PREVALENCE AND ASSOCITATED FACTORS OF LOW BIRTH WEIGHT AMONG MOTHERS AGED OVER 35 YEARS AT SHAHRARA HOSPITAL

Abstract

Background: Birth weight is one of the most important indicators of neonatal health at the time of delivery, as it reflects both intrauterine fetal growth and the quality of prenatal care. Newborns with birth weights either above or below the normal range are at increased risk of mortality, physical injury, and neurological damage. As its known, one of the most critical health indicators in any society is the infant mortality rate, in which one of its key contributing factors is low birth weight (LBW). This study aims to determine the prevalence of LBW among mothers (above 35 years) highlight this important health indicator and identify one of its major contributing factors- advanced maternal age (above 35 years).

Methods: This analytic cross-sectional study was conducted on 472 women older the 35 years and 384 newborns delivered in the year 2024, at Shahrara Teaching Maternity Hospital to determine the prevalence of LBW among mothers over the age of 35 years old. Data were collected by reviewing patients’ medical records, which included maternal age, newborn birth weight, gestational age, and number of parities. For determining correlation of maternal age, number of parities and gestational age to child birth weight spearman correlation test was applied and linear regression determined the impact of related factors on child birth weight.

Results: The study found that the prevalence of LBW among mothers over 35 years of age in this hospital was 81.35% as there were totally 472 mothers older than 35 years in 2024, among them 384 were recorded with LBW. Factors such as maternal age, number of parities were negatively associated with LBW while gestational age has positive association with LBW, although effect of gestational age and number of parity is not as considerable as mothers age.

Conclusion: This study demonstrated that the prevalence of low birth weight among mothers over 35 years of age at Shahrara Teaching Maternity Hospital is concerning. Therefore, enhancing prenatal care and preventing risk factors in this age group may help reduce the prevalence of LBW.