Head circumference at birth and postnatal growth trajectory in vulnerable groups from Argentina

GARELLO, TOMÁS; BARBEITO-ANDRES, JIMENA; PÉREZ, ADRIANA; CUETO, GERARDO; NUÑEZ, PABLO; BONFILI, NOELIA; GONZLEZ, PAULA N

American Journal of Biological Anthropology

John Wiley and Sons Inc

Año: 2024

Objectives: To investigate the association between the anthropometric status atbirth and brain and bone growth during the first year of life. According to the brainsparinghypothesis, we expect catch-up to be faster in head circumference (HC) thanin body length.Methods: This is a longitudinal design that included Argentinian infants under12 months of age with at least three anthropometric records. We classified studyparticipants into four growth status categories according to z-scores for HC (HCZ)and length (LAZ) at birth, with z-score = 2 as a threshold. We used the Countmodel to describe growth trajectories in HC and length in the first year of life accordingto the growth status at birth. Recovery indicator for HC and length was taken asthe time until the predicted growth trajectory surpassed the threshold curve predictedby z-score = 2 for age.Results: Growth models included 3399 infants. There were significant differences inthe growth parameters between groups in all cases (p < 0.05). Within the group witha low HCZ and a low LAZ at birth, HC recovery was faster than length. In the case ofa low z-score for only one of the variables, newborns with a low HCZ recovered fasterthan individuals born with a low LAZ.Conclusions: The postnatal growth pattern in HC and length is associated with thegrowth status of HC and length at birth. As we hypothesized, the fastest postnatalrecovery occurs for HC in cases of intrauterine delayed growth.