Growth charts are an essential part of neonatal care. Plotting infant data on growth charts at birth and postnatally over time allows us to assess the quantity and quality of growth compared with a reference we want to call “normal.”1,2 Assessing the degree to which weight, length, head circumference, and BMI are abnormal at birth and monitoring how an infant is growing compared with normal allows clinicians to assess health and risk for future morbidity.1,–9 Growth charts are used to inform nutritional support and medical care. Clinicians often do not rigorously consider how these curves were created, smoothed, and/or validated.2 Every reported “standard/reference” growth curve has been challenged.2,8,10,–13 In this issue of Pediatrics, new weight and head circumference growth charts for infants born between 22 and 29 weeks’ gestational age (GA) from Boghossian...
Do We Need Another Set of Growth Charts for Premature Infants?
POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST: The authors of the commentary are co-authors on an article that is referenced and challenged in the article for which they are offering a comment. Neither author has received any compensation for the charts published in their original article. Access to those charts is as per the copyright with the American Academy of Pediatrics and Pediatrics. Dr Clark is employed by Pediatrix and works within The Center for Research, Education and Quality, which maintains the Pediatrix Clinical Data Warehouse. Dr Olsen has indicated she has no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE: The authors have indicated they have no financial relationships relevant to this article to disclose.
Reese H. Clark, Irene E. Olsen; Do We Need Another Set of Growth Charts for Premature Infants?. Pediatrics December 2016; 138 (6): e20163128. 10.1542/peds.2016-3128
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