| Abstract [eng] |
Physical status of children born in 1990 in Vilnius city and region from birth up to the end of puberty, the variety of individual growth tracks, ethnic and socio-economic growth factors, the epochal changes in growth and growth patterns of the “generation of independence” were investigated. This study was one of the first to establish the variety of individual growth tracks from birth to the age of eighteen years. In this longitudinal study of children born in 1990 (the year Lithuania restored its independence) the personal health records’ analysis was used and its benefits and drawbacks were investigated. The age of children, the place of residence (urban or rural), the distance to the outpatient clinic and the ordinal number of a child in a family were associated with the regularity of visiting the outpatient clinic. Children's growth indices in personal health records were rather accurate and suitable for auxological analysis. The results of this study confirmed that children normally changed their growth tracks for height and body mass index during the growth process. These changes were associated with their age and sex. Retardation in growth of children was related to the political and socioeconomic changes in Lithuania after 1990. Nevertheless, this retardation was reversible. Ethnic and socioeconomic differences in physical status of both boys and girls were established. The main body size indices (height, weight and body mass index) of children remained almost unchanged during last two decades, that meant the acceleration process had stabilized. Though the tendency towards higher body mass index was observed at the end of puberty for children of both sexes, the prevalence of overweight and obesity in Lithuania remained low. |
