Abbreviated Name:
Incidence of low birth weight among newborns
Indicator Name:
Incidence of low birth weight among newborns
Domain:
Health determinants and risks / Risk factors
Related Terms:
Nutrition, birth weight, live birth
Definition:
The percentage of newborns weighing less than 2 500 g (less than 5.51 lbs) at birth.
Measurment Method:
The percentage of low birth weight newborns = (Number of live-born babies with birth weight less than 2,500 g / Number of live births) x 100; Service or facility records: the proportion of live births with low birth weight, among births occurring in health institutions; Household surveys: DHS include questions on birth weight as well as the mothers’ subjective assessment of the infant’s size at birth (i.e. very large, larger than average, average, smaller than average, very small), for births in the last 5 to 10 years.
Numerator:
Number of live-born neonates with weight less than 2500 g at birth.
Denominator
Number of live births.
Estimation method:
Estimates of LBW prevalence at national level were predicted from a Bayesian multilevel-regression model (Okwaraji et. al, forthcoming). The model is fit on the logit (log-odds) scale to ensure that proportions are bounded between zero and one, and then back-transformed and multiplied by 100 to obtain prevalence estimates. Hierarchical random country-specific intercepts (countries within regions within global) accounted for the correlation within and between the regions. The six Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) regions were adapted and used in the modelling. Penalized splines were used as temporal smoothing across the time-series 26–28, meaning country level non-linear time trends were captured without random variation affecting the trend. Country-level covariates were also included in the modelling. The final covariates included in the model were: gross national income per person purchasing power parity (GNI) (constant 2017 international $), prevalence of underweight among female adults, adult female literacy rate, modern contraception prevalence rate and percentage urban population. For more details, please review the key findings brochure, available at https://www.who.int/teams/nutrition-and-food-safety/monitoring-nutritional-status-and-food-safety-and-events/joint-low-birthweight-estimates
Disaggregation:
Administrative regions, health regions, location (urban/rural), maternal education, gender, wealth quintile, place of residence, preterm status, socioeconomic status
Primary data sources:
Population-based health surveys and data from administrative/information systems
Alternate data sources:
Routine facility information systems
Measurment frequency:
Continuous