Why the study?
The study was conducted to assess the relationship between perinatal factors and echocardiographic left ventricular dimensions after delivery in infants who are large for gestational age.
Does large for gestational age status and associated perinatal variables alter echocardiographic left ventricular dimensions in newborns?
Does large for gestational age status and associated perinatal variables alter echocardiographic left ventricular dimensions in newborns?
Perinatal factors, particularly birth weight and large for gestational age status, significantly influence neonatal cardiac morphology, highlighting the need for early echocardiographic assessment in this population.
Should not yet change neonatal echo practice; leaves open whether BW-associated LV remodeling in LGA infants persists or predicts later risk.
BACKGROUND: To assess the relationship between perinatal factors, and echocardiographic left ventricular (LV) dimensions after delivery in infants who are large for gestational age (LGA). METHODS: This prospective cohort study that was conducted between 2014 and 2018, and involved healthy LGA newborns born ≥ 35 weeks' gestation, delivered at New York-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital, and a control group of appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants. Data were analyzed using multivariate linear regression in STATA. RESULTS: A total of 563 neonates were enrolled in this study. They were composed of 414 AGA infants as the control group and 149 LGA infants as the intervention group. Males were predominant in both groups. A larger proportion of neonates were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) in LGA infants (74.6%) as compared to the AGA infants (33.5%) (p < 0.001). Regression analysis identified birth weight (BW) as a key factor, positively correlating with increased LVmass, interventricular septum thickness, and LV posterior wall thickness in both LGA and AGA infants. Additionally, BW showed a positive correlation with left ventricular internal dimensions in diastole and systole. Higher maternal BMI was associated with an increase in fractional shortening in LGA infants, while maternal insulin use during pregnancy was positively associated with interventricular septum thickness. Notably, male infants exhibited significantly higher LV internal dimensions in both diastole and systole, while GA negatively impacted the left ventricular mass index. CONCLUSION: The study's findings underscore the significant influence of perinatal factors on neonatal cardiac morphology in both LGA and AGA infants. Certain perinatal variables were identified as key determinants affecting various aspects of LV structure. These insights highlight the importance of considering these perinatal factors in neonatal cardiac assessments for early detection and intervention.
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Amarah et al. (2025) studied this question.
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