Birth Weight Percentiles and Infant and Child Growth Dynamics

By
María Alejandra Hernandez
Richard M. A. Parker
Tim J. Cole
Izzuddin M. Aris
Henrique Barros
Johan G. Eriksson
Abby F. Fleisch
Barbara Heude
Yung Seng Lee
Zheyuan Li
Emily Oken
Susana Santos
Kok Hian Tan
Chloe Vainqueur
Tanja G. M. Vrijkotte
John Wright
Tiffany C. Yang
Fabian Yap
Siyu Zhou
Kate Tilling
Deborah A. Lawlor
Ahmed Elhakeem
July 8, 2026
0 min

Jama Network Open

Objective:

To quantify associations of birth weight percentiles with infant height and weight growth velocity, longitudinal growth, and childhood overweight or obesity.

Approach:

Cohort Selection: Identified prospective pregnancy and birth cohort studies from the European Union Child Cohort Network and additional cohorts from the US and Singapore, focusing on singletons with growth data.
Data Collection: Collected data on gestational age, birth weight, and growth measurements from health records and questionnaires.
Analysis Methodology: Used sex-stratified P-splines linear mixed effects models to estimate growth trajectories and outcomes.

Key Findings:

SGA and LGA offspring exhibit unique childhood growth patterns compared to AGA infants.
Granular analyses of birth weight percentiles can enhance understanding of obesity-related growth patterns.
Combining cohorts from different geographic regions improves generalizability of findings.

Interpretation:

Limitations:

Reliance on SGA and LGA thresholds may obscure variations across the birth weight spectrum.
The study may not account for all potential confounding factors influencing growth patterns.