OBJECTIVETo investigate the difference in quality of life (QOL) between small for gestational age (SGA) and appropriate for gestational age (AGA) infants during early childhood, and to investigate the factors influcing the QOL.

METHODSThe Infant and Toddler Quality of Life Questionnaire-47 (ITQOL-SF47) was used to investigate the QOL of 1 to 3-year-old children born SGA and AGA who visited the child health care division. QOL was compared between SGA (n=203) and AGA groups (n=130), between the catch-up (n=119) and no-catch-up subgroups (n=84) of children born SGA, and between the single healthcare (n=144) and multiple healthcare subgroups (n=59) of children born SGA. The generalized linear model was used to investigate the factors influencing the QOL.

RESULTSThe total ITQOL score of the SGA group was significantly lower than that of the AGA group (630±99 vs 716±84; P<0.05). In children born SGA, the no-catch-up subgroup had a significantly lower total ITQOL score than the catch-up subgroup (602±96 vs 649±97; P<0.05), and the single healthcare subgroup had a significantly lower total ITQOL score than the multiple healthcare subgroup (616±94 vs 657±107; P<0.05). The generalized linear model analysis showed that in children born SGA who had catch-up or multiple healthcare visits, who were female or living in the Chongqing urban area, or their mothers had a higher educational levels had higher total ITQOL score.

CONCLUSIONSSGA infants have lower QOL than AGA infats during their early childhood. Proper promotion of catch-up growth and regular healthcare visits will contribute to the improvement of the QOL of SGA infants. The QOL of SGA infants is also influcenced by children's sex, residence and the degree of mothers' educational levels.