NEONATAL AND MATERNAL ANTHROPOMETRIC CHARACTERISTICS IN A HIGH-ALTITUDE POPULATION OF THE WESTERN HIMALAYA

A study of neonatal anthropometric characteristics was undertaken in L adakh, India, a region comprising the western portion of the trans-Him alayan plateau. The object was to better understand the dynamics of hi gh altitude adaptation in the Himalaya. In a largely native sample of 168 women and their newborns, mean birth weight was 2,764 g, mean leng th was 48.02 cm, and mean Ponderal Index (PI) was 2.49. Female newborn s were significantly lighter and shorter than males. Overall, 27% of n ewborns fell into the standard category of infants at increased risk o f mortality (<2,500 g); 37% of females and 17% of males were so classi fied. In multivariate regression analysis, maternal weight and the sex and gestational age of the newborn were the only significant predicto rs of birth weight, but explained a small(18%) part of the variance. C ompared to Andean and Tibetan samples, Ladakhi newborns were between 3 00 and 550 g lighter. This variation is explained, in part, by materna l characteristics, such as lower average parity, age, and weight. Repr oductive capacity appears to be compromised in this population because of inadequate nutrition in the face of high energy demands of agricul tural work, which may further compromise maternal adaptation to hypoxi c conditions. The population of Ladakh has a relatively recent ancestr y in this high altitude region and is likely a genetically heterogeneo us population from an extensive history of immigration. Thus it is pos sible that the low average birth weight in Ladakh may also be influenc ed by inadequate genetic adaptation to hypoxia. (C) 1994 Wiley-Liss, I nc.