ArticleBJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology2025
Socio-Economic Inequalities in Stillbirth and Preterm Birth Rates Across Europe: A Population-Based Study.
Article in BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.
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Who cites it
8 citing papers in PubMed.
- Relative risk and excess fraction of preterm birth across maternal occupation and industry: a Danish nationwide register-based cohort study of employed pregnant women.Scandinavian journal of work, environment & health · 2026Article
- Socioeconomic determinants of extreme perinatal outcomes in Spain, 1996-2022.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- A Protocol for the International Translation and Validation of the Postpartum Specific Anxiety Scale for Preterm Birth [PSAS-PTB] and Neonatal Intensive Care Unit [PSAS-NICU] Contexts.International journal of methods in psychiatric research · 2026Article
- Reproductive Health Challenges Among Adolescents in Eastern Europe: Evidence from a Romanian Tertiary Hospital.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Maternal Antiretroviral Use and the Risk of Prematurity and Low Birth Weight in Perinatally HIV-Exposed Children-7 Years' Experience in Two Romanian Centers.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2026Observational
- Prematurity and Multidimensional Risk Patterns in Adolescent and Adult Pregnancies: A Principal Component Analysis in an Eastern European Cohort.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Socio-Economic Inequalities in Stillbirth and Preterm Birth Rates Across Europe: A Population-Based Study.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2025Article
- Reproductive health at crossroads: progress and challenges since the International Conference on Population and Development in Cairo.China population and development studies · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo estimate socio-economic (SES) inequalities in stillbirth and preterm birth rates across European countries using population-based routine data.
designCross-sectional study of national-level perinatal health and SES indicators (mother's education/occupation or area-level deprivation).
settingTwenty-four countries in the Euro-Peristat network. POPULATION: Seventeen million births in 2015-2019.
methodsRates of stillbirth, singleton very preterm birth (VPB) and singleton moderate/late preterm birth (MLPB) were derived from routine national birth data collected with a common protocol.
main outcome measurePercentage of excess adverse outcomes associated with SES and concentration indices.
resultsMedian rates of adverse outcomes were higher in the lowest versus highest SES groups [Stillbirth: 4.9 (interquartile range (IQR):4.30-5.80)] versus 2.7 (IQR:2.25-3.14) per 1000 births; VPB: 1.0 (IQR: 0.87-1.12) versus 0.6 (IQR: 0.59-0.66) per 100 live births; MLPB: 5.8 (IQR: 5.27-6.40) versus 4.4 (IQR:4.13-4.65) per 100 live births. Excess adverse outcomes associated with lower SES varied greatly, particularly for stillbirth (range-3%, 51%) versus VPB (7%, 27%) and MLPB (5%, 20%). Concentration indices further highlighted varying socio-economic inequalities across countries. Median concentration indices were similar for countries with both lower and higher levels of adverse events, with median CIs of -0.12 for countries with both high and low levels of stillbirth.
conclusionWe identified widespread but varying inequalities between countries. These seemed to be unrelated to the rate of adverse outcomes. This suggests the need for policy strategies directly targeted to the prevention of stillbirth and preterm birth in low SES populations. Our findings demonstrate the feasibility of monitoring inequalities internationally using routine data to identify effective action.
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