Prenatal Care

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that research shows that prenatal care is positively associated with improved birth outcomes including reduced incidences of premature births and infant mortality. The author points out that low birth weight is a key indicator of infant health, as low birth weight babies have much higher mortality rates. The paper relates that research also shows that, of all the environmental threats to a fetus, the most harmful clearly is smoking, which women can control.

Table of Contents
Introduction
Review and Analysis
Background and Overview
Prenatal Care and Premature Births
Prenatal Care and Infant Mortality
Constraints
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"Interestingly, the geographic place of birth may also be a risk; for example, Mexican-American mothers born within the United States have higher rates of SGA than those born outside the U.S.. In fact, one of the main reasons for the inordinately high incidences of infant mortality is that birth weights are too low. According to a 1985 report from the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine, "Preventing Low Birthweight": "Low birthweight is a major determinant of infant mortality in the United States." On a positive note, during the 1990s, studies have shown that more American women sought prenatal care and refrained from smoking during pregnancy; however, the number of births to women who were not married increased, as well as the number of premature and underweight infants. A report from Child Trends and the Kids Count Special Report of the Annie E. Casey Foundation in 2001 compared how the 50 states and the 50 largest cities, including Washington, D.C., in eight categories that can provide an infant with "the right start" to life."

More papers on Prenatal Care:

• Analytical Essay # 147104 : "Prenatal Care Based on Social Marketing Concepts and the Health Belief Model (HBM)"
• Essay # 18747 : "Infant Mortality and Prenatal Care"
• Article Review # 36981 : "Prenatal Nursing"

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