COVID-19 lockdown related to decrease in premature birth rate and increase in birth weight in metropolitan France

Frontiers in Pediatrics

Pediatrics

Isabella Annesi-Maesano¹  Nicolas Molinari²  Gilles Cambonie³  Benoit Tessier⁴  Nicolas Kalfa⁴ 

[1] Debrest Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health IDESP, UMR INSERM—University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;Debrest Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health IDESP, UMR INSERM—University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;Department of Biostatistics and Medical Information, CHU Montpellier—University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;Department of Neonatal Medicine and Pediatric Intensive Care, Arnaud de Villeneuve Hospital, CHU Montpellier–University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;Department of Pediatric Surgery and Urology, Lapeyronie Hospital, CHU Montpellier—University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;Debrest Institute of Epidemiology and Public Health IDESP, UMR INSERM—University of Montpellier, Montpellier, France;

关键词: preterm birth;    COVID-19;    lockdown;    birth weight;    low birth weight;    public health;    interrupted time series analysis;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fped.2023.1223692

 received in 2023-05-16, accepted in 2023-08-14,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

IntroductionThe worldwide rate of preterm birth (PTB) has been increasing over the last two decades. COVID-19 lockdowns provide a unique opportunity to assess the effects of socioenvironmental and lifestyle factors on premature birth and birth weight. We explored the effects of COVID-19 lockdowns on the PTB rate and birth weight at a nationwide scale in France until one year after their occurrence.Material and MethodsThis national retrospective observational study evaluated the rate of PTB and birth weight in France from January 2016 to December 2020. Data were obtained from the national Programme Médicalisé des Systèmes d'Information database. The rates of global and sub-categories of PTB were tested. The birth weight was studied before and after lockdown for all live births, for term and premature neonates, and for each category of low birth weight (LBW) by a stratified analysis.ResultsData from 2,949,372 births from January 2016 to December 2019, including 228,857 PTB, were compared to those of 699,344 births and 51,886 PTB from January to December 2020. The national rate of PTB decreased significantly from 7.7% to 7.3%, when compared with the 2016–2019 period. This decrease was persistent up to 9 months later. It was observed only for moderate PTB, whereas very PTB and extremely PTB remained stable. The national mean birth weight for full-term babies increased after the lockdown and was still observable up to 8 months later (+0.16%, p < 0.0001). The proportion of children with LBW also decreased 2 months after lockdown (−0.15%; p = 0.02). For VLBW, the difference only appeared over the 6-month post-lockdown period (−0.06%; p = 0.006).ConclusionThis nationwide study shows a significant reduction in prematurity and a significant increase in birth weight in France after the lockdown for a period of time not limited to the lockdown itself. A more in-depth study of the factors determining these variations may help to drive PTB prevention policies.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
© 2023 Tessier, Annesi-Maesano, Cambonie, Molinari and Kalfa.