Incidence of low birth weight in the municipality of Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, 2018-2023.

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.22533/at.ed.1595302518094

• Palavras-chave: Live births; Low birth weight; Risk factors.

• Keywords: Live births; Low birth weight; Risk factors.

• Abstract:

  Introduction: Low birth weight (LBW) is an important benchmark for newborn development and has been a source of research in various regions of the country as a public health problem, prevalent in less developed countries. Epidemiological studies are important because they help to highlight possible causes and outline public health policies to help solve some problems. Objectives: to analyze the prevalence of LBW and associated factors in the period from 2018 to 2023 in the municipality of Uberlândia-MG. Methods: This is a descriptive cross-sectional epidemiological study that sought to identify the prevalence and factors associated with low birth weight, based on data available in the SINASC database of the Department of Informatics of the Unified Health System (DATASUS).  Results: From 2018 to 2023, 58,109 births were registered in the city of Uberlândia, MG. The proportion of LBW was 10.89%. The factors associated with low birth weight were: female sex (53%), adult maternal age (9.6%), 7 or more prenatal consultations (8%), brown-skinned children (5.21%) and white children (4.43%), mothers with 8 to 11 years of schooling (6.52%) and single (5.81%), and cesarean delivery (8.12%). Conclusion: In this study, we found that LBW in Uberlândia-MG remained higher than the national average, showing that LBW is a significant challenge for public health in the municipality. The associated factors identified reinforce the need to raise awareness among mothers during prenatal care, as well as to pay attention to the risk factors of older mothers. Our findings contribute to the creation of public policy strategies in the municipality of Uberlândia-MG, contributing to a reduction in LBW, with a focus on risk prevention and the promotion of maternal and child health.