The distribution of birth weight was determined for children in Campinas, Brazil, and risk factors for low birth weight were assessed. A cross-sectional study was conducted using the variables from Live Birth Certificates in 2001. The dependent variable was birth weight and the independent ones were mothers' characteristics and those related to their pregnancies and to newborns. The association between variables was assessed by the chi-square test, crude odds-ratio (OR) and adjusted odds-ratio (ORadj) values. The mean birth weight was 3,142g, with a distribution varying from 285 to 5,890g, in which 65.1% of the children weighed 3,000g or more, 25.7% weighed from 2,500 to 2,999g and 9.1% presented low birth weight. The determinants for low birth weight for premature babies were cesarean sections, twin babies, female babies and mothers having less than seven medical visits in prenatal care. For term babies, the risk for low birth weight was increased for twins, triplets or more, mother more than 34 years old, those who studied up to seven years, or 8-11 years, and mothers having less than seven medical visits in prenatal care. The results indicate that the distribution of birth weight in Campinas was inadequate and the proportion of low birth weight was more than two times higher than in developed countries. The likelihood for low birth weight was higher for premature babies born by C-sections, preterm and term babies from a multiple pregnancy, female babies, babies of mothers with inappropriate prenatal care and term babies of older mothers and with a low educational level.
Infant and maternal health; Birth weight; Low birth weight infant; Risk factors
