A premature infant may be classifed based on weight and gestational age at birth.

Measures:
1. Absolute birthweight
2. Weeks gestation
3. Percent birthweight for gestational age

Birth Weight in Grams ---------------- Term

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less than 1,000 grams -------------- Extremely low birth weight
1,000 - 1,499 ---------------------- Very low birth weight
1,500 - 2,499 ---------------------- Low birth weight

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Weeks Gestation ---------------------- Term

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less than 38 weeks ---------------------- Preterm
38 - 42 weeks --------------------------- Term
greater than 42 weeks ------------------- Post-term

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Percent Birth Weight for Gestational Age --------------- Term

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less than 10% ------------------- Small for gestational age (SGA)
10 - 90% ------------------------ Appropriate for gestationl age (AGA)
greater than 90% ---------------- Large for gestational age (LGA)

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A.S.P.E.N. Board of Directors and the Clinical Guidelines Task Force. Guidelines for the use of parenteral and enteral nutrition in adult and pediatric patients. JPEN (J Parenteral Enteral Nutrition). 2002; 26 Supplement: 46SA (Table 1).
Conry JA. Chapter 26: Normal labor. pages 385-413. IN: Niswander KR, Evans AT. Manual of Obstetrics, Fifth Edition. Little, Brown and Company. 1996.


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