Abstract Introduction: Birth weight is crucial in neonatal care, enabling healthcare providers to monitor infant growth patterns. Factors such as maternal nutrition, parity, age, socio-economic status and maternal health can impact foetal growth. This study examines newborn birth weight trends over 5 years in a tertiary care hospital, providing insights into newborn health and well-being. Methods: This is an observational study examining neonatal birth weight trends from 2018 to 2022 in 1970 infants born to mothers aged 19–45 years in a tertiary care hospital. The annual mean birth weight and centile (using standard intrauterine growth charts: Fenton charts) were calculated. The influence of factors such as maternal age was also analysed. Results: The mean neonatal weight was greater for males than females, and yearly gender-based trends showed no specific pattern. Correlation studies revealed no association ( P = 0.91) between mothers’ age and infants’ weight >2.5 kg and a negative association between maternal age and the likelihood of giving birth to a low birth weight newborn ( P = 0.08), though this finding was not statistically significant. The highest incidence of children born with low birth weight was in the year 2022, followed by 2020. There was a significant negative association between maternal age and being born small for gestational age ( P = 0.02). Conclusion: Birth weight measurements in a newborn are crucial for monitoring infant health, development and identifying potential risks such as preterm birth and intrauterine growth restriction. This research provided insights on average birth weight of newborns, trends in low birth weight, small and large for gestational age status and maternal age’s influence on birth weight.
Singh et al. (2025) studied this question.