The effects of smoking on birthweight-for-gestational-age curves in teenage and adult primigravidae.
OBJECTIVE
To compare the effect of smoking on the birthweight-for-gestational-age curves of teenage and adult primigravidae.


METHODS
A retrospective analysis of the perinatal database at the Liverpool Women's Hospital for the years 1997-1999 for teenage and adult primigravidae.


RESULTS
Records on 1157 primigravidae were available. There were no significant differences between the mean birthweight (3220 g +/- 666 vs 3244 g +/- 680, P = 0.43) and the proportion with low birthweight (LBW) babies (8.9% vs 10.6%, P = 0.39) between teenage and adult primigravidae, respectively. The percentage of women who smoked increased from the middle class (Townsend score -6- - 3) to the working class group (Townsend score +4- + 12) for both teenagers (33.3-51.3%) and adults (6.9-29.6%). The mean birthweight of babies of smoking mothers was significantly lower than for non-smoking mothers (3112 g +/- 639 vs 3327 g +/- 663, P = 0.00002). The birthweight-for-gestational-age pattern was lower at all gestational ages for smoking mothers in both the teenage and adult groups. Risk of LBW was significantly increased in teenagers who smoked (10.8% vs 3.9%, P < 0.01), but not in adult smokers.


CONCLUSIONS
Lower birthweights at all gestational ages were observed in babies of teenage and adult mothers who smoked.
Dewan
N
N
Tropical Child Health Group, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool L3 5QA, UK.
Brabin
B
B
Wood
L
L
Dramond
S
S
Cooper
C
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001724:Birth Weight; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011253:Pregnancy in Adolescence; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000453:epidemiology