Quality of prenatal care; selected social, behavioral, and biomedical factors; and birth weight

Article Abstract:

To better understand the sociodemographic, biologic, and behavioral factors that contribute to the quality of prenatal care among low-income black women, 202 new mothers were studied during the first two to five days after giving birth. Information was obtained by interviews and reviews of medical records. The quality of prenatal care was evaluated according to its extent and its source (none, walk-in clinic or emergency care as needed, or hospital or office that required an appointment). Factors such as illicit drug use, hypertension, age under 16 or above 35, and previous low birth weight infant, were taken into account in calculating a biomedical risk score. The impact of prenatal care on infant birth weight was the specific focus of the study, since low birth weight (below 2,500 grams or 5.5 pounds) is correlated with increased mortality. Results showed that six factors predicted the quality of prenatal care: the type of insurance; the woman's initial attitude toward pregnancy; the extent to which prenatal care is perceived as important; the delay before the woman told someone about the pregnancy; the woman's attitude toward health professionals; and the month of pregnancy when it was first suspected. In predicting birth weight, source of care, month of pregnancy when it was first suspected, substance abuse, and hypertension were the four most important factors. The significance of the source of prenatal care in relation to the pregnancy's outcome is a new research finding. In addition, the fact that health insurance, perceived importance of prenatal care, and attitudes toward health professionals are all controllable by social institutions, offers some hope that the currently high incidence (12.4 percent) of low birth weight among black infants in the US can be reduced. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Health aspects, Social aspects, Evaluation, Causes of, Demographic aspects, Birth weight, Low, Low birth weight, Prenatal care, African American women

---

Diabetic retinopathy

Article Abstract:

The physiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diabetic retinopathy are reviewed. Topics include proposed mechanisms, symptoms, vascular endothelial growth factor, pigment-epithelium-derived factor, inhibitors of growth hormone, genetics, optical coherence tomography, and measurements of retinal blood flow, vascular leakage, and oxygenation. Diabetic retinopathy is a disease of the retina inside the eye that is caused by diabetes.

Care and treatment, Diagnosis, Physiological aspects, Diabetic retinopathy

---

Similar abstracts:

• Abstracts: Diabetic retinopathy in pregnancy: a review. Cocaine abuse is associated with abruptio placentae and decreased birth weight, but not shorter labor
• Abstracts: Management of diabetes mellitus and pregnancy: a survey of obstetricians and maternal-fetal specialists. Controlled trial of a preterm labor detection program: efficacy and costs
• Abstracts: Sexual behavior, venereal diseases, hygiene practices, and invasive cervical cancer in a high-risk population
• Abstracts: Effect of partial ileal bypass surgery on mortality and morbidity from coronary heart disease in patients with hypercholesterolemia
• Abstracts: Intraoperative evaluation of depth of myometrial invasion in stage I endometrial adenocarcinoma. Treatment failure in endometrial carcinoma

This website is not affiliated with document authors or copyright owners. This page is provided for informational purposes only. Unintentional errors are possible.