BIRTH OUTCOMES OF KOREAN WOMEN IN HAWAII

Since the end of the Korean War, immigration of Koreans to the United States has increased rapidly. In 1990, 11.6 percent of all Asians in t he United States were of Korean ethnicity, and it is projected that Ko reans will outnumber all other Asian groups, except Filipinos, in the United States by the year 2030. Despite the growing size of this popul ation, very little is known about their health status. This study, usi ng 1979-89 Hawaii vital record data, investigates the relationship bet ween maternal sociodemographic characteristics, prenatal care utilizat ion factors, and birth outcomes among Koreans as compared with Caucasi ans. The ethnic term ''Caucasian'' is used in Hawaii's vital records a nd is synonymous with non-Hispanic whites. Korean mothers were more li kely to be older and have lower educational attainment, and less likel y to be adolescent, single, or to have received adequate prenatal care than Caucasian mothers. More than 80 percent of the Korean mothers we re foreign born. Significantly higher risks for very preterm delivery (less than 33 weeks) and very low birth weight births were observed fo r Koreans as compared with Caucasians. Nativity had no effect on birth outcome in this population. The results of this study suggest that pr evention of preterm birth is an important focus for improving pregnanc y outcomes in this growing ethnic group.