New Cohort Study Revealed Various Risk Factors Linked To Low Baby Birth Weights
A new study conducted by researchers at Swansea University in Wales has identified key risk factors for low baby birth weights. Some of these factors included multiple births, a short period of time between pregnancies, and when mothers have a maternal mental health or physical condition.
According to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), over 8% of all newborn babies born in the United States are considered low birthweight (LBW)– or weighing below 2,500 grams (five pounds and eight ounces).
So, the researchers aimed to better understand LBW risk factors in order to pave the way for more effective resources and prompt intervention scheduling.
The cohort study included 693,377 children selected from the National Community Child Health database who were born in Wales between January 1, 1998, and December 31, 2018.
The team used this data to anonymously link various administrative datasets that are routinely collected in hopes of illuminating LBW risk factors.
The researchers found that women who are expecting more than one baby– such as twins or triplets– and women who have less than one year between pregnancies are at the highest risk of delivering a baby with low birth weight.
Mothers who have maternal physical health conditions, such as anemia and diabetes, as well as mental health conditions– including depression, anxiety, severe mental illness, and use anti-depressants during pregnancy– are also at the highest risk.
Other risk factors for LBW highlighted by the study ranged from smoking, substance misuse, and alcohol-related hospital admission to domestic abuse, maternal age being over 35 years old, and residency in a deprived area.
So, moving forward, the study’s authors made various suggestions to address these factors and reduce the risk of LBW.
Oksana – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual child
These included the treatment of underlying physical health conditions like anemia and diabetes, promoting pregnancy planning with healthy intervals and maternal weights, addressing maternal mental health conditions, and understanding pre-term birth history and history of multiple births.
“The most important risk factors include maternal factors such as smoking, maternal weight, substance misuse record, maternal age along with deprivation, pregnancy interval, and birth order of the child,” explained Amrita Bandyopadhyay, the study’s lead researcher.
“So, resources to reduce the prevalence of LBW should focus on improving maternal health, reducing pre-term births, increasing awareness of a sufficient pregnancy interval, and providing adequate support for mothers’ mental health and well-being.”
This large study spanned two decades and provided invaluable insight into the numerous risk factors that result in low birth weight. And according to Kieran Walshe, the Direct of Health and Care Research Wales, it represents the successful use of pre-existing data resources.
“It is a powerful example of how researchers can use routinely collected data to help improve care for both mothers and babies without putting additional pressures on frontline healthcare professionals,” Walshe said.
Now, the researchers believe their findings provide healthcare professionals with tangible recommendations for focusing prevention efforts and reducing low birth weight incidence rates among newborns.
To read the study’s complete findings, which have since been published in BMJ Open, visit the link here.
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