Intrauterine growth restriction ( is a frequent complication of pregnancy and is one of the major causes of perinatal and neonatal mortality and morbidity. The highest incidence of IUGR is recorded in developing countries conditioned by socioeconomic factors that directly affect mother's nutrition and living conditions. IUGR is often defined as the inability of the fetus to reach its intrinsic growth potential. As it is hard to define the intrinsic growth potential of a fetus, in practice, IUGR is most often defined as body weight of a newborn child that is below the 10th percentile of an ethnic and seeks specific birth weight for a specific gestational age, or the birth weight that is less than 2 standard deviations below the mean. Fetal growth and development depend on several factors that can be divided into the genetic potential for fetal growth and the fetal growth support provided by the uteroplacental transfer of nutrients and oxygen. The most common etiology of intrauterine growth restriction is the loss of growth support, which occurs because of the disproportion between the needs of the fetus and the function of the placenta. The loss of placental functions is called placental insufficiency and is most often caused by disturbed placentation. The basic method of monitoring fetal growth in utero is fetal biometry. The fetus adapts to the adverse intrauterine environment with changes in the cardiovascular, metabolic, and endocrine systems. Early postnatal complications of IUGR include hypoglycemia, hypothermia, polycythemia, perinatal asphyxia, necrotizing enterocolitis, and others. Children who survive IUGR have a higher risk of developing cardiovascular, metabolic, renal, neurological, and respiratory diseases in adulthood, which is explained by the Barker's theory of the fetal origin of adult disease. According to this theory, epigenetic changes created prenatally form the basis for the development of chronic diseases. Numerous drugs and nutritional supplements that are currently in clinical trials show potential improvement of prenatal and postnatal growth in IUGR. The greatest benefits in the prevention of growth restriction postnatal complications were shown using corticosteroids in high risk pregnancies.