15
views
0
recommends
+1 Recommend
0 collections
    0
    shares
      • Record: found
      • Abstract: found
      • Article: found
      Is Open Access

      Differences in Birthweight Outcomes: A Longitudinal Study Based on Siblings

      research-article

      Read this article at

      Bookmark
          There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

          Abstract

          Objectives: We investigate the differences in birthweight between first- and second-borns, evaluating the impact of changes in pregnancy (e.g., gestational age), demographic (e.g., age), and social (e.g., education level, marital status) maternal characteristics. Data and Methods: All analyses are performed on data collected in Umbria (Italy) taking into account a set of 792 women who delivered twice from 2005 to 2008. Firstly, we use a univariate paired t-test for the comparison between weights of first- and second-borns; Secondly, we use linear and nonlinear regression approaches in order to: (i) evaluate the effect of demographic and social maternal characteristics and (ii) predict the odds-ratio of low and high birthweight infants, respectively. Results: We find that the birthweight of second-borns is significantly higher than that of first-borns. Statistically significant effects are related with a longer gestational age, an increased number of visits during the pregnancy, and the gender of infants. On the other hand, we do not observe any significant effect related with mother’s age and with other characteristics of interest.

          Related collections

          Most cited references32

          • Record: found
          • Abstract: not found
          • Book: not found

          Categorical Data Analysis

            Bookmark
            • Record: found
            • Abstract: found
            • Article: not found

            The risk of maternal nutritional depletion and poor outcomes increases in early or closely spaced pregnancies.

            An adequate supply of nutrients is probably the single most important environmental factor affecting pregnancy outcome. Women with early or closely spaced pregnancies are at increased risk of entering a reproductive cycle with reduced reserves. Maternal nutrient depletion may contribute to the increased incidence of preterm births and fetal growth retardation among these women as well as the increased risk of maternal mortality and morbidity. In the past, it was assumed that the fetus functioned as a parasite and withdrew its nutritional needs from maternal tissues. Studies in both animals and humans demonstrate, however, that if the maternal nutrient supply is inadequate, the delicate balance between maternal and fetal needs is disturbed and a state of biological competition exists. Furthermore, maternal nutritional status at conception influences how nutrients are partitioned between the mother and fetal dyad. In severe deficiencies maternal nutrition is given preference; in a marginal state the fetal compartment is favored. Although the studies of nutrient partitioning have focused on energy and protein, the partitioning of micronutrients may also be influenced by the maternal nutritional status. Marginal intakes of iron and folic acid during the reproductive period induce a poor maternal status for these nutrients during the interpregnancy interval. Poor iron and folic acid status has also been linked to preterm births and fetal growth retardation. Supplementation with food and micronutrients during the interpregnancy period may improve pregnancy outcomes and maternal health among women with early or closely spaced pregnancies.
              Bookmark
              • Record: found
              • Abstract: found
              • Article: not found

              Barriers to prenatal care in Europe.

              In Europe, it is sometimes assumed that few barriers to prenatal care exist because extensive programs of health insurance and initiatives to promote participation in prenatal care have been established for many decades. A case-control study was performed in ten European countries (Austria, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden). Postpartum interviews were conducted between 1995 and 1996. A total of 1283 women with inadequate prenatal care (i.e., with 0, 1, or 2 prenatal care visits or a first prenatal care visit after 15 completed weeks of pregnancy) and 1280 controls with adequate prenatal care were included in the analysis combining data from the ten countries. Based on combined data of the ten countries, lack of health insurance was found to be an important risk factor for inadequate prenatal care (crude odds ratio [OR] at 95% confidence interval [CI]: 30.1 [20.1-47.1]). Women with inadequate prenatal care were more likely to be aged < 20 years (16.4% vs 4.8%) and with higher parity (number of children previously borne) than controls. They were more likely to be foreign nationals, unmarried, and with an unplanned pregnancy. Women with inadequate care were also more likely to have less education and no regular income. They had more difficulties dealing with health services organization and child care. Cultural and financial barriers were present, but after adjusting for confounders by logistic regression, perceived financial difficulty was not a significant factor for inadequate prenatal care (adjusted OR [95% CI]: 0.7 [0.4-1.3]). Personal, socioeconomic, organizational, and cultural barriers to prenatal care exist in Europe.
                Bookmark

                Author and article information

                Journal
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                ijerph
                International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
                MDPI
                1661-7827
                1660-4601
                June 2014
                20 June 2014
                : 11
                : 6
                : 6472-6484
                Affiliations
                [1 ]Department of Economics, University of Perugia, Via A. Pascoli, 20, 06123 Perugia, Italy; E-Mail: sbacci@ 123456stat.unipg.it
                [2 ]Department of Experimental Medicine, Public Health Section, University of Perugia, P.le Gambuli, 1, 06122 Sant’Andrea delle Fratte, 06156 Perugia, Italy; E-Mails: manuela.chiavarini@ 123456unipg.it (M.C.); liliana.minelli@ 123456unipg.it (L.M.)
                [3 ]Department of Political Sciences, University of Perugia, Via A. Pascoli, 20, 06123 Perugia, Italy; E-Mail: lpieroni@ 123456unipg.it
                Author notes
                [* ]Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: bart@ 123456stat.unipg.it ; Tel.: +39-75-585-5227; Fax: +39-75-585-5950.
                Article
                ijerph-11-06472
                10.3390/ijerph110606472
                4076673
                24955715
                9b754d8b-fa00-449f-8c0b-7242d769e2e3
                © 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

                This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/).

                History
                : 10 March 2014
                : 08 May 2014
                : 14 May 2014
                Categories
                Article

                Public health
                birthweight,maternal characteristics,standard certificate of live birth
                Public health
                birthweight, maternal characteristics, standard certificate of live birth

                Comments

                Comment on this article