Lv. Klerman et al., THE IMPACT OF SHORT INTERPREGNANCY INTERVALS ON PREGNANCY OUTCOMES INA LOW-INCOME POPULATION, American journal of public health, 88(8), 1998, pp. 1182-1185
Objectives. The objective of this study was to determine whether the l
ength of the interval between pregnancies was associated with either p
reterm birth or intrauterine growth retardation in a law-income, large
ly Black population. Methods. Thr study population consisted of 4400 w
omen who had received prenatal care in county clinics and had two cons
ecutive singleton births between 1980 and 1990. Results.. Interpregnan
cy intervals were positively associated with age and negatively associ
ated with the trimester in which care was initiated in the second preg
nancy, Whites had shorter intervals than non-Whites, nle percentage of
preterm births increased as the length of the interpregnancy interval
decreased, but only ol women who had not had a previous preterm birth
. The association between interval and preterm birth was maintained wh
en other factors associated with preterm birth were controlled. There
was no significant relationship bi tween intrauterine growth retardati
on and interpregnancy interval. Conclusions. Women, particularly those
who art:poor and young, should be advised of the potential harm to th
eir infants of short interpregnancy intervals.