Maternal and infant outcomes among Caucasians and Hmong refugees in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Erickson, D.; Swenson, I.; Ehlinger, E.; Carlson, G.; Swaney, S.
Human Biology 59(5): 799-808
1987
ISSN/ISBN: 0018-7143 PMID: 3692470 DOI: 10.2307/41464841Document Number: 351387
An analysis of 350 Hmong and 573 Caucasian mothers, who attended a Maternity and Infant Care Program in Minneapolis, Minnesota, from 1980 to 1982, indicated that the Hmong had higher parities, initiated prenatal care later, and had lower hematocrits at the 36-week exam than the Caucasian mothers. The Hmong mothers did not use alcohol or tobacco during their pregnancy, while 59% of the Caucasian mothers smoked and 21.8% used alcohol. There were no significant differences in gestational age or Apgar scores at one and five minutes between the two groups of infants. The Hmong infants had lower mean birth weights than the Caucasian infants, but the proportion of the Hmong infants less than 2,500 gms was not greater. Ethnicity was not a statistically significant (at .01 level) predictor of birth weight after adjustments for maternal weight gain during pregnancy and other selected maternal characteristics. Maternal weight gain during pregnancy and prepregnancy weight-height status were signiicant predictors for Caucasian infant birht weight, but not for the Hmong.