Table 1.
Maternal demographic and psychosocial characteristics and infant birth outcomes
| Variable | Mbekweni (Black African) – n (%) | TC Newman (Mixed race) – n (%) | Total – n (%) | p‐value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maternal demographic and psychosocial characteristics | ||||
| Number of mothers | 418 (53) | 371 (47) | 789 | |
| Median [IQR] gestation at enrolment | 23 [20‐26] | 21 [19‐25] | 22 [20‐25] | <0.001 |
| Ethnicity | ||||
| Black/African | 414 (99) | 5 (1) | 419 (53) | |
| Mixed race | 4 (1) | 363 (98) | 367 (47) | |
| Other | 0 (0) | 3 (0.8) | 3 (0.4) | |
| Median [IQR] age at enrolment (yrs) | 26.7 [22.2‐31.8] | 24.8 [21.3‐29.1] | 25.7 [21.8‐30.7] | <0.001 |
| Median [IQR] height (cm) | 160 [156‐164] | 158 [153‐162] | 159 [155‐163] | <0.001 |
| Educational achievement | ||||
| Primary education only | 42 (10) | 29 (8) | 71 (9) | |
| Some secondary education | 225 (54) | 182 (49) | 407 (52) | 0.021 |
| Completed secondary education | 122 (29) | 144 (39) | 266 (34) | |
| Tertiary education | 29 (7) | 16 (4) | 45 (6) | |
| Antenatal urine cotinine – active smoker | 58 (14) | 190 (51) | 248 (31) | <0.001 |
| Antenatal self‐reported alcohol use | 34 (8) | 105 (28) | 139 (18) | <0.001 |
| Antenatal depression – above threshold (EPDS) | 114 (27) | 90 (24) | 204 (26) | 0.335 |
| Recent intimate partner violence (antenatal) – above threshold | 110 (26) | 146 (39) | 256 (32) | <0.001 |
| Primigravida | 134 (32) | 146 (39) | 280 (35) | 0.033 |
| HIV‐infected | 158 (38) | 10 (3) | 168 (21) | <0.001 |
| Unemployed | 327 (78) | 260 (70) | 587 (74) | 0.009 |
| Average household income | ||||
| <R1000/month | 203 (49) | 127 (34) | 330 (42) | |
| R1000‐R5000/month | 167 (40) | 174 (47) | 341 (43) | <0.001 |
| >R5000/month | 48 (11) | 70 (19) | 118 (15) | |
| SES quartile | ||||
| Lowest SES | 144 (34) | 69 (19) | 213 (27) | <0.001 |
| Low‐moderate SES | 109 (26) | 88 (24) | 197 (25) | |
| Moderate‐high SES | 99 (24) | 94 (25) | 193 (24) | |
| Highest SES | 66 (16) | 120 (32) | 186 (24) | |
| Early postpartum maternal psychosocial characteristics (n = 366) | ||||
| Self‐reported tobacco use | 6 (3) | 91 (54) | 97 (27) | <0.001 |
| Self‐reported alcohol use | 10 (5) | 44 (26) | 54 (15) | <0.001 |
| Depression – above threshold (EPDS) | 47 (24) | 29 (17) | 76 (21) | 0.115 |
| Recent intimate partner violence – above threshold | 42 (21) | 47 (28) | 89 (24) | 0.149 |
| Infant birth outcomes | ||||
| Number of infants | 421 (53) | 371 (47) | 792 | |
| Infant sex | ||||
| Female | 210 (50) | 164 (44) | 374 (47) | |
| Median [IQR] gestation at delivery (weeks) | 39 [38‐40] | 39 [37‐40] | 39 [38‐40] | 0.360 |
| Preterm birth (<37 weeks) | 64 (15) | 55 (15) | 119 (15) | 0.882 |
| Low birthweight (<2500 g) | 45 (11) | 71 (19) | 116 (15) | 0.001 |
| Small for gestational age | 96 (23) | 107 (29) | 203 (26) | 0.052 |