BACKGROUND Previous epidemiologic studies have considered the effects of individual air pollutants on birth outcomes, whereas a multiple-pollutant approach is more relevant to public health policy. OBJECTIVES The present study compared the observed effect sizes of prenatal fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) (a component of PM2.5) exposures on birth outc...

Background & aim: The caesarean rate is on the rise in Cameroon; nonetheless, there is a paucity of data regarding its associated risk factors and outcomes.  This study aimed to determine the associated risk factors, as well as maternal and fetal outcomes of caesarean delivery in four hospitals in Cameroon. Methods:</str...

Abstract In this article, I investigate the association between maternal socioeconomic status (SES) and children’s birth outcomes (birth weight) across three different cohorts. also perform mediation analysis to assess degree which smoking habits during pregnancy account for relationship. draw from UK cohort studies: 1958 National Child Developmental Study (NCDS); 1970 British Cohort (B70); 200...

The primary goal of the current study was to examine the association between maternal distress during pregnancy, conceptualized as stress, anxiety, and depression, and infant reproductive outcomes. It was hypothesized that women who report high levels of distress during pregnancy would be more likely to experience adverse reproductive outcomes. An additional goal of the study was to examine the...

background: maternal nutrition during pregnancy affects the birth weight of neonates. some of the undesirable pregnancy outcomes are linked to lower birth weights. this study aimed to assess the relationship between maternal dietary patterns, weight gain during pregnancy and nitric oxide (no), as an endothelial relaxing factor, and the possible effects on birth weight.materials and methods: at ...

CONTEXT Teenagers are more likely than older women to have a low-birth-weight infant or a preterm birth, and the risks may be particularly high when they have a second birth. Identifying predictors of these outcomes in second teenage births is essential for developing preventive strategies. METHODS Birth certificate data for 1993-2002 were linked to identify second births to Milwaukee teenage...

While the number of women in developed countries who plan a home birth is low, the number has increased over the past decade in the US, and there is evidence that more women would choose this option if it were readily available. Rates of planned home birth range from 0.1% in Sweden to 20% in the Netherlands, where home birth has always been an integrated part of the maternity system. Benefits o...

For several decades Sri Lanka has shown better health outcomes compared to countries with similar income levels. These outcomes are mainly for infant and maternal mortality rates (IMR and MMR respectively) and life expectancy at birth. The country is often hailed as a model to achieve ‘good health at low cost’ [1, 2]. However, the apparently ‘good’ figures are average values that conceal wide v...

BACKGROUND Progress toward meeting Millennium Development Goal 5, which aims to improve maternal and reproductive health outcomes, is behind schedule. This is despite ever increasing volumes of official development aid targeting the goal, calling into question the distribution and efficacy of aid. The 2005 Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness represented a global commitment to reform aid prac...

Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a predictor of age-related disease onset and mortality. The association in adults of psychosocial stress or stress biomarkers with LTL suggests telomere biology may represent a possible underlying mechanism linking stress and health outcomes. It is, however, unknown whether stress exposure in intrauterine life can produce variations in LTL, thereby potentially...