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. 2018 Apr;27(4):430-443.
doi: 10.1089/jwh.2017.6531. Epub 2018 Jan 11.

Preconception Health Indicators for Public Health Surveillance

Cheryl L Robbins  1 , Denise D'Angelo  1 , Lauren Zapata  1   2 , Sheree L Boulet  1 , Andrea J Sharma  1   2 , Alys Adamski  3 , Jennifer Farfalla  4 , Caroline Stampfel  4 , Sarah Verbiest  5 , Charlan Kroelinger  1
Affiliations

Preconception Health Indicators for Public Health Surveillance

Cheryl L Robbins et al. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2018 Apr.

Abstract

Objectives: In response to an expressed need for more focused measurement of preconception health (PCH), we identify a condensed set of PCH indicators for state and national surveillance.

Methods: We used a systematic process to evaluate, prioritize, and select 10 PCH indicators that maternal and child health programs can use for surveillance. For each indicator, we assessed prevalence, whether it was addressed by professional recommendations, Healthy People 2020 objectives, or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention winnable battles, measurement simplicity, data completeness, and stakeholders' input.

Results: Fifty PCH indicators were evaluated and prioritized. The condensed set includes indicators that rely on data from the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (n = 4) and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (n = 6). The content encompasses heavy alcohol consumption, depression, diabetes, folic acid intake, hypertension, normal weight, recommended physical activity, current smoking, unwanted pregnancy, and use of contraception.

Conclusions: Having a condensed set of PCH indicators can facilitate surveillance of reproductive-aged women's health status that supports monitoring, comparisons, and benchmarking at the state and national levels.

Keywords: indicators; preconception; surveillance; women's health.

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Conflict of interest statement

Author Disclosure Statement: No competing financial interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Process Used to Develop the Recommended Preconception Health Indicators
Figure 2
Figure 2
Stakeholder Input about the Usefulness of Originally Recommended Preconception Health Indicators that Were Evaluated Note. BRFSS: Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; NVSS: National Vital Statistics System; PRAMS: Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System; NNDSS=National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System; BMI: body mass index.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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