Culhane Jennifer F, Elo Irma T
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA.
Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2005 May;192(5 Suppl):S22-9. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2005.01.071.
Racial and social class differences in rates of preterm birth and other adverse outcomes are among the most widely recognized and least well-understood phenomena in the study of reproductive health. Individual-level characteristics have failed to account for such gradients. Recently, researchers have begun to argue that health in general and reproductive outcomes specifically are rooted in social inequalities. One area of such inequality may be residential segregation and the associated race/ethnic differences in exposure to adverse neighborhood conditions. We review the empiric data that examine the association between neighborhood conditions and reproductive health. We also review the major challenges that researchers face when trying to incorporate neighborhood-level variables into studies of health outcomes. Our goal is to stimulate further research that simultaneously considers social, economic, and biologic determinants of reproductive health.
早产率及其他不良后果方面的种族和社会阶层差异，是生殖健康研究中最广为人知但又最缺乏深入理解的现象之一。个体层面的特征无法解释此类差异。最近，研究人员开始认为，总体健康状况，尤其是生殖结果，根源在于社会不平等。这种不平等的一个领域可能是居住隔离以及与之相关的在接触不良邻里环境方面的种族/族裔差异。我们回顾了检验邻里环境与生殖健康之间关联的实证数据。我们还回顾了研究人员在试图将邻里层面的变量纳入健康结果研究时所面临的主要挑战。我们的目标是激发进一步的研究，同时考虑生殖健康的社会、经济和生物学决定因素。
