Bacteriuria in pregnancy and growth and development of the infants

In the framework of a community-oriented programme in a western neighbourhood in Jerusalem, screening for bacteriuria during pregnancy was introduced. Between the years 1972 and 1979, 30 cases were identified, an incidence of 1.7%. All women diagnosed as having bacteriuria received antibiotic treatment according to sensitivity of the organism. This report presents the pregnancy outcome as measured by physical growth and development of the offspring. Cases of bacteriuria were compared with individually matched nonbacteriuric controls. No statistically significant differences were found in mean birth weight, mean weight and length at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months, and development quotient at 2 years. No low birth weight infants were found among the cases. The fact that no differences were found between cases and controls, the feasibility, validity, acceptability and low cost of the screening test, and the health benefits of the programme justify introduction of routine screening and treatment of bacteriuria in the preventive health services.

Long-term follow-up of children whose mothers used oral contraceptives prior to conception

Anthropometric, psychometric and hematologic measurements were made at intervals in the first 3 years of life in a cohort of 732 infants, including 177 (24.2%) whose mothers used oral contraceptives (OC) prior to conception. Analysis of the data focused on weight and height measurements at 3, 9, 12, 24 and 36 months of age; hemoglobin and hematocrit at 9 months; development quotient (DQ) at 2 years and its components, posture, coordination, language and social; and intelligence quotient (IQ) at 3 years and its verbal and nonverbal components. Analyses were made for both sexes combined and males and females separately, by examining crude means, and means adjusted through linear multiple regression for birthweight, age of child at the time of examination, height of mother, mother's weight-for-height centile, birth-order, maternal and paternal education, and maternal smoking. No significant differences were found between the children whose mothers did or did not use oral contraceptives.

Determinants of short stature in normal children at the age of two years: a case-control study in a community in Jerusalem

Differences were analysed between growth patterns and determinants of physical growth in two groups of normal infants at 24 months. Longitudinal data routinely collected in a mother and child clinic were analysed. At 24 months, 26% of cohort infants were at or below the 10th percentile for length (= 'small' infants); 98 of these were compared with 83 'medium' infants (between the 50th and the 75th percentile, for example). Excessive downward deviation of length percentiles was seen in 80% of 'small' infants. In 20% their birthweight was on the 10th percentile or below; 50% had a mother less than 155 cm tall; maternal stature was closely linked with socioeconomic factors. Of mothers with less than nine years of schooling, 70% had 'small' infants. In 95% of both groups growth attainment at two years could be predicted from data at 12 months. The known factors influencing deviant physical growth overlap with those of mental and social development. Growth deviation by itself may identify infants open to multiple risks, especially if their mothers have a low educational level. Further narrowing of the target group for specialised intervention strategies should be attempted.