Table 4.
Characteristics of the infants at birth and at the beginning and the end of the study
| At birth | p * | At the beginning | p * | At the end | p ** | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Age (corrected gestational age, weeks) |
BM | 29.0 ± 1.7 | ---- | 32.2 ± 2.3 | ----- | 35.7 ± 1.94 | ---- |
| A | 29.6 ± 1.6 | 0.683 | 32.8 ± 0.8 | 0.761 | 36.2 ± 0.60 | 0.406 | |
| B | 30.2 ± 1.4 | 32.6 ± 1.22 | 36.0 ± 1.02 | ||||
| C | 29.8 ± 1.7 | 32.9 ± 1.70 | 36.4 ± 1.53 | ||||
| Weight (g) | BM | 1138 ± 173 | ---- | 1302 ± 173 | ---- | 1903 ± 223 | ---- |
| A | 1196 ± 243 | 0.589 | 1452 ± 216 | 0.259 | 1967 ± 189 | 0.000 | |
| B | 1220 ± 221 | 1303 ± 213 | 1998 ± 146 | A-B: 0.002 | |||
| C | 1313 ± 336 | 1404 ± 189 | 2154 ± 202 | A-C: 0.002 | |||
| B-C: 0.622 | |||||||
| Weight (Z-score) | BM | -0.380 ± 0.918 | ---- | -1.279 ± 0.984 | ---- | -1.567 ± 0.738 | ---- |
| A | -0.368 ± 0.678 | 0.445 | -1.170 ± 0.407 | 0.706 | -1.501 ± 0.525 | 0.001 | |
| B | -0.646 ± 0.476 | -1.408 ± 0.639 | -1.513 ± 0.605 | A-B: 0.002 | |||
| C | -0.309 ± 0.819 | -1.438 ± 0.970 | -1.347 ± 1.091 | A-C: 0.001 | |||
| B-C: 0.213 | |||||||
| Length (cm) | BM | 37.3 ± 2.2 | ---- | 39.7 ± 2.6 | ---- | 44.2 ± 1.52 | ----- |
| A | 38.7 ± 2.7 | 0.750 | 41.5 ± 1.3 | 0.192 | 44.8 ± 0.91 | 0.715 | |
| B | 37.9 ± 3.1 | 40.4 ± 1.7 | 44.5 ± 1.24 | ||||
| C | 38.8 ± 3.5 | 41.7 ± 2.1 | 45.6 ± 1.77 | ||||
| Length (Z-score) | BM | -0.329 ± 0.903 | ---- | -0.889 ± 0.972 | ---- | -0.895 ± 0.845 | ---- |
| A | 0.017 ± 1.260 | 0.386 | -0.589 ± 0.272 | 0.784 | -0.738 ± 0.354 | 0.700 | |
| B | -0.619 ± 0.811 | -0.807 ± 0.564 | -0.537 ± 0.580 | ||||
| C | -0.215 ± 0.946 | -0.642 ± 1.047 | -0.441 ± 1.099 | ||||
|
Head circumference (cm) |
BM | 26.3 ± 1.3 | ---- | 28.0 ± 1.5 | ---- | 31.5 ± 1.28 | ----- |
| A | 27.7 ± 1.7 | 0.615 | 29.2 ± 1.1 | 0.418 | 32.1 ± 0.55 | 0.077 | |
| B | 26.8 ± 1.8 | 28.5 ± 1.3 | 32.3 ± 1.18 | A-B: 0.033 | |||
| C | 27.8 ± 3.2 | 28.7 ± 1.3 | 32.3 ± 0.75 | A-C: 0.097 | |||
| B-C: 0.744 | |||||||
|
Head circumference (Z-score) |
BM | -0.297 ± 0.820 | ---- | -0.907 ± 0.831 | ---- | -0.654 ± 0.553 | --- |
| A | 0.311 ± 1.375 | 0.164 | -0.689 ± 0.429 | 0.409 | -0.331 ± 0.517 | 0.203 | |
| B | -0.511 ± 0.583 | -0.858 ± 0.556 | -0.472 ± 0.639 | ||||
| C | -0.433 ± 0.857 | -1.066 ± 0.761 | -0.671 ± 0.777 | ||||
| Fat mass (g) | BM | ---- | ---- | 111.1 ± 61.7 | ---- | 202.4 ± 49.6 | ---- |
| A | ---- | ---- | 140.3 ± 72.5 | 0.131 | 193.4 ± 49.6 | 0.182 | |
| B | ---- | 135.7 ± 50.3 | 208.1 ± 61.0 | ||||
| C | ---- | 129.9 ± 56.5 | 219.3 ± 52.0 | ||||
| Fat-free mass (g) | BM | ---- | ---- | 1190 ± 204 | ---- | 1699 ± 206 | ---- |
| A | ---- | ---- | 1311 ± 158 | 0.925 | 1773 ± 152 | 0.007 | |
| B | ---- | 1168 ± 180 | 1790 ± 127 | A-B: 0.009 | |||
| C | ---- | 1274 ± 151 | 1915 ± 199 | A-C: 0.044 | |||
| B-C: 0.277 | |||||||
|
Body mass index (kg/m2) |
BM | 8.16 ± 0.53 | ---- | 8.26 ± 0.69 | ---- | 16.0 ± 0.74 | ---- |
| A | 7.61 ± 1.00 | 0.195 | 8.41 ± 1.06 | 0.424 | 16.8 ± 1.18 | 0.472 | |
| B | 8.37 ± 0.78 | 7.93 ± 0.80 | 15.6 ± 0.80 | ||||
| C | 8.49 ± 1.25 | 8.04 ± 0.78 | 15.2 ± 1.57 | ||||
Number of patients in each group: 8 in A, 12 in B and 12 in C.
Data are presented as the means ± SD
* ONEWAY, with the factor group
** UNIANOVA, with the factor group and adjusted for covariates (initial corresponding value and duration of the intervention). If the p-value of the group < 0.1, pair comparisons have been performed.