Reduced insulin sensitivity and the presence of cardiovascular risk factors in short prepubertal children born small for gestational age (SGA)

Summary Background Epidemiological studies have shown that the metabolic syndrome, a combination of type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and a high body mass index (BMI), occurs more frequently among adults who were born with a low birth weight. Because insulin is thought to play a key role in the pathogenesis of this syndrome we investigated insulin sensitivity and risk factors for cardiovascular disease in short prepubertal children born small for gestational age (SGA). Patients and Methods Frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance tests (FSIGT) were performed in 28 short prepubertal children born SGA. Short stature was defined as a height < –2SD. SGA was defined as a birth length and/or a birth weight for gestational age