Proposal for monitoring babies with SGA unveiled
By Jonathan Chin / Staff writer, with CNA
Health officials and doctors yesterday unveiled proposed measures for the long-term monitoring of infants who are “small for gestatational age” (SGA), ahead of Sunday’s Growth Awareness Day.
The Health Promotion Administration (HPA) and Taiwan Society of Neonatology members made the remarks at a seminar in Taipei, saying that small body size in infancy is linked to a failure to thrive, obesity and other disorders later in life.
HPA Director-General Shen Ching-fen (沈靜芬) said the government is considering including SGA in the “infant healthbook” to ensure primary care pediatrians are fully informed about the health risks faced by babies.
Health Promotion Administration Director-General Shen Ching-fen, third left, and healthcare professionals pose for a group photo at a news conference held by the Taiwan Society of Neonatology in Taipei yesterday.Photo: CNA
Photo: CNA
The mechanism allow hospitals and clinics caring for a child to be aware of childhood problems such as SGA, which is crucial for their future health, she said.
Many parents are not aware that infants with SGA must undergo regular check-ups past the age of two, Shen said.
Infants with SGA often make up for their small size in growth spurts, if given good nutrition and care, but the health book could help track those who remain smaller, lighter or shorter than their peers, she said.
Monitoring the growth of such children is essential to making sure that they receive the care they need, in addition to tracking their vaccination status, Shen said.
The measure is in response to calls from the medical community to include SGA in health records, she said.
The HPA is inclined to agree with these suggestions, as many of the metrics used to evaluate SGA infants are the same as those already being recorded in the agency’s primary care pediatrician system, Shen said.
Association chairman president Yang San-nan (楊生湳) said SGA infants often undergo growth spurts at age two or older, but develop low bone density, insulin insensitivity and other conditions in adulthood.
People born as SGA babies must be tracked for disorders linked to these conditions to faciliate preventive care or early treatment, he said.
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