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Meta-Analysis
. 2018 Nov 26;44(1):141.
doi: 10.1186/s13052-018-0586-6.

Low birth weight and its associated factors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Aklilu Endalamaw  1 , Eshetu Haileselassie Engeda  2 , Daniale Tekelia Ekubagewargies  2 , Getaneh Mulualem Belay  2 , Mekuriaw Alemayehu Tefera  3
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Low birth weight and its associated factors in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Aklilu Endalamaw et al. Ital J Pediatr. .

Abstract

Background: Different primary studies in Ethiopia showed the burden of low birth weight. However, variation among those studies was seen. This study was aimed to estimate the national prevalence and associated factors of low birth weight in Ethiopia.

Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane library, and Google Scholar were searched. A funnel plot and Egger's regression test were used to see publication bias. I-squared statistic was applied to check heterogeneity of studies. A weighted inverse variance random-effects model was applied to estimate the national prevalence and the effect size of associated factors. The subgroup analysis was conducted by region, study design, and year of publication.

Result: A total of 30 studies with 55,085 participants were used for prevalence estimation. The pooled prevalence of LBW was 17.3% (95% CI: 14.1-20.4). Maternal age < 20 years (AOR = 1.7; 95% CI:1.5-2.0), pregnancy interval < 24 months (AOR = 2.8; 95%CI: 1.4-4.2), BMI < 18.5 kg/m2 (AOR = 5.6; 95% CI: 1.7-9.4), and gestational age < 37 weeks at birth (AOR = 6.4; 95% CI: 2.5-10.3) were identified factors of LBW.

Conclusions: The prevalence of low birth weight in Ethiopia remains high. This review may help policy-makers and program officers to design low birth weight preventive interventions.

Keywords: Birth outcome; Ethiopia; Low birth weight.

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Conflict of interest statement

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable because no primary data were collected.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Competing interests

The authors declared that they have no competing interest.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The study selection process
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Funnel plot for publication bias, Logprop or LNP (log of proportion) represented in the x-axis and standard error of log proportion in the y-axis
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Forest plot of the prevalence of LBW with corresponding 95% CIs
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
The sensitivity analysis showed the pooled prevalence when the studies omitted step by step
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Time-trend analysis of the pooled prevalence of low birth weight in Ethiopia from 1989 to 2017
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
The pooled effects of maternal age < 20 years and rural residence on LBW of infants
Fig. 7
Fig. 7
The pooled effects of maternal hypertension, pregnancy interval < 24 months, HIV positive mothers, iron/folic acid supplementation, maternal BMI < 18.5 kg/m2, and absence of ANC follow-up on LBW
Fig. 8
Fig. 8
The pooled effects of sex of the baby and gestational age at birth on LBW
Fig. 9
Fig. 9
The summary presentation of associated factors of LBW in Ethiopia
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