Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26859363›Full record

Observational studyPediatric research2016

Physiological adjustment to postnatal growth trajectories in healthy preterm infants.

Niels Rochow, Preeya Raja, Kai Liu, Tanis Fenton, Erin Landau-Crangle, Susanne Göttler, Andrea Jahn, Sauyoung Lee, Sandra Seigel, Douglas Campbell and 3 more

Abstract readMulticenter StudyObservational Study
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Observational study in Pediatric research, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 68 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
68citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

68 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Nutrition assessment of hospitalized very preterm infants: Best practices for accurate anthropometry in neonatal intensive care unit settings.Nutrition in clinical practice : official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition · 2025
    Guideline
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  4. Early exclusive enteral feeding in 30-33 weeks gestation infants: a randomized controlled trial.Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association · 2025
    Trial
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  9. Optimizing individual nutrition in preterm very low birth weight infants: double-blinded randomized controlled trial.Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association · 2020
    Trial
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8 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Niels RochowDepartment of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0001-7990-3904
Preeya RajaDepartment of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Kai LiuDepartment of Mathematics and Statistics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Tanis FentonDepartment of Community Health Sciences, Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, O'Brien Institute for Public Health, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Erin Landau-CrangleDepartment of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Susanne GöttlerDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Andrea JahnDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Sauyoung LeeDepartment of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Sandra SeigelDepartment of Pediatrics, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
Douglas CampbellDepartment of Pediatrics, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Matthias HeckmannDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany.
Johannes PöschlDepartment of Pediatrics, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Christoph FuschDepartment of Pediatrics, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundInternational guidelines suggest that growth of preterm infants should match intrauterine rates. However, the trajectory for extrauterine growth may deviate from the birth percentile due to an irreversible, physiological loss of extracellular fluid during postnatal adaptation to extrauterine conditions. To which "new" physiological growth trajectory preterm infants should adjust to after completed postnatal adaptation is unknown. This study analyzes the postnatal growth trajectories of healthy preterm infants using prospective criteria defining minimal support, as a model for physiological adaptation.

methodsInternational, multi-center, longitudinal, observational study at five neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Daily weights until day of life (DoL) 21 of infants with undisturbed postnatal adaptation were analyzed (gestational ages: (i) 25-29 wk, (ii) 30-34 wk).

results981 out of 3,703 admitted infants included. Maximum weight loss was 11% (i) and 7% (ii) by DoL 5, birth weight regained by DoL 15 (i) and 13 (ii). Infants transitioned to growth trajectories parallel to Fenton chart percentiles, 0.8 z-scores below their birth percentiles. The new trajectory after completed postnatal adaptation could be predicted for DoL 21 with R(2) = 0.96.

conclusionThis study provides a robust estimate for physiological growth trajectories of infants after undisturbed postnatal adaptation. In the future, the concept of a target postnatal trajectory during NICU care may be useful.

Indexed as

Gestational AgeBiomarkersBirth WeightBody CompositionBody WeightFemaleHumansInfant, NewbornInfant, PrematureInfant, Very Low Birth WeightIntensive Care, NeonatalIntensive Care Units, NeonatalInternational CooperationLongitudinal StudiesMaleProspective StudiesBiomarkers

Identifiers

PMID26859363

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.