their birth weight in China.


METHODS
A prospective cohort study was conducted in 1,599 school children. Baseline data on birth weight and other potential confounding variables were obtained from self-administered questionnaires. Pulmonary function tests were performed with a standard procedure and repeated 6 months later.


RESULTS
There were no significant differences in the standard deviation score (SDS) of forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) between children with low birth weight (LBW) and those with normal birth weight (NBW). The growth rates in lung function between children with LBW and NBW were also insignificant.


CONCLUSIONS
No association between birth weight and lung function was found among Chinese school children.
Qi-Qiang
He
H
School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, P.R. China.
Tze-Wai
Wong
W
Lin
Du
D
Zhuo-Qin
Jiang
J
Yang
Gao
G
Guo-Zhen
Lin
L
Ignatius
Yu Tak-sun
YT
D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology*; D002681:China; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D005541:Forced Expiratory Volume; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight / Q000502:physiology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008168:Lung / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D014797:Vital Capacity