Fat distribution in short stature children born small for gestational age.

BACKGROUND Children born small for gestational age (SGA) with catch-up growth have high risk for developing obesity; however, the characteristics of body composition, especially fat distribution, before and after growth hormone (GH) treatment in SGA children without catch-up growth remains largely unknown. METHODS Anthropometric characteristics, body composition by dual-energy X-ray absorption, and fat distribution by computed tomography at the umbilical level were examined in 27 prepubertal short stature children born SGA before and 1 year after GH treatment. RESULTS Before GH treatment, short stature SGA children had lean phenotype, and both visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) were significantly lower than the age- and sex-matched Japanese reference values. GH treatment significantly increased height standard deviation scores (SDS), without affecting body mass index SDS. Percent fat mass decreased by GH treatment; however, fat mass was not altered. Both VAT and SAT were significantly lower than the reference values after GH treatment. The ratio of VAT over SAT significantly increased by GH treatment. CONCLUSIONS Both VAT and SAT were within or below the age- and sex-matched Japanese reference values in short stature children born SGA before and after GH treatment, indicating that GH treatment may not have unfavorable effects on adiposity in short stature children born SGA although it may alter fat distribution.