TY - GEN A1 - Miani, Celine A1 - Ludwig, A. A1 - Breckenkamp, Jürgen A1 - Sauzet, Odile A1 - Doyle, Ina-Merle A1 - Höller-Holtrichter, Chantal A1 - Spallek, Jacob A1 - Razum, Oliver T1 - Socioeconomic and migration status as predictors of emergency caesarean section: a birth cohort study T2 - BMC pregnancy and childbirth N2 - BACKGROUND: Women with a migration background are reportedly at a higher risk of emergency caesarean section. There is evidence that this is due in part to suboptimal antenatal care use and quality of care. Despite the fact that migrant women and descendants of migrants are often at risk of socioeconomic disadvantage, there is, in comparison, scarce and incomplete evidence on the role of socioeconomic position as an independent risk factor for emergency caesarean delivery. We therefore investigate whether and how migration background and two markers of socioeconomic position affect the risk of an emergency caesarean section and whether they interact with each other. METHODS: In 2013-2016, we recruited women during the perinatal period in Bielefeld, Germany, collecting data on health and socioeconomic and migration background, as well as routine perinatal data. We studied associations between migration background (1st generation migrant, 2nd/3rd generation woman, no migration background), socioeconomic status (educational attainment and net monthly household income), and the outcome emergency caesarean section. RESULTS: Of the 881 participants, 21% (n = 185) had an emergency caesarean section. Analyses showed no association between having an emergency caesarean section and migration status or education. Women in the lowest (< 800€/month) and second lowest (between 800 and 1750€/month) income categories were more likely (aOR: 1.96, CI: 1.01-3.81; and aOR: 2.36, CI: 1.27-4.40, respectively) to undergo an emergency caesarean section than women in the higher income groups. CONCLUSIONS: Migration status and education did not explain heterogeneity in mode of birth. Having a low household income, however, increased the chances of emergency caesarean section and thereby contributed towards producing health disadvantages. Awareness of these findings and measures to correct these inequalities could help to improve the quality of obstetric care. KW - Acculturation KW - Birth cohort KW - Caesarean section KW - Education KW - Emergency KW - Germany KW - Income KW - Migration KW - Obstetric care KW - Socioeconomic determinants Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-020-2725-5 SN - 1471-2393 VL - 20 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Wandschneider, Lisa A1 - Sauzet, Odile A1 - Breckenkamp, Jürgen A1 - Spallek, Jacob A1 - Razum, Oliver T1 - Small-Area Factors and Their Impact on Low Birth Weight—Results of a Birth Cohort Study in Bielefeld, Germany T2 - Frontiers in Public Health N2 - Introduction: The location of residence is a factor possibly contributing to social inequalities and emerging evidence indicates that it already affects perinatal development. The underlying pathways remain unknown; theory-based and hypothesis-driven analyses are lacking. To address these challenges, we aim to establish to what extent small-area characteristics contribute to low birth weight (LBW), independently of individual characteristics. First, we select small-area characteristics based on a conceptual model and measure them. Then, we empirically analyse the impact of these characteristics on LBW. Material and methods: Individual data were provided by the birth cohort study “Health of infants and children in Bielefeld/Germany.” The sample consists of 892 eligible women and their infants distributed over 80 statistical districts in Bielefeld. Small-area data were obtained from local noise maps, emission inventory, Google Street View and civil registries. A linear multilevel analysis with a two-level structure (individuals nested within statistical districts) was conducted. Results: The effects of the selected small-area characteristics on LBW are small to non-existent, no significant effects are detected. The differences in proportion of LBW based on marginal effects are small, ranging from zero to 1.1%. Newborns from less aesthetic and subjectively perceived unsafe neighbourhoods tend to have higher proportions of LBW. Discussion: We could not find evidence for negative effects of small-area factors on LBW, but our study confirms that obtaining adequate sample size, reliable measure of exposure and using available data for operationalisation of the small-area context represent the core challenges in this field of research. KW - low birth weight KW - small-area analysis KW - multilevel analysis KW - virtual audit KW - noise pollution KW - fine particulate matter KW - socioeconomic deprivation KW - cohort study Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.00136 SN - 2296-2565 VL - 8 ER - TY - GEN A1 - Ludwig, Angelique A1 - Miani, Céline A1 - Breckenkamp, Jürgen A1 - Sauzet, Odile A1 - Borde, Theda A1 - Doyle, Ina-Merle A1 - Brenne, Silke A1 - Höller-Holtrichter, Chantal A1 - David, Matthias A1 - Spallek, Jacob A1 - Razum, Oliver T1 - Are Social Status and Migration Background Associated with Utilization of Non-medical Antenatal Care? Analyses from Two German Studies T2 - Maternal and Child Health Journal N2 - Objective: Non-medical antenatal care (ANC) refers to a range of non-medical services available to women during pregnancy aiming at supporting women and prepare them for the birth and the postpartum period. In Germany, they include antenatal classes, breastfeeding classes and pregnancy-specific yoga or gymnastics courses. Studies suggest that various types of non-medical ANC carry benefits for both the women and their babies. Little is known about the uptake of non-medical ANC among different socioeconomic population subgroups, but one may expect lower utilization among socio-economically disadvantaged women. We analyzed factors contributing to the utilization of non-medical ANC in general and antenatal classes in particular. Methods: Baseline data of the Bielefeld BaBi birth cohort (2013–2016) and the Berlin perinatal study (2011–2012) were analyzed. Comparing the two cohorts allowed to increase the socio-economic and migration background variance of the study population and to capture the effect of the local context on uptake of services. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to study associations between the uptake of non-medical ANC and socio-economic and migration status.ResultsIn Berlin and Bielefeld, being a first generation migrant and having lower levels of education were associated with lower non-medical ANC uptake. In Berlin, being a 2nd generation woman or having a low income was also associated with lower uptake. Conclusions for Practice: Our study suggests that non-medical ANC remains in some part the prerogative of non-migrant, well-educated and economically privileged women. Since differences in non-medical ANC have the potential to create inequalities in terms of birth outcomes and maternal health during pregnancy and post-partum, more efforts are needed to promote the use of non-medical ANC by all population groups. KW - Non-medical antenatal care KW - Migration background KW - Education KW - Socioeconomic status KW - Pregnancy Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-020-02937-z SN - 1573-6628 SN - 1092-7875 VL - 24 IS - 7 SP - 943 EP - 952 ER -