Growth Trajectories After Fetal Growth Restriction and Their Impact on Adolescent Cardiometabolic Health

Background and Objectives. Fetal growth restriction (FGR) is recognized as a paradigm of adverse intrauterine programming that may predispose individuals to cardiometabolic disorders later in life. The present study aimed to investigate the interplay between birth weight, postnatal catch-up growth and early indicators of cardiometabolic risk during adolescence.

Methods. This cross-sectional investigation enrolled 80 term-born adolescents, including 40 individuals with a history of FGR and 40 age- and sex-matched controls. Anthropometric measurements, blood pressure assessment, fasting glucose determination and lipid profiling were performed. Associations among prenatal growth, postnatal growth trajectories and cardiometabolic outcomes were subsequently evaluated.

Results. No statistically significant associations were observed between birth weight and subsequent measures of adiposity, arterial blood pressure, lipid profiles, or glycemic indices in the overall cohort (all p > 0.05). Conversely, stratified analysis within the subgroup of adolescents with a documented history of FGR revealed that rapid postnatal weight gain correlated strongly with adverse metabolic and cardiovascular phenotypes. Specifically, accelerated growth in this vulnerable subcohort was positively coupled with central adiposity and body mass index (both p < 0.001), alongside moderate but significant elevations in systolic and diastolic blood pressure (both p < 0.05).

Conclusions. These findings suggest that rapid postnatal growth, rather than fetal size at birth itself, constitutes the principal determinant of early cardiometabolic vulnerability following FGR.