Background:

low birth weight is a world health problem with serious repercussions. Objective: to characterize the risk factors of low birth weight and preterm birth.

Methods:

a descriptive cross sectional study on low birth weight at the Pedro Borrás Astorga Polyclinic in Pinar del Rio was carried out during the years 2015 to 2019. During that period the number of births was 1,640, of which 85 with low birth weight were studied using descriptive statistics. The results were summarized in tables.

Results:

the low birth weight rate was 5.2%, with the highest rate in 2019. The predominant civil status of mothers was single. Most of them were of the extreme ages of life, mainly adolescents. The main maternal risks were history of low birth weight delivery, high blood pressure, and low preconception weight. The medical risks during pregnancy were hypertension, anemia, and risk of abortion or preterm birth. In these women prevailed the vaginal delivery at 28 to 41 weeks, mostly preterm, intrauterine growth restriction, and new born weight over 1501 grams.

Conclusions:

these results show that low birth weight is still an unsolved health problem, related to different risk factors. Interventions for early detection are needed in order to modify them and achieve maternal, fetal and child wellbeing.

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