Height evaluation and short stature diagnosis of prenatal origin in male newborns from a town of State of São Paulo, Brazil

Abstract

The growth of a child depends on intrinsic and extrinsic factors and can be divided into two distinct phases: prenatal and postnatal. During prenatal growth, factors related to maternal health and placenta are the extrinsic factors. Genetic load and the fetal endocrine system integrity are intrinsic factors. The reliability of the measurement of newborn length is essential to the diagnosis short stature of prenatal origin, which can affect children and adult development, and to assist in the correct diagnosis and monitoring of these infants. The proper evaluation of a child with short stature is capable to identify the subset of children with pathological causes, the severity of short stature and the likely trajectory of the child's growth, which can affect decisions on intervention, if necessary. The objective of this study is to evaluate the length of healthy newborns from Santa Casa de Misericordia de São Carlos's maternity, São Paulo, and its adequacy. It is a descriptive, transversal research, that will be developed in the Santa Casa de Misericordia of Sao Carlos Maternity`s Hospital, under a convenience sample, recruited from September 2016 to march 2017. Methodological procedures: application of a standardized questionnaire to collect prenatal and family data, assessment of gestational age (by LMP and early ultrasound) and measurement of the weight and length of newborns using an age appropriate digital scale and horizontal stadiometer, respectively. Data will be presented as mean ± standard mean error (EPM). Differences between groups will be evaluated by t test and the Sperman test will be utilized for correlation analyses. The level of significance will be set at 5%. (AU)