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Effect of prenatal glucocorticoid treatment on size at birth among infants born at term gestation

2009; Springer Nature; Volume: 29; Issue: 11 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1038/jp.2009.85

1476-5543

Elysia Poggi Davis, Feizal Waffarn, Cherry Uy, Calvin J. Hobel, Laura M. Glynn, Curt A. Sandman,

Pregnancy and preeclampsia studies

To determine whether prenatal treatment with a single course of glucocorticoids (GCs) affects size at birth among full-term infants independent of fetal size before GC administration or exposure to preterm labor (PTL). In all, 105 full-term infants were recruited into three study groups (30 GC treated; 60 controls matched for gestational age (GA) at birth and sex; and 15 PTL controls without GC exposure). Size of the infants was estimated before treatment using two-dimensional (2D) ultrasound and by direct measurement at birth. Length, weight and head circumference at birth were smaller among GC-treated infants compared with matched controls (P's 0.2). Exposure to PTL did not account for this effect. Prenatal treatment with a single course of GCs was associated with a reduction in size at birth among infants born at term gestation. This effect cannot be explained by differences in fetal size before treatment or exposure to PTL.