title: Risks of small-for-gestational-age births in immigrants: a nationwide epidemiological study in Sweden.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To examine if there is an association between country of birth in parents and small-for-gestational-age (defined as a birthweight of more than two standard deviations (SDs) below the mean) in first singletons births.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this follow-up study, national population and healthcare registers were used to identify small-for-gestational-age births in all first singleton births in Sweden between 1 January 1982 and 31 December 2006. Odds ratios, standardised with regard to maternal age at birth, period of birth, marital status, family income, geographical region, employment, maternal height, and smoking history, were estimated by maternal and paternal country of birth. Singletons with both parents born in Sweden were used as reference group.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were 1,060,467 records for first singletons births over the study period, of whom 3.5% were small-for-gestational-age. The rate was higher in newborns with non-Swedish born than in those with Swedish born mothers (4.1 and 3.3%, respectively). Immigrants from Southern European countries, Africa, and Asia had higher risks of small-for-gestational-age in than those in the reference group, and the risks were even higher in compatriot parents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Country of birth affected the risk of small-for-gestational-age. Maternity care should pay a special attention to pregnancies in certain population groups.
authors.affiliation: Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Clinical Research Centre (CRC), Jan Waldenströms gata 35, Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Sweden. xinjun.li@med.lu.se
authors.forename: Xinjun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Kristina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sundquist
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sundquist
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000349:Africa / Q000208:ethnology; D001208:Asia / Q000208:ethnology; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005060:Europe / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007236:Infant, Small for Gestational Age; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult