Performance of the Intergrowth-21st and World Health Organization fetal
growth charts for the detection of small for gestational age neonates in
a population from Latin America
Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the performance of INTERGROWTH-21st and World
Health Organization (WHO) fetal growth charts to identify
small-for-gestational-age (SGA) and fetal growth restriction (FGR)
neonates as well as their specific risks for adverse neonatal outcomes.
Design: Multicenter cross-sectional study. Setting: Ten maternity units
across four Latin American countries, 2016-2018. Population: 67,968
singleton live births. Methods: According to each standard, the neonates
were classified as SGA and FGR (birthweight <10th and
<3rd centiles, respectively). Main Outcomes Measures: The
relative risk (RR) and diagnostic performance for the occurrence of a
low Apgar score and low ponderal index were calculated for each
standard. Results: The WHO charts identified more neonates as SGA than
IG-21st (13.9% vs. 7%, respectively). 6.9% babies were considered SGA
only by the WHO chart. Compared to normally grown babies, neonates
classified as FGRs by both standards had the highest RR for a low Apgar
(RR: 5.57; 95% CI: 3.99–7.78), followed by those SGA by both curves
(RR: 3.27; 95% CI: 2.52–4.24), while SGAs identified by WHO alone did
not have an additional risk (RR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.55–1.39).
Furthermore, the diagnostic odds ratio for a low Apgar was higher when
INTERGROWTH-21st was used than when SGA and FGR were defined by WHO
charts. Conclusions: In a large population of singleton deliveries from
Latin America, the WHO fetal growth charts seem to identify
significantly more SGA neonates than the INTERGROWTH-21st charts, but
the diagnostic performance of the latter for low Apgar score and low
ponderal index is better.