Use of computer interview data to test associations between risk factors and pregnancy outcomes.
Computer interviews have been used in a variety of settings as a means of gathering data and providing health education information. The objective of this study was to determine whether data gathered from a computer interview have predictive validity in determining pregnancy outcomes. Pregnant women (N = 190) completed a computer-assisted interview to provide risk factor information. Medical records were reviewed to obtain prenatal and birth outcome information. Twenty-nine percent experienced prenatal complications and nearly half experienced problems related to labor and delivery. After known risk factors were controlled for, self-reported psychosocial problems, low social support, and substance abuse by the father were associated with pregnancy complications. An unbalanced diet and low social support were associated with lower infant birth weight. Findings suggest that data collected via computer interviews can provide useful risk factor screening information.
C'de Baca
J
J
Institute for Health and Population Research, The Lovelace Institutes, 1650 University, NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87102, USA.
Lapham
S C
SC
Skipper
B J
BJ
Watkins
M L
ML
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking; D001724:Birth Weight; D036861:Delivery, Obstetric; D004032:Diet; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D005544:Forecasting; D006266:Health Education; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D007743:Labor, Obstetric; D008297:Male; D008499:Medical Records; D007744:Obstetric Labor Complications; D011247:Pregnancy; D011248:Pregnancy Complications; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011295:Prenatal Care; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking; D012944:Social Support; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders; D014584:User-Computer Interface