[Retardation problems within the scope of prematurity].

Among 804 short-weight infants (birth weight less than 2500 g) born at the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Medical School, Friedrich-Schiller University, Jena, from 1. 1. 1978 to 31. 12. 1981, one-third were small for gestational age babies. These hypotrophic infants showed, in relation to premature infants (appropriate for gestational age) a higher prenatal and intranatal mortality (statistically not significant). A frequent severe foetal distress mainly on the background of chronic or subacute placental insufficiency implied a higher rate of obstetrical operations by the hypotrophic infants. This was particularly evident by the incidence of caesarean sections (24.7% : 15.2% respectively). The premature hypotrophic infants had the highest caesarean section incidence, amounting to 30.3%. Postnatal adaptation proved more favourable with the small for gestational age babies than with the premature group. There was in fact a statistically significantly lower rate of asphyxiated infants detectable by means of APGAR-score less than or equal to 7 five minutes after labour and a lower neonatal and late mortality in spite of "acidotic morbidity", which was statistically significantly higher in the group of small for date infants (p less than 0.05). We consider as possible cause a higher average duration of gestation with approximately average birth weights. The difference in the clinical behaviour between the premature-hypotrophic and hypotrophic infants were smaller than between the premature-eutrophic and hypotrophic infants. This contradictory behaviour before, during and after labour requires the specialist to be capable of meeting the diagnostic and therapeutical requirements in every respect.