Table 2 Summary of evidence grading for meta-analyses associating different contrasts of birth weight and risk of future disease
Level of evidence | Criteria | Low birth weight vs. normal birth weight | High birth weight vs. normal birth weight | Per unit/SD increase | SGA vs. AGA | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Increased risk in LBW group | Decreased risk in LBW group | Increased risk in HBW group | Decreased risk in HBW group | Increased risk per unit/SD increase | Decreased risk per unit/SD increase | Increased risk in SGA group | ||
Convincing | >1000 cases, P < 1 × 10−6, I2 < 50 %, 95 % PI excluding the null value, no small-study effects and excess significance bias | All-cause mortality | None | None | None | BMC in hip | Mortality from cardiovascular diseases | Childhood stunting (in BW ≥ 2500 g group) |
Highly suggestive | >1000 cases, P < 1 × 10−6, largest study with a statistically significant effect | Perinatal mortality in developing countries, wheezing disorders in childhood, coronary heart disease | Overweight or obese in adulthood, intelligence in adolescence | All types of leukaemia, overweight or obese in adulthood | None | None | Muscle strength, coronary heart disease, maternal cardiovascular mortality, paternal cardiovascular mortality | None |
Suggestive | >1000 cases, P < 1 × 10−3 | Asthma in adulthood, RSV-related acute lower respiratory infections in childhood, chronic kidney disease | None | Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, type 1 diabetes mellitus | None | BMC in lumbar spine, acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, all types of leukaemia, FEV1, mortality from cancer | Waist-to-hip ratio, all-cause mortality, type 2 diabetes mellitus | Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia |
Weak | The remaining associations with P < 0.05 | Diastolic blood pressure, testicular cancer, type 2 diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, pneumonia in childhood, school-age asthma, systolic blood pressure | Atopic dermatitis | Acute myeloid leukaemia, astrocytoma, medulloblastoma, neuroblastoma, type 2 diabetes mellitus | Coronary heart disease | Breast cancer at any age, lung cancer, melanoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma | Cortisol levels, total cholesterol in men | Childhood stunting (in BW < 2500 g group) |