Racial and ethnic disparities in postnatal growth of infants born before 30 weeks of gestation.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-2026
Identifier
DOI: 10.1038/s41372-026-02570-8
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess racial and ethnic disparities in birth weight (BW), time to BW regain, and mean growth velocity during the accelerated weight gain phase.
STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective study was conducted using a de-identified dataset from the Pediatrix Medical Group from 2010 to 2020. The dataset categorizes infants into five racial and ethnic groups: Asian, Hispanic, Black, White, and Other, based on maternal report. The study included infants born between 23 and 29 weeks' gestation and excluded infants without weight data.
RESULTS: This study included 76,145 infants. Antenatal confounders were balanced using inverse propensity weighting. Black infants had lowest, while Hispanic infants had higher BW z-scores, when compared to White infants. Black infants took the shortest time to regain BW. Hispanic infants had the lowest mean growth velocity.
CONCLUSION: Racial and ethnic disparities in postnatal growth of infants born before 30 weeks of gestation manifest differently across growth phases.
Journal Title
Journal of perinatology : official journal of the California Perinatal Association
Volume
46
Issue
10
First Page
1961
Last Page
1967
MeSH Keywords
Female; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Male; Birth Weight; Ethnicity; Gestational Age; Hispanic or Latino; Infant, Premature; Racial Groups; Retrospective Studies; Weight Gain; White; Asian; Black or African American
PubMed ID
41639587
Keywords
Birth Weight; Ethnicity; Gestational Age; Hispanic or Latino; Racial Groups; Retrospective Studies; Weight Gain; White; Asian; Black or African American
Recommended Citation
Chou FS, Yeh HW, Hsueh C, et al. Racial and ethnic disparities in postnatal growth of infants born before 30 weeks of gestation. J Perinatol. 2026;46(10):1961-1967. doi:10.1038/s41372-026-02570-8
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