January 26, 2010, 4:30PM
HEALTH ROUNDUP
A glance at recent news
Birth weights decline in recent years
The study: Researchers from Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute's Department of Population Medicine, an affiliate of Harvard Medical School, analyzed data from nearly 37 million babies born full-term in the United States between 1990 and 2005.
Finding: The researchers had expected to see continued increases in birth weights, the result in part of women being older, weighing more and smoking less. Instead, they found that birth weights decreased an average of 52 grams (1.83 ounces) between 1990 and 2005. Birth weights of infants born to a subset of women previously considered to be at low risk (white, well-educated, married, nonsmoker, early prenatal care, vaginal delivery) weighed an average of 79 grams (2.78 ounces) less at birth during the study period.
Significance: The decline in birth weight might be evidence of serious issues on the horizon. Babies born small face short-term and long-term complications such as increased hospitalization and higher risk for chronic diseases in adulthood.
Comment: "A logical conclusion might be that trends in obstetric management, such as greater use of cesarean delivery and induction of labor, might account for these decreases in birth weight and gestation length," said Dr. Emily Oken, assistant professor of population medicine at Harvard. "However, our analysis showed that this was not the case."
Where published: The February issue of the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology.
Funding: The National Institutes of Health.
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