Perspective on racial/ethnic birth weight.

OBJECTIVE

Comprehensive birth weight analyses of single primiparous infants of Samoan, Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian, Japanese racial ethnic groups. Sampling of intrauterine growth designed to reflect antecedent intra- and extra-environmental factors and insure uniform racial-ethnic data for any later genetic and phenotypic birth weight modeling.

STUDY DESIGN

Based upon predetermined relevant gestational age criteria, 121, 197 single primiparous infants birth weight records analyzed. The racial-ethnic basic research paradigms also specified parental diallelic crosses representing intra-and inter-ethnic racial ancestry. Hypotheses tested: 1) the mean birth weight of single primiparous infants of Samoan parentage will be significantly larger than the mean birth weight of similar single primiparous infants of Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian, and Japanese parentage; 2) mean birth weight of single primiparous infants of only Samoan intra-parentage will be significantly larger t han the mean birth weights of single primiparous infants of only Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian, and Japanese parentage and 3) mean birth weight of single primiparous infants Samoan mothers and non-Samoan fathers will be significantly larger than single primiparous infants of Caucasian, Chinese, Filipino, Hawaiian/Part Hawaiian, and Japanese mothers and non-Caucasian, non-Chinese, non-Filipino, non-Hawaii/Part Hawaiian and non-Japanese father.

CONCLUSION

Two of three proposed associated hypotheses adopted: namely, that the mean birth weight of single primiparous infants of one, primary Samoan maternal parentage, and two, of only Samoan maternal and paternal parentage, will be significantly larger than their comparative counterparts. Hypotheses 3 based on Samoan mothers and non-Samoan fathers is tenable, but questionable relative to Caucasian parental background. Research highlights importance of control for potentially confounding variables and assets inherent in independent racial-ethnic cohort investigations.