We investigated time trends in maternal weight before and during pregnancy and in infant birthweight in France, from 1972 to 2003, using data on singleton live term births from the representative National Perinatal Surveys of 1972, 1981, 1995, 1998 and 2003 (n=8,664, 4,494, 11,445, 12,006, 12,692, respectively). Mothers were interviewed a few days after delivery and data on delivery and the new...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the growth of VLBW infants in South Africa. The aim of this study was to assess the growth of a cohort of VLBW infants in Johannesburg. METHODS A secondary analysis of a prospective cohort was conducted on 139 VLBW infants (birth weight ≤ 1500 g) admitted to Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital. Growth measurements were obtained from patient files a...

BACKGROUND Mothers bearing small offspring are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. The cardiovascular risk for fathers of small offspring is, however, inconclusive. Very few studies with sufficiently large sample sizes have been conducted to specifically differentiate the maternal/paternal CVD risk in association with offspring birth weight in the same population. MET...

OBJECTIVE To investigate whether size at birth and rate of fetal growth influence the risk of breast cancer in adulthood. DESIGN Cohort identified from detailed birth records, with 97% follow up. SETTING Uppsala Academic Hospital, Sweden. PARTICIPANTS 5358 singleton females born during 1915-29, alive and traced to the 1960 census. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Incidence of breast cancer before ...

BACKGROUND Maternal physical activity during pregnancy could alter offspring's IQ and neurodevelopment in childhood. METHODS Children belonging to a birth cohort were followed at 3, 12, 24 and 48 months of age. Physical activity during pregnancy was assessed retrospectively at birth. Neurodevelopment was evaluated by Battelle's Development Inventory (12, 24 and 48 months) and IQ by the Weschl...

the relation between periconceptional vaginal permicide use and sex ratio at birth, birth weight, and the frequency of congenital anomalies was examined in a cohort of 2,712 new york city obstetric patients, 149 of whom (5.5 per cent) became pregnant while using spermicides or had used spermicides before and after conception. periconceptional spermicide use was not associated with any important...