title: Anthropometric indicators of nutritional status and growth in very low birth-weight premature infants hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Anthropometric indicators are difficult to interpret in very low birth weight (VLBW) premature infants, including both appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and small for gestational age (SGA) infants. Therefore, the purpose was to describe the anthropometric indicators of growth and nutritional status in VLBW premature infants AGA and SGA, hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
  
  
  METHODS
  The descriptive and prospective study design included 114 preterm infants, adequate for gestational age/small for gestational age hospitalized in the intensive care unit. Head, thigh, mid upper arm circumference, skin-fold measurements and weight/age, length/ age, and weight/length indices were obtained. Correlations were made among the anthropometric indices, and a multivariate regression analysis with weight/age as dependent variable was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Weight/age in AGA premature infants had high number of significant anthropometric correlations. The SGA premature infants had few and weak correlations. The regression analysis showed that anthropometric indices better explain changes in the weight/age index in adequate for gestational age premature infants.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Weight/age in the VLBW/AGA premature infants could reflect growth, nutritional status and energy stored as fat, but in the VLBW/SGA premature infants, thigh circumference and mid arm circumference would be better indicators just of nutritional status.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Civil de Guadalajara Dr. Juan I. Menchaca. Instituto de Nutrición Humana. Universidad de Guadalajara. México.. vasquez.garibay@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Edgar M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Vásquez-Garibay
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nutrición Humana. Universidad de Guadalajara. México..
authors.forename: Yonué E
authors.initials: YE
authors.lastname: Larios Del Toro
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nutrición Humana. Universidad de Guadalajara. México..
authors.forename: Alfredo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Larrosa-Haro
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nutrición Humana. Universidad de Guadalajara. México..
authors.forename: Rogelio
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Troyo-Sanromán
mesh_terms: D001837:Body Weights and Measures; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007236:Infant, Small for Gestational Age / Q000254:growth & development; D019102:Infant, Very Low Birth Weight / Q000254:growth & development*; D007363:Intensive Care Units, Neonatal; D008297:Male; D009752:Nutritional Status; D011446:Prospective Studies