684 - Standardised Growth Charts: Too Good To Be True? Variation In Anthropometry Of Caucasian Newborns In The Republic Of Ireland And A Comparison With The UK-WHO NICM Growth Standard.

Publication Number: 684.6838

Siobhan Coughlan, Children's Health Ireland, Dublin 9, Dublin, Ireland; Jan Miletin, Jan Miletin, Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Martin White, RCSI, Dublin 8, Dublin, Ireland

Background: Growth monitoring remains a cornerstone of paediatric healthcare. At birth, head circumference, and birth weight are routinely recorded for each newborn and ‘plotted’ on a growth chart which applies to the newborn’s age and gender. Standardised growth charts are designed to demonstrate how babies should ideally grow. In the Republic of Ireland, standardised charts, compiled by the World Health Organisation (WHO), are used. Although they are recommended for use in all ethnicities, they are based exclusively on the birth data of Caucasian infants born in England, Scotland and Wales.

Objective: To examine the head circumference and birth weight of infants of Irish Caucasian ethnicity and to establish if there is a clinically relevant variance from the standardised charts.

Design/Methods: The birth measurements of term Caucasian Irish babies, born between 2017 and 2022 at a maternity hospital in Dublin, were analysed. Statistical software methods created growth charts from this data and direct comparisons were made against the standardised growth charts.

Results: Within the study population of 27,728 babies, birth weight was similar to that of the standardised growth charts for both males and females. Caucasian Irish babies demonstrated a persistently larger head circumference to that of the standardised growth charts. Approximately 9% of both males and females were deemed to have an ‘abnormal’ head circumference on the standardised charts.

Conclusion(s): As the WHO charts are based a single ethnic group, their widespread use may lead to under or over investigation of babies from other ethnic backgrounds. This study showed that the head circumference data of this population was different to that of the standardised WHO charts. Further research is needed to determine the applicability of these charts to the wider population.

Growth Chart: Occipitofrontal Circumference of Term Caucasian-Irish Female Infants
Growth Chart - OFC of Term Female Infants in Study

Growth Chart: Occipitofrontal Circumference of Term Caucasian-Irish Male Infants


Flow diagram - Selection Process and Exclusion Criteria