RELATION OF MATERNAL RACE TO THE RISK OF PRETERM, NON-LOW BIRTH-WEIGHT INFANTS - A POPULATION STUDY

The authors used 1982-1983 Illinois vital records and 1980 US Census i ncome data to determine the contribution of maternal race to the risk of preterm (<260 days), non-low birth weight (>2,500 g) infants. This older cohort was chosen to avoid the confounding effect of cocaine ass ociated with its increased local availability after 1985. In Chicago, the unadjusted preterm, non-low birth weight rate was 14% for African Americans (n = 43,059) compared with 9% for Mexican Americans (n = 10, 397) and 7% for whites (n = 26,152) (odds ratio = 1.7, 95% confidence interval 1.6-1.8; odds ratio = 2.4, 95% confidence interval 2.3-2.5, r espectively). In logistic models that included maternal sociodemograph ic and prenatal care variables, the adjusted odds ratio of preterm, no n-low birth weight for African Americans compared with Mexican America ns and whites was 1.6 (95% confidence interval 1.4-1.8) and 1.5 (95% c onfidence interval 1.2-1.7), respectively. The authors conclude that s ome factor closely linked to the African-American race, not underserve d minority status per se, is a fundamental cause of preterm, non-low b irth weight. Am J Epidemiol 1996;143:333-7.