Abstract
(1) Background: Assessing the quality of growth in premature infants is important in order to be able to provide them with optimal nutrition. The Pea Pod device, based on air displacement plethysmography, is able to assess body composition of infants. However, this method has not been sufficiently evaluated in premature infants; (2) Methods: In 14 infants in an age range of 3–7 days, born after 32–35 completed weeks of gestation, body weight, body volume, fat-free mass density (predicted by the Pea Pod software), and total body water (isotope dilution) were assessed. Reference estimates of fat-free mass density and body composition were obtained using a three-component model; (3) Results: Fat-free mass density values, predicted using Pea Pod, were biased but not significantly (p > 0.05) different from reference estimates. Body fat (%), assessed using Pea Pod, was not significantly different from reference estimates. The biological variability of fat-free mass density was 0.55% of the average value (1.0627 g/mL); (4) Conclusion: The results indicate that the Pea Pod system is accurate for groups of newborn, moderately premature infants. However, more studies where this system is used for premature infants are needed, and we provide suggestions regarding how to develop this area.
Highlights
The quality of growth of premature infants is an important topic which has been studied for decades
Roggero et al demonstrated that this device can produce reproducible estimates of body composition in premature infants and reported a validation study conducted in ten such infants, 15 days old on average [5]
Using this standard deviation (SD) (0.0059 g/mL), we found the biological variability of the fat-free mass density to be 0.0058 g/mL equivalent to 0.55% of its average value
Summary
The quality of growth of premature infants is an important topic which has been studied for decades. Recent studies tend to show that the weight gained after birth by preterm infants consists of a comparatively large proportion of fat [3] Such data have been obtained by means of the Pea Pod device, using a procedure shown to be accurate in full-term infants [4]. Roggero et al demonstrated that this device can produce reproducible estimates of body composition in premature infants and reported a validation study conducted in ten such infants, 15 days old on average [5] These authors used a two-component model based on total body water to calculate reference estimates of body composition and concluded that the amount of body fat, assessed using Pea Pod, is in good agreement with such reference estimates. Knowledge regarding the body composition of newborn premature infants is still limited, and this area requires further studies [7]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
