Fetal cranial growth trajectories are associated with growth and neurodevelopment at 2 years of age: INTERBIO-21st Fetal Study

• Published in: Nature medicine Vol. 27; no. 4; pp. 647 - 652
• Main Authors: Villar, José, Gunier, Robert B., Tshivuila-Matala, Chrystelle O. O., Rauch, Stephen A., Nosten, Francois, Ochieng, Roseline, Restrepo-Méndez, María C., McGready, Rose, Barros, Fernando C., Fernandes, Michelle, Carrara, Verena I., Victora, Cesar G., Munim, Shama, Craik, Rachel, Barsosio, Hellen C., Carvalho, Maria, Berkley, James A., Cheikh Ismail, Leila, Norris, Shane A., Ohuma, Eric O., Stein, Alan, Lambert, Ann, Winsey, Adele, Uauy, Ricardo, Eskenazi, Brenda, Bhutta, Zulfiqar A., Papageorghiou, Aris T., Kennedy, Stephen H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Nature Publishing Group US 01.04.2021; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/136/818; 692/700/1720; Age; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cancer Research; Cephalometry; Child Development; Cognition in children; Cognitive ability; Development; Female; Fetus; Fetus - embryology; Fetuses; Gestation; Gestational age; Growth; Health aspects; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Infants; Infectious Diseases; International standards; Letter; Metabolic Diseases; Molecular Medicine; Morbidity; Nervous system; Neurodevelopment; Neurosciences; Observational studies; Pediatric research; Physical growth; Physiological aspects; Pregnancy; Skull; Skull - embryology; Skull - growth & development; Supplements; Trajectory measurement; Ultrasonic imaging; Ultrasound; United Kingdom
• ISSN: 1078-8956; 1546-170X
• DOI: 10.1038/s41591-021-01280-2

Many observational studies and some randomized trials demonstrate how fetal growth can be influenced by environmental insults (for example, maternal infections) 1 and preventive interventions (for example, multiple-micronutrient supplementation) 2 that can have a long-lasting effect on health, growth, neurodevelopment and even educational attainment and income in adulthood 3 . In a cohort of pregnant women ( n  = 3,598), followed-up between 2012 and 2019 at six sites worldwide 4 , we studied the associations between ultrasound-derived fetal cranial growth trajectories, measured longitudinally from <14 weeks’ gestation, against international standards 5 , 6 , and growth and neurodevelopment up to 2 years of age 7 , 8 . We identified five trajectories associated with specific neurodevelopmental, behavioral, visual and growth outcomes, independent of fetal abdominal growth, postnatal morbidity and anthropometric measures at birth and age 2. The trajectories, which changed within a 20–25-week gestational age window, were associated with brain development at 2 years of age according to a mirror (positive/negative) pattern, mostly focused on maturation of cognitive, language and visual skills. Further research should explore the potential for preventive interventions in pregnancy to improve infant neurodevelopmental outcomes before the critical window of opportunity that precedes the divergence of growth at 20–25 weeks’ gestation. This study of a cohort of over 3,500 pregnant women in six different populations worldwide identifies specific fetal cranial growth trajectories, measured by serial ultrasound scans early in gestation, that are related to postnatal growth and neurodevelopment up to the key milestone age of 2 years.