The Association Between Maternal Short Stature and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Admission: A Longitudinal Study in Sabah

BACKGROUND

The rising number of newborns requiring neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) care poses immediate threats to their health and places emotional and financial burdens on families and healthcare systems. This study investigates the direct effect of maternal short stature on NICU admission in Sabah, Malaysia.

METHODS

A longitudinal study at Hospital Wanita Dan Kanak-Kanak Sabah (HWKKS) from 2018 to 2022 included 254 Malaysian women with singleton pregnancies and neonates born after the 37th week, excluding significant disorders, smoking/alcohol use, fetal death, and malformations. Birth weight, gestational age, and neonatal condition were recorded. The association between maternal height, low birth weight (LBW), and NICU admission was analyzed.

RESULTS

LBW prevalence was 15.35%, with an average participant height of 147.37 cm. Maternal stature was significantly associated with LBW, with the shortest quartile (Q1) having the highest risk. LBW was significantly associated with NICU admission, with LBW newborns at a sixfold higher risk. Maternal height was also significantly associated with NICU admission, with Q1 having the highest risk. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve suggested combining Q1 and Q2 for the best prediction of NICU admission, indicating that shorter mothers face a higher risk of neonates requiring NICU care.

CONCLUSION

Maternal short stature could be a valuable predictor of LBW and NICU admission risk. It may be a screening tool to assess these risks in healthcare settings. However, further research is needed to explore this association's underlying mechanisms and potential interventions.

Kangaroo Mother Care for Low-Birth-Weight Babies in Low and Middle-Income Countries: A Narrative Review

In low and middle-income countries (LMICs), the infant mortality rate is much higher than the high-income countries (HICs). The higher infant mortality is due to low birth weight (LBW) a combination of intra-uterine growth retardation (IUGR) and prematurity, which are risk factors for acquiring infectious diseases amongst newborns. Kangaroo mother care (KMC) is a neonatal procedure that is carried out in newborn infants, especially in preterm babies and LBW babies. It is skin-to-skin contact between a mother's bare chest and a stable infant. KMC is an important intervention in reducing infant mortality rates in LMICs. A comprehensive literature and data search was done using key databases like PubMed and Google Scholar. A total of 42 articles out of 1,168 articles were selected for review after screening and elimination of the repeated articles. Through this review we have tried to analyse the benefits of KMC in newborns, the need for the participation of fathers and family members, and the need for implementation of this practice at a broader level by policy formulation in LMICs. We have also discussed the need for KMC for the prevention of infant mortality in LBW newborns in LMICs.

Maternal exposure to metal components of PM2.5 and low birth weight in New Mexico, USA

Infants with low birth weight (LBW) are more likely to have health problems than normal weight infants. In studies examining the associations between particulate matter (PM) exposures and LBW, there is a tendency to focus on PM 2.5 as a whole. However, insufficient information is available regarding the effects of different components of PM 2.5 on birth weight. This study identified the associations between maternal exposure to 10 metal components of PM 2.5 and LBW in offspring based on small area (divided by population size) level data in New Mexico, USA, from 2012 to 2016. This study used a pruned feed-forward neural network (pruned-FNN) approach to estimate the annual average exposure index to each metal component in each small area. The linear regression model was employed to examine the association between maternal PM 2.5 metal exposures and LBW rate in small areas, adjusting for the female percentage and race/ethnicity compositions, marriage status and educational level in the population. An interquartile range increase in maternal exposure to mercury and chromium of PM 2.5 increased LBW rate by 0.43% (95% confidence interval (CI): 0.18%-0.68%) and 0.63% (95% CI: 0.15%-1.12%), respectively. These findings suggest that maternal exposure to metal components of air pollutants may increase the risk of LBW in offspring. With no similar studies in New Mexico, this study also posed great importance because of a higher LBW rate in New Mexico than the national average. These findings provide critical information to inform further epidemiological, biological, and toxicological studies.

An epidemiological survey on low birth weight infants in China and analysis of outcomes of full-term low birth weight infants

BACKGROUND

Low birth weight (LBW) is one of the leading causes of adverse perinatal outcomes and is closely related to neonatal disease and death. The incidence of LBW has been increasing. The aim of this study was to investigate the current incidence rate and factors affecting low birth weight infants and perinatal outcomes of full-term low birth weight infants in mainland China.

METHODS

This paper describes a retrospective analysis of children born in 39 hospitals of different types in 14 different provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions in seven districts within China throughout 2011. The data were first collected in hardcopy format and then entered into computer network databases. Data covering a total of 112,441 cases were collected. Cases were excluded if data were incomplete and in the case of miscarriage before 24 weeks of gestation, multiple pregnancies, or induction of labor due to fetal malformation, intrauterine death, and other reasons, leaving a total of 101,163 cases. SPSS 18.0 and SAS 9.2 statistical packages were used to analyze the collected data.

RESULTS

According to this research, the incidence of LBW in mainland China was 6.1%, which is higher than the 5.87% reported in 2000, and it varied across different areas. The incidence of LBW was significantly higher in tertiary care hospitals than in secondary care hospitals. LBW was found to be associated with maternal age of less than 20 years, low level of maternal education, previous histories of adverse pregnancies, and with pregnancy comorbidities and complications, such as hypertensive disorders during pregnancy, anemia, oligohydramnios, premature rupture of membranes, and gestational diabetes. The rates of stillbirths, severe neonatal asphyxia, and deaths among full-term LBW infants were 2.42%, 0.83%, and 3.49%, respectively. The rates of stillbirths and neonatal deaths among full-term LBW infants born by caesarean section were 0.5% and 1.0%, respectively, which was lower than vaginal delivery.

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of LBW has increased in China. LBW is a leading cause of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Health care during pregnancy and management of high-risk factors for LBW may reduce the incidence of LWB and the death rate of LBW infants.