Abstract
Objective: To analyse the outcomes of births and anthropometric measurements at birth of children born between 1974 and 2011 at Limache Hospital (Valparaíso, Chile).
Patients and Method: Times series were constructed of births, weight and length at birth, and low weight and length at birth. The trend was modelled with linear and logistical regressions using splines to represent breaks in the trend by decade.
Results: The series includes 17,574 births. There was an increase in births per year in the 1970s (30/year) and declines in them to 17 and 22 births/year in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively (P < .001), with no significant trend thereafter. Newborns from 2000 to 2011 weighed 266 grams more than those in the 1970s (P < .001), and have now reached a mean weight of 3,530 g. Low birthweight fell from 8% in the 1970s to 1.1% after 2000. Birth length increased by 1 cm in the 37 years studied, with a reduction of low birth length from 7.6% to 2.1% during the period.
Conclusion: Live births in the Limache Hospital declined, and anthropometric measurements at birth improved in the years analysed. This information is useful in developing interventions, taking into account the possible selection biases that could distort these estimates and their interpretation.
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