Evaluation of Preterm Birth and its Associated Risk Factors in Southeast Iran in 2020: A Glance to Social and Care Factors

This study aimed to assess pregnancy health care and the incidence of PTB in the south of Kerman province.

For the plan and management of prevention programs effectively, it is important to consider the incidence and trend of preterm births (PTB).

In this cross-sectional (descriptive and analytical) study, the national code of mothers of premature infants was extracted by reporting from the national system of the Ministry of Health. The data collection tool was a researcher-made checklist. Data analysis was carried out by SPSS version 20 software and the significance level was <0.05.

A total of 554 premature infants were examined, and 55% of them were boys. The gender of the infant and the number of cares received (p<0.01), the level of education of the mother and father (p < 0.001), the mother’s occupation (p < 0.01), the father's occupation (p < 0.001), monthly income and participation in preparatory classes of childbirth (p<0.01), place of residence (p<0.05), appropriateness of receiving care with pregnancy age (p<0.001) had statistically significant relationship with the number of care received.

This study showed potential risk factors associated with preterm delivery and subsequent management to prevent preterm delivery in low-risk and high-risk women with singleton or multiple pregnancies. A history of premature birth is the most important risk factor for premature birth in the next pregnancy.