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Bone Abstracts (2013) 1 PP506 | DOI: 10.1530/boneabs.1.PP506

1Department of Radioimmunology, Biochemistry and Experimental Medicine, The Children’s Memorial Health Institute, Warsaw, Poland; 2Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, The Children’s Memorial Health Institute, Warsaw, Poland; 3Neonatal and Intensive Care Department, Warsaw Medical University, Warsaw, Poland.


Introduction: The body composition at term equivalent age of infants born preterm is different than that of infants born at term.

Aim: The aim of the study was to compare the body composition in preterm and full-term infants at age 3 and 4 years.

Patients and methods: Total body bone mineral content (TBBMC, g), density (TBBMD, g/cm2), and body composition (fat mass – FM, g; lean body mass – LBM, g) were measured using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (Prodigy, pediatric software) in 48 preterm infants (mean age: 3.12±0.54 years at V1 and 4.06±0.53 years at V2) and 24 full-term infants (mean age: 3.34±0.58 years at V1 and 4.32±0.63 years at V2). P3NP was measured in serum by radioimmunoassay.

Results: Body weight (BW) but not body height was lower in preterm in comparison with full-term infants at V1 (P=0.012) and V2 (P=0.004). Evaluation of body composition at V1 indicated that preterm infants have significantly higher body content of LBM (LBM/BW) and serum P3NP than full-term infants (P=0.047 and P=0.004, respectively). At V2 full-term infants and preterm infants have comparable fat mass content (FM/BW) as well as bone mass to muscle mass index (TBBMC/LBM) (P=0.057 and P=0.158, respectively). On the contrary, preterm infants had higher muscle content in comparison to full term infants (LBM/BW – P=0.039; FM/LBM – P=0.044) as well as TBBMD (P=0.045).

Conclusions: Despite lower body weight, the body composition in 4-years-old preterm infants was better than in children born at term due to the advantage of muscle mass and BMD. It may indicate that the risk of bone and metabolic disorders is low in preterm infants at age 4 years.

Financial support: CMHI Internal Grant S109/09. Acquiring of ultra-low temperature freezers MDF-U500Vx (Sanyo) were co-financed by ERDF (EU Structural Funds) project POIG.02.01.00-14-059/09.

Volume 1

European Calcified Tissue Society Congress 2013

Lisbon, Portugal
18 May 2013 - 22 May 2013

European Calcified Tissue Society 

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