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Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Savitz, DA; Harmon, Q; Siega-Riz, AM; Herring, AH; Dole, N; Thorp, JM
Published in: Maternal and child health journal
August 2012

Most previous studies of preterm birth have considered risk factors in isolation rather than examining the collective impact of multiple candidate determinants. In order to examine the combined impact of a set of behavioral risk factors on the risk of preterm birth, we analyzed data collected for the Pregnancy, Infection, and Nutrition Study on a range of sociodemographic, behavioral, and related factors. Women who received prenatal care at selected clinics in central North Carolina and gave birth in the period 1995-2005 were recruited into a prospective cohort study, with 4,251 women providing the required information on risk factors and pregnancy outcome. A number of demographic and behavioral attributes were modestly associated with preterm birth, with odds ratios of 1.3-1.5, including age >35, African-American ethnicity, height of 63 inches or less, parity 2+, and delivery at the academic medical center. Despite weak associations for individual risk factors, changes in a constellation of behaviors during pregnancy predict substantial shifts in the risk of preterm birth, suggesting a reduction from 8 to 3% preterm among those with a low-risk baseline profile, and a reduction from 18 to 7% preterm among those with a high-risk baseline profile. While inferences are limited by the incomplete range of available predictors, uncertainty regarding whether observed associations are causal, and substantial challenges in changing component behaviors, the possibility of substantial reduction in risk merits more serious consideration of whether behavioral interventions could markedly reduce the risk of preterm birth.

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Published In

Maternal and child health journal

DOI

EISSN

1573-6628

ISSN

1092-7875

Publication Date

August 2012

Volume

16

Issue

6

Start / End Page

1151 / 1163

Related Subject Headings

  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Social Support
  • Risk Factors
  • Reproductive Behavior
  • Public Health
  • Prospective Studies
  • Prenatal Care
  • Premature Birth
  • Pregnancy Outcome
  • Pregnancy Complications, Infectious
 

Citation

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Chicago
ICMJE
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Savitz, D. A., Harmon, Q., Siega-Riz, A. M., Herring, A. H., Dole, N., & Thorp, J. M. (2012). Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study. Maternal and Child Health Journal, 16(6), 1151–1163. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0895-5
Savitz, David A., Quaker Harmon, Anna Maria Siega-Riz, Amy H. Herring, Nancy Dole, and John M. Thorp. “Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study.Maternal and Child Health Journal 16, no. 6 (August 2012): 1151–63. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-011-0895-5.
Savitz DA, Harmon Q, Siega-Riz AM, Herring AH, Dole N, Thorp JM. Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study. Maternal and child health journal. 2012 Aug;16(6):1151–63.
Savitz, David A., et al. “Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study.Maternal and Child Health Journal, vol. 16, no. 6, Aug. 2012, pp. 1151–63. Epmc, doi:10.1007/s10995-011-0895-5.
Savitz DA, Harmon Q, Siega-Riz AM, Herring AH, Dole N, Thorp JM. Behavioral influences on preterm birth: integrated analysis of the pregnancy, infection, and nutrition study. Maternal and child health journal. 2012 Aug;16(6):1151–1163.
Journal cover image

Published In

Maternal and child health journal

DOI

EISSN

1573-6628

ISSN

1092-7875

Publication Date

August 2012

Volume

16

Issue

6

Start / End Page

1151 / 1163

Related Subject Headings

  • Socioeconomic Factors
  • Social Support
  • Risk Factors
  • Reproductive Behavior
  • Public Health
  • Prospective Studies
  • Prenatal Care
  • Premature Birth
  • Pregnancy Outcome
  • Pregnancy Complications, Infectious