Barker David J P, Bagby Susan P
Developmental Origins of Health and Disease Division, University of Southampton, Southampton General Hospital, Southampton, United Kingdom.
J Am Soc Nephrol. 2005 Sep;16(9):2537-44. doi: 10.1681/ASN.2005020160. Epub 2005 Jul 27.
Knowledge of the fetal antecedents of cardiovascular disease has increased rapidly since the association between low birth weight and the disease was demonstrated 20 yr ago. It now is known that individuals who had low birth weight or who were thin or short at birth are at increased risk for both cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes. This has been shown in studies in different countries and cannot be explained by confounding variables. Through clinical and animal studies, the biologic processes that underlie the epidemiologic associations and how their effects are modified by postnatal growth and by living conditions in childhood and adult life are beginning to be understood. One such process is altered renal development, with reduced nephron numbers, which may initiate hypertension.
自20年前低出生体重与心血管疾病之间的关联被证实以来，人们对心血管疾病胎儿期病因的认识迅速增加。现在已知，出生时体重低、体型瘦或身材矮小的个体患心血管疾病和2型糖尿病的风险增加。这一点在不同国家的研究中都得到了证实，且无法用混杂变量来解释。通过临床和动物研究，流行病学关联背后的生物学过程以及出生后生长、童年和成年生活条件如何改变其影响正开始被人们所理解。其中一个这样的过程是肾脏发育改变，肾单位数量减少，这可能引发高血压。
