title: Low birth weight and interactions between traditional risk factors.
abstract: The effects of traditional risk factors on low birth weight were examined, using logistic regression analyses and adjusting for interactions between multiple factors. Data for 11,936 births were obtained from a state birth cohort file. The effect for maternal ethnicity was dependent on education and marital status; the effect of marital status was dependent on ethnicity, medical risk, and level of prenatal care; and the effect of prenatal care was dependent on marital status. Results suggest that examining only main effects and ignoring interactions can produce overgeneralized conclusions about the influence of individual risk factors on low birth weight.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee, NC 28723, USA. abel@wcuvax1.wcu.edu
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Abel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D015331:Cohort Studies; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007629:Kentucky / Q000453:epidemiology; D016013:Likelihood Functions; D016015:Logistic Models; D017533:Marital Status; D008423:Maternal Age; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011247:Pregnancy; D011295:Prenatal Care / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data