Growth monitoring in children with low and normal birth weight up to two years: A retrospective cohort study

Background: The present study was conducted to compare the growth indices in two-year-old children with a history of low birth weight and normal birth weight children. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted on two-year-old children with low birth weight and normal weight children who were covered by health centers of Kahnooj, in 2015. Cares at birth, 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 24 months of age were studied, and child growth indices (weight, height, and head circumference), along with some demographic variables, were studied. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 20.0. Armonk, NY: IBM Corp. Results: There were significant differences in children s growth for both groups in all periods of care. Despite the same slope, growth pattern in children showed a significant difference. Children who had young mothers, female children, and children with preterm birth were more likely to be born with low birth weight. Conclusion: Trends and growth patterns of weight, height, and head circumference in underweight children have a significant difference with normal children and, despite the same slope, these children cannot compensate for the backwardness of growth to the age of two. So, separate growth curves should be plotted for these children and possible preventive measures should be taken to prevent bearing an underweight baby.