Determinants of low birth weight : a study of births in the Midlands province of Zimbabwe

Abstract

The study examined relationships between maternal risk factors and incidence of low birth weight using maternity registers for two hospitals in the Midlands Province in Zimbabwe over a four-year period. Only full term births were included in the analysis. A low birth weight incidence rate of (9.8%) was found among the 7 251 index births included in the study. Logistic regression analysis showed that extremes in maternal age (too young or too old), high parity and rural residence were positively associated with low birth weight. Low birth weight incidence rate varied only marginally over the four-year period.