Maternal Obesity and Neonatal Death in Preterm US Pacific Islander Neonates Using 2 Analytic Approaches

Is maternal obesity associated with degree-of-prematurity-dependent neonatal death (NND) following preterm birth (PTB) among Pacific Islander neonates?In this cohort study of 55 975 mother-neonate dyads, using the birth-based approach, among all PTBs, prepregnancy obesity class I and class II were associated with NND following PTB, but this association disappeared among extreme PTBs, likely as a result of stratification bias. Using the fetuses-at-risk approach corrected this association and underscored the importance of maternal prepregnancy obesity for NND following extreme PTB.These findings suggest that the methodological approach matters where there are intermediate factors (in this case, gestational age) associated with both the risk factor and outcome.

Corresponding Author: Nicola L. Hawley, PhD, Department of Chronic Disease Epidemiology, Yale School of Public Health, 60 College St, Ste 438, New Haven, CT 06510 (nicola.hawley@yale.edu).

Link to the article in your story

We encourage you to link out to this article in your story using the link below. It includes an access token that will give free access to the article for your readers up to one year after publication. (The link will be live after the article publishes and embargo is lifted.)

Please see the article for additional information, including full author list, author contributions and affiliations, conflict of interest and financial disclosures, and funding and support.

Need more information? Contact us.