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Risk Factors for Low Birth Weight Infants of Hispanic, African American, and White Women in Bexar County, Texas
Author(s) -
TierneyGumaer Rosalie,
Reifsnider Elizabeth
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
public health nursing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.471
H-Index - 55
eISSN - 1525-1446
pISSN - 0737-1209
DOI - 10.1111/j.1525-1446.2008.00723.x
Subject(s) - medicine , pregnancy , prenatal care , low birth weight , birth weight , demography , obstetrics , population , ethnic group , body mass index , environmental health , genetics , sociology , anthropology , biology , pathology
Objectives: The aim of this study was to compare the risk factors in women who delivered an infant of low birth weight (LBW, <2,500 g) versus women who delivered an infant weighing >2,500 g in a large metropolitan county (Bexar) in South Texas. Design: An exploratory case comparison design was used to identify factors related to LBW outcomes in women receiving prenatal care. Sample: The cases were obtained from community hospitals. A stratified random sample was selected from a population of 38,064 infant births, of which 2,910 were identified as LBW. The final sample size was N =321 (<2,500 g, n =151; ≥2,500 g, n =170). Measurements: Dependent variable of infant birth weight; independent variables of maternal age, maternal race/ethnicity, education, smoking, prior pregnancy history, timing of and number of prenatal visits, prepregnancy body mass index and weight gain during pregnancy, and past medical history and medical problems during pregnancy. Results: Independent variables found to be predictive of LBW in this study included maternal race/ethnicity, timing of first prenatal visit, number of prenatal visits, prior pregnancy history, and maternal weight gain. Conclusions: This study confirmed previous findings that African American women are at a higher risk for LBW deliveries and demonstrated that Anglo and Hispanic women have similar rates of LBW deliveries.