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Low birth weight and associated factors among newborn delivered in health facilities in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Introduction: Birth weight is the most important predictor of newborn health and survival. It is also a significant determinant of post neonatal, infant and childhood mortality as well as morbidity. LBW Child (birth weight<2500gm) who survive, have a higher incidence of diseases, retardation in cognitive development and under nourishment. The causes of LBW are multifactorial including complication during pregnancy, genetic, environmental, social-cultural, demographic, and nutritional variables. In Bangladesh, low birth weight (LBW) rate is quite high even in urban areas. However, there is a lack of data on maternal characteristics that influence birth weight among the high-income urban population in Bangladesh. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify the status of low birth weight and associated factors among newborn delivered in different health facilities in Bangladesh. Method: A cross-sectional and descriptive type of study was carried out through a Systematic sampling method in 354 mothers of neonates who had delivered their babies and the mothers aged above 18 years in a few selected health facilities in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The samples were selected in a specific pre-determined interval. The data were collected from the respondents using a pre-tested and semi-structured questionnaire by face-to-face interview, after taking verbal consent from the participants. Data entry and analysis were done by using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) statistical software version 20. The anonymity and confidentiality of the respondents were maintained strictly and study participants were informed that they can be able to leave the study at any stage of data collection. Results: The finding revealed that a total of 20.9% children were LBW whereas 79.1% had normal birth weight. Among all the LBW children, 76% children had mild low birth weight, 20% had very low birth weight and 4% children had extremely low birth weight. A significant association of birth weight was found with maternal age, occupation and weight gain during pregnancy. Conclusion: This study concluded that still one-fifth of children born with LBW among all live birth in urban areas although the majority of LBW children were mild low birth weight. Effective awareness programme needs to be taken among urban mothers to improve the overall nutritional status of neonates. Also, similar type of study should be conducted with a larger sample size to generalize the findings.