PUERTO RICAN AND MEXICAN-AMERICAN SMALL-FOR-GESTATIONAL-AGE(SGA) RATES REMAIN DISPARATE AMONG LOW-RISK URBAN MOTHERS: A POPULATION-BASED STUDY.† 1619

Abstract

There are limited available data on the prevalence of SGA infants among urban Hispanics. We used 1982-83 Illinois vital records and 1980 U.S. census income data to determine the association of maternal ethnicity and SGA(weight-for-gestational-age < 10th percentile) rates among Hispanics in Chicago. This older cohort was chosen to avoid the confounding effect of cocaine associated with its increased local availability after 1985. The SGA rate was 3.3% for infants with Puerto Rican (PR) mothers (N=3,483) and 2.1% for infants with U.S.-born Mexican-American mothers (N=2,253) compared to 1.4% for infants with foreign-born Mexican-American mothers (N=8,746); OR=2.4(1.8-3.1) and 1.5(1.1-3.1), respectively. Most striking, the PR but not U.S.-born Mexican-American disadvantage persisted as maternal risk status improved (Table). In a multiple logistic regression model that included maternal age, education, marital status, parity, prenatal care, and community income, the adjusted OR of SGA for PR was 2.9(1.4-4.5). We conclude that 1) the relationship of Puerto Rican ethnicity to the risk of intrauterine growth retardation is independent of commonly cited risk factors and 2) the “epidemiologic paradox” is confined to foreign-born Mexican-Americans.