Effect of Access to Obstetrical Care in Rural Alabama on Perinatal, Neonatal, and Infant Outcomes: 2003-2017.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

To evaluate differential mortality outcomes in rural Alabama counties with or without access to a local labor and delivery (L&D) unit.

Methods

This retrospective cohort study used county-level data from the Alabama Department of Public Health. Rural counties in Alabama were categorized into those with an L&D unit and those without. The 2 groups were compared based on infant mortality rate, perinatal mortality rate, neonatal mortality rate, and low birth weight.

Results

The infant mortality rate from 2003-2017 in the rural counties in Alabama with no local obstetrical care was 9.23 per 1,000 live births, whereas the infant mortality rate during the same period in the rural counties with continuous access to local obstetrical units was 7.89 (relative risk [RR] =

SUBMITTER: Waits JB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7489970 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature