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Associations of household unmet basic needs and health outcomes among very low birth weight children

Journal of Perinatology volume 43, pages 364–370 (2023)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective

We examined associations of past year household hardships (housing, energy, food, and healthcare hardships) with postnatal growth, developmental risk, health status, and hospitalization among children 0–36 months born with very low birth weight (VLBW) and the extent that these relationships differed by receipt of child supplemental security income (SSI).

Study design

We examined cross-sectional data from 695 families. Growth was measured as weight-for-age z-score change. Developmental risk was defined as ≥1 concerns on the “Parents’ Evaluation of Developmental Status” screening tool. Child health status was categorized as excellent/good vs. fair/poor. Hospitalizations excluded birth hospitalizations.

Results

Compared to children with no household hardships, odds of developmental risk were greater with 1 hardship (aOR 2.0 [1.26, 3.17]) and ≥2 hardships (aOR) 1.85 [1.18, 2.91], and odds of fair/poor child health (aOR) 1.59 [1.02, 2.49] and hospitalizations (aOR) 1.49 [1.00, 2.20] were greater among children with ≥2 hardships. In stratified analysis, associations of hardships and developmental risk were present for households with no child SSI and absent for households with child SSI.

Conclusion

Household hardships were associated with developmental risk, fair/poor health status, and hospitalizations among VLBW children. Child SSI may be protective against developmental risk among children living in households with hardships.

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Data availability

Data will be made available upon request to the corresponding author.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the families who participated in the study for sharing their time and information with us and Ronald Eskin for providing expertise in SSI qualifications for infants.

Funding

This study was funded in part by the grant R01MD007793 from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMMD) and supporters of Children’s HealthWatch https://childrenshealthwatch.org/giving/supporters/.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA

    Margaret G. Parker, Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba, Megan T. Sandel, Deborah A. Frank & Ruth Rose-Jacobs

  2. Biostatistics and Epidemiology Data Analytics Center, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Lindsey J. Rateau & Margaret Shea

  3. Department of Pediatrics, Hennepin County Medical Center, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Diana B. Cutts

  4. Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Timothy Heeren

  5. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA

    Félice Lê-Scherban

  6. Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Maureen M. Black

  7. RTI International, Research Triangel Park, NC, USA

    Maureen M. Black

  8. Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR, USA

    Eduardo R. Ochoa Jr

  9. Department of Pediatrics, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA, USA

    Arvin Garg

Authors
  1. Margaret G. Parker
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  2. Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba
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Contributions

MGP conceptualized and designed the study, interpreted the data, drafted the initial manuscript and reviewed and revised the manuscript. LJR and MS conducted the analysis, interpreted the data, and critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. AG, MS, DBC, DAF, FL-S, ERO, MMB, and RR-J interpreted the data and critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. SEdeC and TH conceptualized and designed the study, interpreted the data, and reviewed and revised the manuscript. All authors approved the final manuscript as submitted and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Margaret G. Parker.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Parker, M.G., de Cuba, S.E., Rateau, L.J. et al. Associations of household unmet basic needs and health outcomes among very low birth weight children. J Perinatol 43, 364–370 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-023-01626-3

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