Premature birth was not associated with increased body fatness in four-year-old boys and girls
(2020) In Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics 109(2). p.327-331- Abstract
Aim: Premature birth is a worldwide problem and increases the risk of chronic disease later in life. Prematurely born infants may have a high percentage of body fat at term-equivalent age, but it is unclear if this characteristic is maintained in childhood. Therefore, we compared the size and body composition of four-year-old prematurely born children to such values of full-term controls. Methods: Between 2013 and 2015, we assessed weight, height, fat mass and fat-free mass, using air displacement plethysmography in 188 reasonably healthy prematurely born four-year-olds (98 boys). Results: At four years of age, prematurely born children (gestational weeks at birth: 23.3-36.9) tended to be lighter and shorter and to contain less fat mass... (More)
Aim: Premature birth is a worldwide problem and increases the risk of chronic disease later in life. Prematurely born infants may have a high percentage of body fat at term-equivalent age, but it is unclear if this characteristic is maintained in childhood. Therefore, we compared the size and body composition of four-year-old prematurely born children to such values of full-term controls. Methods: Between 2013 and 2015, we assessed weight, height, fat mass and fat-free mass, using air displacement plethysmography in 188 reasonably healthy prematurely born four-year-olds (98 boys). Results: At four years of age, prematurely born children (gestational weeks at birth: 23.3-36.9) tended to be lighter and shorter and to contain less fat mass and fat-free mass than did full-term controls. The gestational age at birth of the prematurely born children correlated positively and significantly (P <.05) with height, weight, body mass index, fat mass (kg, %), fat mass index and fat-free mass (kg) in girls but not in boys. Conclusion: Prematurity was not associated with increased body fatness in our four-year-olds. Our findings are relevant in relation to previously published results showing that premature birth is associated with chronic disease later in life.
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- author
- Forsum, Elisabet Katarina ; Flinke, Eva and Olhager, Elisabeth LU
- author collaboration
- organization
- publishing date
- 2020-02
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- air displacement plethysmography, body composition, four-year-old children, premature birth
- in
- Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics
- volume
- 109
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 5 pages
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:31461786
- scopus:85073775696
- ISSN
- 0803-5253
- DOI
- 10.1111/apa.14990
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- 631b55b4-a0a7-4895-83a8-5baa917c1d4e
- date added to LUP
- 2019-11-01 10:54:28
- date last changed
- 2024-04-16 21:50:07
@article{631b55b4-a0a7-4895-83a8-5baa917c1d4e,
abstract = {{<p>Aim: Premature birth is a worldwide problem and increases the risk of chronic disease later in life. Prematurely born infants may have a high percentage of body fat at term-equivalent age, but it is unclear if this characteristic is maintained in childhood. Therefore, we compared the size and body composition of four-year-old prematurely born children to such values of full-term controls. Methods: Between 2013 and 2015, we assessed weight, height, fat mass and fat-free mass, using air displacement plethysmography in 188 reasonably healthy prematurely born four-year-olds (98 boys). Results: At four years of age, prematurely born children (gestational weeks at birth: 23.3-36.9) tended to be lighter and shorter and to contain less fat mass and fat-free mass than did full-term controls. The gestational age at birth of the prematurely born children correlated positively and significantly (P <.05) with height, weight, body mass index, fat mass (kg, %), fat mass index and fat-free mass (kg) in girls but not in boys. Conclusion: Prematurity was not associated with increased body fatness in our four-year-olds. Our findings are relevant in relation to previously published results showing that premature birth is associated with chronic disease later in life.</p>}},
author = {{Forsum, Elisabet Katarina and Flinke, Eva and Olhager, Elisabeth}},
issn = {{0803-5253}},
keywords = {{air displacement plethysmography; body composition; four-year-old children; premature birth}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{327--331}},
publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
series = {{Acta Paediatrica, International Journal of Paediatrics}},
title = {{Premature birth was not associated with increased body fatness in four-year-old boys and girls}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/apa.14990}},
doi = {{10.1111/apa.14990}},
volume = {{109}},
year = {{2020}},
}