Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39552131›Full record

ArticlePaediatric and perinatal epidemiology2025

Post-term births as a risk factor for small for gestational age births and infant mortality in Brazil, Mexico, and Palestinian refugees: An analysis of electronic birth records.

Zeina Jamaluddine, Lorena Suarez Idueta, Enny S Paixao, Julia M Pescarini, Hala Ghattas, Miho Sato, Akihiro Seita, Luis A Martinez-Juarez, Mauricio L Barreto, Eric O Ohuma and 3 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Paediatric and perinatal epidemiology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Zeina JamaluddineFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2074-9329
Lorena Suarez IduetaMexican Society of Public Health, Mexico City, Mexico.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0909-7737
Enny S PaixaoFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4797-908X
Julia M PescariniFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8711-9589
Hala GhattasDepartment of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8864-3374
Miho SatoSchool of Tropical Medicine and Global Health, Nagasaki University, Nagasaki, Japan.
Akihiro SeitaUnited Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East, Amman, Jordan.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0674-1371
Luis A Martinez-JuarezMexican Society of Public Health, Mexico City, Mexico.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7550-7867
Mauricio L BarretoCentre for Data and Knowledge Integration for Health (CIDACS), Fundação Oswaldo Cruz, Salvador, Brazil.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0215-4930
Eric O OhumaFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3116-2593
Louise T DayFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0038-0002
Oona M R CampbellFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9311-0115
Hannah BlencoweFaculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1556-3159

Funding

Nagasaki University
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPost-term pregnancy, defined as reaching or exceeding 42 + 0 weeks of gestation, is known to be associated with unfavourable birth outcomes. High-income countries have responded to this risk by widely adopting labour induction protocols in late-term, but many low- and middle-income countries have not. However, understanding underlying mechanisms linking post-term births to adverse newborn and infant outcomes remains limited.

objectiveTo investigate the (a) prevalence of post-term, (b) the risk factors associated with post-term (c) the association between post-term births and the risk of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) neonates and of infant mortality in middle-income settings.

methodsWe used existing electronic datasets from the general population of Brazil, Mexico, and Palestinian refugees. Regression models were used to explore the associations between post-term birth and SGA and infant mortality.

resultsWe analysed 21,335,033 live births in Brazil (2011-2018), 23,416,126 in Mexico (2008-2019), and 966,102 in Palestinian refugees (2010-2020) (N = 45,717,261). Post-term deliveries accounted for 3.1% of births in Brazil, 1.2% in Mexico, and 2.1% in Palestinian refugees. Post-term births had approximately three times the risk of resulting in SGA neonates compared to term births. Additionally, post-term neonates exhibited a 15% to 40% increased risk of infant mortality compared to term infants. Notably, post-term SGA neonates faced a significantly increased risk of infant mortality compared to term appropriate for gestational age neonates.

conclusionsThese findings emphasise the critical significance of implementing induction strategies to prevent post-term pregnancies and mitigate the associated risks of SGA neonates and subsequent infant mortality. Moreover, the study highlights the importance of accurately determining gestational age and using INTERGROWTH-21st charts to improve the identification of SGA cases, enabling targeted interventions. This is especially relevant because post-term SGA neonates may not exhibit low birthweight (a commonly used risk marker) and, therefore, may miss out on required specialised attention.

Indexed as

Infant MortalityInfant, Small for Gestational AgePregnancy, ProlongedRefugeesAdultArabsBrazilElectronic Health RecordsFemaleGestational AgeHumansInfantInfant, NewbornMaleMexicoPregnancyelectronic recordsfoetal growth restrictioninductioninfant mortalitymiddle‐income countriespost‐term gestationsmall for gestational age

Identifiers

PMID39552131
PMCPMC11866736

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.