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A Comparison of Low Birth Weight Among Newborns of Early Adolescents, Late Adolescents, and Adult Mothers in the Peruvian Amazon

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Abstract

To compare low birth weight (LBW: <2,500 g) between infants born to adolescent and adult mothers in Iquitos, Peru. A random sample of 4,467 records of women who delivered at the Hospital Apoyo Iquitos between 2005 and 2007 was collected from hospital birth registries. Multivariate logistic and linear regression analyses were performed to compare LBW in newborns of adolescents (10–14, 15–19 years) and adults (≥20 years) and then for primiparous mothers with a normal gestational age, adjusting for newborn sex, antenatal care, and location of the mother’s residence. A total of 4,384 mothers had had a singleton live birth and 1,501 were primiparous with a normal gestational age. Early and late adolescents had significantly greater odds of having a LBW infant than adults (OR = 2.28, 95%CI: 1.09, 4.78; OR = 1.67, 95%CI: 1.30, 2.14, respectively). For primiparous mothers with a normal gestational age, the same was true only for early adolescents (OR = 3.07, 95%CI: 1.09, 8.61). There were significant differences in mean birth weight between adults (3178.7 g) and both adolescent age groups overall (10–14 years: 2848.9 g; 15–19 years: 2998.3 g) and for primiparous mothers with a normal gestational age (10–14 years: 2900.8 g; 15–19 years: 3059.2 g; ≥20 years: 3151.8 g). Results suggest there is an important difference between adolescent and adult mothers in terms of newborn birth weight, especially among early adolescents. Future research on LBW and possibly other adverse birth outcomes should consider early adolescents as a separate sub-group of higher risk.

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Acknowledgments

Sources of Support: Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Interdisciplinary Capacity Enhancement grant (#HOA 80064); CIHR Master’s Award—Frederick Banting and Charles Best Canada Graduate Scholarship; Centre for Research and Teaching on Women—Margaret Gillett Graduate Research Award; Research at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre is funded in part by a grant from the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec. Assistance from the staff at the Asociación Civil Selva Amazónica, the Hospital Apoyo Iquitos, and Evelyn Burga is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, & Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Julia A. Ryan, Elham Rahme, Amee R. Manges & Theresa W. Gyorkos

  2. Division of Clinical Epidemiology, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Julia A. Ryan, Elham Rahme, Serene A. Joseph & Theresa W. Gyorkos

  3. Asociación Civil Selva Amazónica, Iquitos, Peru

    Martín Casapía

  4. Hospital Apoyo Iquitos, Iquitos, Peru

    Eder Aguilar & Hermánn Silva

  5. School of Nursing, and Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McGill University/McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada

    Anita J. Gagnon

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  1. Julia A. Ryan
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Correspondence to Theresa W. Gyorkos.

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Ryan, J.A., Casapía, M., Aguilar, E. et al. A Comparison of Low Birth Weight Among Newborns of Early Adolescents, Late Adolescents, and Adult Mothers in the Peruvian Amazon. Matern Child Health J 15, 587–596 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-010-0621-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-010-0621-8

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