[Analysis of factors contributing to low birth weight in Sichuan Province. Cooperating Group for Birth Defects Monitoring].

Data on low birth weight and some potential factors were obtained from an epidemiologic investigation of 111,676 births in Sichuan province during the period from Oct. 1986 to Sep. 1987. There were 8177 (73.22%) cases of low birth weight and 516 (79.89%) dead cases of low birth weight. The results suggest that the occurrence of low birth weight is affected by maternal age, fetal number and living level in rural areas. The incidence of low birth weight delivered by women aged 35 and over is 100.94%; it is 331.53% for twins and 265.96% for triplets. The incidence of low birth weight in rural areas (94.91%) is higher than that in urban areas (59.44%).