Maternal Serum and Cord Blood Leptin Correlations with Neonatal Anthropometry in Mothers with Obesity

This study examined correlations of maternal serum and umbilical cord blood leptin with neonatal anthropometry in mothers with obesity. A cross-sectional study enrolled 30 women with pre-pregnancy body mass index >27 kg/m² and term singleton pregnancies at two hospitals in Padang, Indonesia, from June to September 2025. Leptin was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The original analysis used Pearson correlations for birth weight, birth length, and ponderal index, and Spearman correlations for head circumference. Approximate 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and Holm adjustment across eight correlations were added from reported summaries. Mean maternal leptin was 70.80 ± 39.01 ng/mL and mean cord leptin was 19.71 ± 14.89 ng/mL. Maternal leptin had an inverse correlation with head circumference (Spearman ρ = −0.364; approximate 95% CI −0.647 to 0.008; reported unadjusted p = 0.048; Holm-adjusted p = 0.384). The remaining correlations had reported unadjusted p values ≥0.169, and no association met the 0.05 threshold after adjustment. These exploratory, unadjusted estimates are imprecise and do not establish an independent association between leptin and neonatal size. The sample cannot reliably exclude smaller associations. Participant-level verification and larger studies with confounder adjustment are required.