Determining the Correlation between Cord Blood Lipid Profile and Birth Weight among Term Babies

Aims: This study aimed to examine the association between cord blood lipid levels and neonatal birth weight.

Study Design: Hospital based prospective cross-sectional study.

Place and Duration of Study: Study was conducted in Government medical College Nagpur, a tertiary care hospital that provides maternal and child health services between June 2011 to March 2013

Methodology: We enrolled 200 healthy pregnant women who attended antenatal clinics in our hospital. We collected 5 mL of cord blood from the umbilical vein and measured the serum levels of total cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol using spectrophotometric methods. We calculated LDL cholesterol using Friedewald’s formula, and we measured anthropometric parameters using standard methods.

Results: Neonates with SGA had significantly lower birth weight (2.24 ± 0.3 vs 2.83 ± 0.4; P < 0.01), head circumference (31.5 ± 1.5 vs 33.4 ± 1.8; P < 0.04), recumbent length (51.2 ± 0.3 vs 53.6 ± 0.2; P < 0.04), and Ponderal Index (2.24 ± 0.5 vs 2.35 ± 0.2; P < 0.03) than AGA babies. The cord blood lipid profile levels were also significantly lower (P < 0.001) in AGA than SGA babies. There was a positive correlation between birth weight and total cholesterol (r = 0.31; P < 0.001) and triglycerides (r = 0.46; P < 0.001), and a small positive correlation between birth weight and HDL cholesterol (r = 0.157; P = 0.013).

Conclusion: SGA babies had significantly higher cord blood lipid profile levels than AGA babies. The lipid profile of umbilical cord blood is related to the fetal nutritional status and growth and development. This may have implications for the prevention and management of low birth weight and its associated complications