Introduction

Birth weight is one of the most important criteria for determining the neonatal and infant survival. More than 20 million infants worldwide, representing 15.5% of all births, are born with low birth weight (LBW), 95.6% of them in developing countries. The level of LBW in developing countries (16.5%) is more than double the level in developed regions (7%). The prevalence of LBW is estimated to be 15% worldwide with a range of 3.3–38% and occurs mostly in developing countries. According to NFHS III, prevalence of low birth in India is 22%. LBW remains an unresolved important national concern in India. The goal of reducing LBW incidence by at least one-third between 2000 and 2010 is one of the major goals in ‘A World Fit for Children.’ Hence, the present study is being proposed to explore the determinants of LBW.

Objective

To study the sociodemographic determinants of LBW babies in Wardha district.

Material and methods

A case–control study was conducted in Wardha civil hospital to investigate the determinants of LBW. Cases were defined as singleton live born when the birth weight was less than 2500 g as per WHO. One control was selected for each case from consecutive live births, in which the birth weight was equal to or more than 2500 g in the same hospital. Information was obtained by maternal interview, from medical records, and by anthropometric measurement of mother and infants taken within 48 h after birth. Data were entered and analysis was done with the help of a computer using EPI-INFO 6.04.
Results

Among various sociodemographic and socioeconomic determinants of LBW studied, the determinants that were found associated with high odds of LBW were as follows: maternal age less than 20 years or more than 30 years, nuclear family, poor standard of living, tobacco use by father, female sex of the baby, and among environment and housing characteristics, the absence of sanitary latrine was found to have significant association with LBW.