Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jun 14;4(1):118.
doi: 10.1038/s43856-024-00545-4.

Effects of COVID-19 pandemic on low birth weight in a nationwide study in India

Santosh Kumar  1 , Clare Hill  2 , Timothy J Halliday  3
Affiliations

Effects of COVID-19 pandemic on low birth weight in a nationwide study in India

Santosh Kumar et al. Commun Med (Lond). .

Abstract

Background: Among newborns, those born in India have the highest prevalence of low birth weight (LBW). The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the risk factors for LBW. This study examined whether birth outcomes deteriorated during the pandemic period compared to those during the pre-pandemic period.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included nationally representative data on 198,203 infants. Multivariate ordinary least square and logistic regression models with district fixed effects were fitted to compare the birth outcomes in the pandemic period (April 2020-April 2021) and the pre-pandemic period (July 2014-December 2019). Regression models were adjusted for covariates-gender and birth order of the child, mother's age and education, rural residence, religion, caste, and household wealth.

Results: The pandemic cohort includes 11,851 infants (5.8%), while the pre-pandemic cohort includes 192,764 infants (94.2%). The LBW prevalence rate is 20% in the pandemic cohort and 17% in the pre-pandemic cohort. The covariate-adjusted model shows significant differences in birth weight (11 grams) and LBW (aOR: 1.08; 95% CI: 1.03-1.14) between the pandemic and pre-pandemic cohorts.

Conclusions: Our findings show that babies born during the COVID-19 pandemic are more likely to be LBW. The subgroup analyses indicate significant differences by religion but not by maternal education, caste, and wealth group.

Plain language summary

Globally, approximately 20 million babies are born with low birth weight (weighing less than 2,500 grams) every year. These babies are at increased risk of physical and cognitive deficits and behavioral abnormalities in their later lives. In this research, we investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence of low birth weight in India. Our findings reveal that babies born between April 2020 and April 2021 faced a higher risk of being born as low birth weight compared to those born before April 2020. This underscores the necessity for targeted policies aimed at mitigating the risk of low birth weight during periods of high COVID-19 infection, especially for vulnerable populations in low and middle-income countries.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Stratified analyses by mother’s education, caste, religion, and household wealth (birth weight).
Notes: Coefficients from linear regression are reported, the bar shows 95% CI. All models adjust for the confounders and district fixed effects reported in Table 2. BW is reported in grams. SCST are scheduled caste and scheduled tribes which are socially and economically disadvantaged communities.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. Stratified analyses by mother’s education, caste, religion, and household wealth (Low birth weight).
Notes: Coefficients from linear regression are reported, the bar shows 95% CI. All models adjust for the confounders and district fixed effects reported in Table 2. BW is reported in grams. SCST are scheduled caste and scheduled tribes which are socially and economically disadvantaged communities.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Blencowe H, et al. National, regional, and worldwide estimates of low birthweight in 2015, with trends from 2000: a systematic analysis. Lancet Glob. Health. 2019;7:e849–e860. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(18)30565-5. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), World Health Organization. UNICEF-WHO Low Birthweight Estimates: Levels and Trends 2000–2015. (World Health Organization, Geneva, 2019) Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO.
    1. Hilaire M, et al. Growth and neurodevelopment in low birth weight versus normal birth weight infants from birth to 24 months, born in an obstetric emergency hospital in Haiti, a prospective cohort study. BMC Pediatr. 2021;21:143. doi: 10.1186/s12887-021-02605-3. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Currie J, Vogl T. Early-life health and adult circumstance in developing countries. Annu. Rev. Econ. 2013;5:1–36. doi: 10.1146/annurev-economics-081412-103704. - DOI
    1. Kumar K, Kumar S, Laxminarayan R, Nandi A. Birth weight and cognitive development: evidence from India. Econ. Pap. 2022;41:155–175. doi: 10.1111/1759-3441.12335. - DOI