Risks For Premature and Low Birth Weight Babies in Will County
Nationally more than 476,000 births per year are premature (March of Dimes, 2003). The overall rate of pre-term birth in the United States is 11.9%, the highest rate ever reported for the U.S. (2001 data, National Center for Health Statistics). The United States has the highest rate of pre-term labor among the developed nations. Low birth weight and pre-term labor contribute to the infant mortality rate. Nationally, low birth weight and pre-term labor was the second leading cause of infant death (March of Dimes, 2003). According to the March of Dimes, in Illinois, over 22,360 babies are born too soon. More specifically Will County has one of the highest rates of infant mortality in the state of Illinois. Infants who survive have more chronic conditions, more limitations in daily activities and poorer overall health than newborns with normal birth weights in the first few years of life (Illinois Department of Public Health, 2002). The specific causes of low birth weight and pre-term labor are unknown, although race, economic status, access to prenatal care and health behaviors are risks that have been previously linked to the problem. By addressing the risk factors we can hopefully lower the incidence of pre-term labor and low birth weight, which would lead to a reduction in the infant mortality rate. In this research a pilot study was conducted to examine how the factors of stress, race and age are associated to low birth weight and pre-term labor in Will County. The population that was studied in this research was adult women that have given birth within the last three months and are receiving care at the Women, Infants and Children Clinic (W.I.C) at the Will County Health Department. The women were given a life events survey to determine the amount of stress they experienced while pregnant. Data was also collected on weeks of gestation at the time of delivery, the amount the child weighed at birth, age of mother and race of mother. After data collection, a logistic regression statistical test was proposed to be used to determine if there is a correlation between pre-term and low birth weight vs. race, age and stress. A 95% confidence interval and a p value of <0.05 were to be used in statistical testing. The results for the study were that the data was inconclusive. More data must be collected to make any associations. However, I hypothesize that after more data collection is completed, there will be an association between stress and pre-term labor and low birth weight. I hypothesize that stress is an independent variable to pre-term labor and low birth weight.
School:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Department:
Community Health
Research Advisor:
Susan Farner
Department of Research Advisor:
Community Health
Year of Publication:
2003