Growth retardation and its influencing factors in infants aged 0‒3 in Minhang District， Shanghai

Objective To investigate the detection rate and main influencing factors of growth retardation in infants aged 0-3 in Minhang District， and to provide relevant evidence for early intervention， nutrition promotion and health guidance in the future.

Methods From September 1， 2020 to August 31， 2021， the height， weight， basic information of parents， feeding methods， and lifestyle habits of infants who received systematic healthcare aged 0‒3 in community health service centers and Minhang maternal child health hospital were collected， and the current situation and influencing factors of infant growth retardation were analyzed.

Results Among the 68 637 infants who underwent a systematic physical examination in Minhang District， the total detection rate of growth retardation was 5.03% （3 453/68 637）. The detection rates in the 0-year-old， 1-year-old， 2-year-old， and 3-year-old groups were 6.57% （1 636/24 885）， 3.90% （664/17 031）， 4.62% （827/ 17 905）， and 3.72% （326/8 773）， respectively. There was no difference in the detection rate of growth retardation between boys and girls （P>0.05）， and a multinomial logistic regression analysis of 13 influencing factors （infant birth weight， birth length， parental weight， height， education level， mother’s childbearing age， delivery mode， household registration， feeding mode within 6 months， infant sleep， etc.） in univariate analysis showed that birth weight <2 500 g （OR=3.99， 95%CI： 2.809‒5.674） or ≥4 000 g （OR=12.78， 95%CI： 8.868‒18.443）， maternal height <150 cm （OR=7.10， 95%CI： 4.294‒11.753）， paternal height <160 cm （OR=5.65， 95%CI： 2.792‒11.422）， maternal education level of junior high school and below （OR=1.31， 95%CI： 1.087‒1.588）， paternal education level of junior high school and below （OR=1.02， 95%CI： 0.838‒1.236）， mixed feeding （OR=1.15， 95%CI： 1.031‒1.288）， and sleep duration exceeding the recommended time （OR=1.58， 95%CI： 1.466‒1.710） were risk factors for growth retardation in infants aged 0‒3. Infants with a birth length <50 cm or with household registration in Shanghai had a higher incidence of growth retardation.

Conclusion Growth retardation in infants aged 0‒3 is influenced by a combination of genetic， environmental， and sleep factors. It is essential for parents to realize the impact of growth retardation on the future of their children early on and actively participate in the early detection， screening， and intervention of growth retardation.