Abstract
Background: Preterm births (PTB) and low birth weight (LBW) - the two distinct adverse pregnancy outcomes - are the major determinants of perinatal survival and development. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of LBW and PTB and identify the maternal and neonatal risk factors influencing them. Methods: Data for the study come from a cross-sectional retrospective study conducted at the maternity ward of Sultan Qaboos University Hospital (SQUH) in Oman during the period between November 2011 and February 2012. Data on 534 singleton live births that occurred during the study period were extracted from hospital record. Descriptive statistics, bivariate analysis and multivariate logistic regression model were used for data analysis. Results: The incidence of PTB and LBW were observed to be 9.7% and 13.7% respectively. Half (51.8%) of the LBW babies were PTB and 48.2% of the LBW babies were of term births. Differences and similarities were noted for the risk profile for PTB and LBW. Risk factors specific to PTB were maternal age, previous pregnancy loss, and infant’s length, while birth interval, maternal weight and BMI during pregnancy, and gestational age were the risk factors unique to LBW. ANC visit, infant’s gender, Apgar score, and head circumference of infants were the common significant risk factors influencing both LBW and PTB. Conclusions: The incidence of PTB and LBW are moderately high in Oman. They are associated with different risk factors. A greater understanding and modification of identified risk factors would help reduce the incidence of PTB and LBW in Oman.
Highlights
Preterm birth (PTB) and low birth weight (LBW) defined, respectively, as birth occurring before 37 weeks of gestation and weight at birth < 2,500 g [1], are widely acknowledged as major determinants of perinatal survival, infant morbidity and mortality as well as risk factors for development of disabilities and illnesses in future [2,3,4,5,6,7]
On the average mothers had more than three pregnancies indicating high-level fertility among the participating women
The results show that compare with total sample, mothers from LBW group or Preterm births (PTB) group or PretermLBW group were relatively younger, less educated, having low average gravida, with higher value of pregnancy body mass index (BMI), low average birth interval and less number of antenatal care (ANC) visits
Summary
Preterm birth (PTB) and low birth weight (LBW) defined, respectively, as birth occurring before 37 weeks of gestation and weight at birth < 2,500 g [1], are widely acknowledged as major determinants of perinatal survival, infant morbidity and mortality as well as risk factors for development of disabilities and illnesses in future [2,3,4,5,6,7]. Birth weight is strongly influenced by preterm delivery or restricted fetal growth (i.e. term birth with LBW), called ‘intra-uterine growth retardation’ (IUGR) [3, 15, 16]. These two types of LBW should be treated separately as they are linked to different risks of mortality and morbidity as well as to different etiology, requiring different preventive. Preterm births (PTB) and low birth weight (LBW) - the two distinct adverse pregnancy outcomes are the major determinants of perinatal survival and development. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of LBW and PTB and identify the maternal and neonatal risk factors influencing them
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