Is incarceration during pregnancy associated with infant birthweight?

Abstract

Objectives: This study examined whether incarceration during pregnancy is associated with infant birthweight.

Methods: Multivariable analyses compared infant birthweight outcomes among three groups of women: 168 women incarcerated during pregnancy, 630 women incarcerated at a time other than during pregnancy, and 3910 women never incarcerated.

Results: After confounders were controlled for, infant birthweights among women incarcerated during pregnancy were not significantly different from women never incarcerated; however, infant birthweights were significantly worse among women incarcerated at a time other than during pregnancy than among never-incarcerated women and women incarcerated during pregnancy.

Conclusions: Certain aspects of the prison environment (shelter, food, etc.) may be health-promoting for high-risk pregnant women.