Birth Weight in the Argentine Northwest: Regional Variation in Catamarca Province
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Abstract
Birth weight is an indicator of the size reached during the intrauterine stage of growth. It is associated with various factors, ranging from genetic to environmental ones. Among environmental factors, the influence of geographic altitude is noteworthy, since an inversely proportional relationship between altitude and birth weight has been observed in different countries around the world.
Northwestern Argentina is made up of five provinces whose populations occupy areas with varying geographic altitudes. Among them, the province of Catamarca presents a great diversity of environments and populated areas, ranging from 500 to 3,400 meters above sea level. Slightly more than 7% of births occur in areas located at altitudes above 1,500 meters.
In order to determine variations in birth weight according to geographic altitude in the province of Catamarca, births occurring between 1994 and 2003 were analyzed using vital statistics from the Dirección Provincial de Estadística y Censos. Measures of central tendency and dispersion of birth weight were obtained according to gestational age and sex. The proportions of normal birth weight (NBW), low birth weight (LBW), and very low birth weight (VLBW) were calculated by region. Comparisons between sexes and regions were established through analysis of variance. Statistically significant interregional differences and a negative correlation with altitude were found.
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