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Perinatal Indicators - Low-birthweight
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Babies born weighing 5 pounds 8 ounces or less or under 2500 grams are considered low-birthweight. Babies born weighing under 3 pounds 5 ounces or under 1500 grams are considered very low- birthweight. Babies born weighing under 1000 grams or under 2 pounds 3 ounces are considered extremely low- birthweight.
• Babies may be low-birthweight or very low-birthweight because they are born before they are fully developed (preterm), or because they did not grow normally during pregnancy.
• Approximately two-thirds of low-birthweight babies are preterm, and one-third are low-birthweight because they did not grow normally during pregnancy (intrauterine growth restricted).
• Low-birthweight is one of the leading reasons that babies die or are ill in the first year of life.
• Preterm babies are more likely to suffer life-long complications from developmental, neurological, and learning disabilities, life-long chronic health problems, as well as social and economic disadvantages associated with these biologic impairments.
• Children who are born weighing under 1500 grams or 3lbs 4 ozs are more likely to have decreased scores in verbal comprehension and processing, reading, spelling, and math. These children are more likely to repeat one or more grades in school, and are less likely to graduate from high school.1,2
• By age 7, one-half of children born weighing under 1000 gms require special education.3
What does this mean for LA County?
Each year in LA County over 8,000 infant are born weighing 5 ½ pounds or less (low-birthweight).
Annually, nearly 1500 children are born very low-birthweight and are at increased risk learning and school delays. The children born very low-birthweight are more likely to repeat one or more grades in school, and are less likely to graduate from high school.1,2
Without further improvement in medical care or prevention strategies it is estimated that each year in LA County approximately 380 children born very low-birthweight will have severe sensory or neurologic impairment.4
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2005 Data
Low-birthweight- LA County
by Race/Ethnicity
by SPA
LAC-DHS, Maternal, Child & Adolescent Programs
Low-birthweight by SPA, zipcode, and community:
The Children's Planning Council
Low birthweight and very low-birthweight by SPA, zipcode, and community:
United Way of Greater Los Angeles
Run online queries for birthweight categories, prenatal care onset, ethnicity, and maternal age for LA County data:
Trends in Low-birthweight for LA County and California
Anne E. Casey Foundation - Kids Count
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