Abstract
Background Low birth weight is a significant index for survival, intrauterine growth, and mortality in infants. Thus, this study is aimed at determining the prevalence of low birth weight in Iranian infants through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods This study was performed by meta-analysis from January 2000 to December 2019. The studies relevant to the topic have been obtained through search in databases of Scopus, ScienceDirect, SID, Magiran, Barakat Knowledge Network System, Medline (PubMed), and Google Scholar. Heterogeneity of the studies has been assessed by the I2 index, and data analysis was done using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software. Results By investigating 14 articles and 93924 infants, the total prevalence of low birth weight in infants in Iran was achieved at 8.5% (95% CI: 7.3-9.9%) according to the meta-analysis; the most prevalence of low birth weight was in infants in Hamedan at 19.1% (95% CI: 21.2-17.2%) in 2007, and the lowest prevalence of low birth weight was in infants in Tonekabon at 4.2% (95% CI: 3.4-5.2%) in 2005, and also, by increasing the sample size, the prevalence of low birth weight increases, by which the difference is statistically significant (P < 0.05). Conclusion Due to the high prevalence of low birth weight in infants in Iran, health policy-makers must take effective attempts in order to reduce it in infants.
Highlights
Low birth weight is a significant index for survival, intrauterine growth, and mortality in infants
Delayed growth puts the baby at risk of specific health problems during pregnancy and delivery and after birth. They include low birth weight; difficulty handling the stresses of vaginal delivery; decreased oxygen levels; hypoglycemia; low resistance to infection; low Apgar scores; meconium aspiration, which can lead to breathing problems; trouble maintaining body temperature; and abnormally high red blood cell count [1,2,3,4,5]
This was a systematic review and metaanalysis done by extraction of results of conducted studies in the context of the prevalence of low birth weight (LBW) in infants in Iran and consisted of articles published in domestic and foreign journals and literature review in databases of ScienceDirect, Scopus, SID, Magiran, Medline (PubMed), Barakat Knowledge Network System, and Google Scholar from Jan 2000 to Dec 2019
Summary
Low birth weight is a significant index for survival, intrauterine growth, and mortality in infants. This study is aimed at determining the prevalence of low birth weight in Iranian infants through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Delayed growth puts the baby at risk of specific health problems during pregnancy and delivery and after birth. They include low birth weight; difficulty handling the stresses of vaginal delivery; decreased oxygen levels; hypoglycemia; low resistance to infection; low Apgar scores; meconium aspiration, which can lead to breathing problems; trouble maintaining body temperature; and abnormally high red blood cell count [1,2,3,4,5]. The condition can occur as the result of specific health problems in the mother, such as advanced diabetes; high blood pressure or heart disease; infections such as rubella, cytomegalovirus, toxoplasmosis, and syphilis; kidney disease or lung disease; malnutrition or anemia; sickle cell anemia; smoking; drinking alcohol; or abusing drugs [2,3,4,5,6]
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