Survey on seasonal variation in the frequency of preterm births in the city of Rafsanjan in 2011-2012
Advances in Nursing & Midwifery,
Vol. 25 No. 88 (2016),
10 Farvardin 2016
,
Page 57-65
Abstract
Abstract
Background and aim: Seasonal variations in incidence of diseases can be reason of effect of
environmental factors on health. Since the seasonal pattern in preterm birth varies across countries
and because of importance of preterm births and unknown causes of it, this study was designed to
investigate the frequency of preterm births in different seasons.
Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study used data of all 5,860 infants born in the
Rafsanjan Nik-Nafs hospital in 2011-2012. Inclusion criteria included live birth more than 20 weeks
gestational age and birth weight more than 500 grams. Gestational age was determined according to
mother's last menstrual period date. The criterion for preterm birth was gestational age less than 37
weeks gestation. Data was collected through delivery records of hospital medical documentary unit.
For data analysis, chi-square and Fisher's exact tests was used.
Results: The prevalence of preterm birth in this study was 6.96% (408 cases). The highest and the
lowest frequency of preterm births were in January and February, respectively (P=0.031). Also,
preterm births was most frequent in spring (8.4%) and it was least frequent in winter (4.9%)
(P=0.002). The difference in frequency of preterm births in varying seasons across natural
deliveries, Afghan race and boys was found statistically significant (P<0.05).
Conclusion: The results of our study showed that preterm birth increase in the warm seasons of the
year and it is necessary for health care systems, as well as nursing and midwifery services to take
appropriate action in these circumstances.
Keywords: Preterm birth, Season, Month, Race, Rafsanjan
- Preterm birth
- Season
- Month
- Race
- Rafsanjan
How to Cite
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