Risk indicators of childhood undernutrition in Kingston, Jamaica.

In Jamaica, early childhood undernutrition remains a problem; however, the health of all children cannot be monitored due to limited resources. Therefore, there is a need for the early identification of children at risk of undernutrition. A simple screening instrument for use by paraprofessionals in the primary health care system was developed. We conducted a case-control study using 649 children, aged 6 to 48 months. The cases were undernourished (weight-for-age less than 80% of the reference) and identified from a survey. The children's guardians were given a questionnaire comprising 31 variables thought to be associated with undernutrition and which were present from 6 weeks of age. Nine variables were significantly associated with undernutrition. Multiple logistic regression analysis indicated that low birth weight, short birth spacing, being born at home, poor ante-natal and post-natal clinic attendance, overcrowding and a lack of house-hold possessions were independent predictors of undernutrition. Using these variables, a simple scoring system was developed to identify high risk children. It had a sensitivity and specificity of 56% and 76% respectively and a positive predictive values of 31%. This simple screening instrument should be easy to use in the primary health care system. However, its low sensitivity indicates that it is difficult to identify children who are at risk of undernutrition from 6 weeks of age. Subsequent high morbidity and poor child care which were not measured may account for some of the missed cases.     

Early Resumption of Sexual Intercourse after First Childbirth and Unintended Pregnancy within Six Months

ObjectiveWe aimed to evaluate factors associated with early resumption of sexual intercourse after first childbirth and assess whether early intercourse is associated with unprotected intercourse, subsequent pregnancy, and unintended pregnancy over 6 months.MethodsThis secondary analysis used data from the First Baby Study, a prospective study of women aged 18–35 years with singleton pregnancies who delivered at 76 hospitals in Pennsylvania. At 1 and 6 months postpartum, women were asked about intercourse and the use of birth control since childbirth. We compared women who resumed intercourse in the first month after childbirth (early resumption) with those who resumed intercourse later, via multivariable logistic regression models.ResultsIn our cohort, 261 of 2,643 women (9.9%) reported first intercourse within the first postpartum month (7–31 days). Women who resumed intercourse early were less educated, younger, and less likely to breastfeed, have had a perineal laceration, or have had an episiotomy than those who resumed intercourse later. In addition, they were more likely to have unprotected intercourse in at least one of the first 6 months after first childbirth (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 2.33; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.76–3.09); to be pregnant by 6 months postpartum (aOR, 3.03; 95% CI, 1.48–6.20); and to report that pregnancy as unintended (aOR, 3.32; 95% CI, 1.50–7.36).ConclusionsNearly 10% of women resumed intercourse in the first month after childbirth. Because early resumption of intercourse was associated with a greater likelihood of unprotected intercourse and unintended pregnancy within 6 months of first childbirth, clinicians should focus efforts on comprehensive family planning and contraception counseling beginning in the prenatal period.     

Mothers’ Socialization of Emotion Regulation: The Moderating Role of Children’s Negative Emotional Reactivity

During the toddler period, children begin to shift from being primarily dependent on parents to regulate their emotions to managing their emotions independently. The present study considers how children’s propensity towards negative emotional arousal interacts with mothers’ efforts to socialize emotion regulation. Fifty-five low income mothers and their 2-year-old children completed observational assessments measuring mothers’ socialization of emotion regulation, children’s reactivity propensity, and children’s emotion regulation. Children’s propensity towards negative reactivity significantly interacted with mothers’ use of physical soothing. That is, mothers with less reactive children who used more soothing had children who were more likely to use interactive, distraction-based regulatory behaviors during a frustration situation. Theoretical and child care implications of the finding are discussed.     

出生因素和早期喂养方式对6~23月龄婴幼儿超重肥胖的影响

目的 了解湖北省6~23月龄婴幼儿超重肥胖状况及出生因素和早期喂养方式对婴幼儿超重肥胖的影响,为预防及控制儿童超重肥胖提供参考依据。方法 采用PPS抽样方法,调查湖北省贫困地区6县6~23月龄婴幼儿及其看护人,以WHO性别月龄别BMI为超重肥胖的标准。采用χ²检验和Logistic回归模型进行数据分析。结果 共调查婴幼儿2 667人,其中男童1 438人(53.92%),女童1 229人(46.08%);超重209人(7.84%), 肥胖151人(5.66%)。出生时为巨大儿的婴幼儿超重率较高,男童肥胖率高于女童,剖腹产的婴幼儿肥胖率较高,出生后前6个月纯母乳喂养是婴幼儿肥胖的保护因素(P均<0.05)。结论 湖北省贫困地区婴幼儿超重肥胖问题不容忽视,男童、剖腹产出生、出生后前6个月为非纯母乳喂养的婴幼儿发生肥胖的风险较高,需积极关注并采取有效措施进行预防与控制。     

Maternal Visceral Adiposity by Consistency of Lactation

The purpose of this study was to examine the assocation between lactation and maternal visceral adiposity among US women who were on average 7 years postpartum. This cross-sectional analysis included 89 women who gave birth between 1997 and 2002, who did not have preeclampsia, prepregnancy hypertension or prepregnancy diabetes, and enrolled in The Women and Infant Study of Healthy Hearts (WISH). Computed tomography was used to assess abdominal adiposity. History of lactation was self-reported. Visceral adiposity was greater by 36.96 cm² (95% CI: 20.92,53.01) among mothers who never breastfed than mothers who breastfed for ≥3 months after every birth, even after adjustment for age, parity, years since last birth, site, socioeconomic, lifestyle, psychological, and family history variables, early adult BMI, and current BMI. Similarly, in fully adjusted models, mothers who breastfed any of their children for less than 3 months had 20.38 cm² (95% CI: 2.70, 38.06) greater visceral adiposity than mothers who consistently breastfed all their children for 3 or more months. This study found that 7 years postpartum visceral fat depots are significantly greater among mothers who lactated for less than 3 months after the birth of each of their children. These results provide a potential physiologic basis for prior findings that women who do not consistently breastfeed are at an increased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and the metabolic syndrome.     

Supplemental measles vaccine antibody response among HIV-infected and -uninfected children in Malawi after 1- and 2-dose primary measles vaccination schedules

BackgroundThe long-term antibody response to measles vaccine (MV) administered at age 6 months with or without subsequent doses is not well documented.MethodsMeasles serum antibody responses were evaluated after a supplemental dose of measles vaccine (sMV) administered at a median age of 20 months among Malawian children who had previously received 2 doses of measles vaccine (MV) at ages 6 and 9 months (HIV-infected and random sample of HIV-uninfected) or 1 dose at age 9 months (random sample of HIV-uninfected). We compared measles antibody seropositivity between groups by enzyme linked immunoassay and seroprotection by plaque reduction neutralization geometric mean concentrations.ResultsOf 1756 children enrolled, 887 (50.5%) received a sMV dose following MV at 9 months of age and had specimens available after sMV receipt, including 401 HIV-uninfected children who received one MV dose at 9 months, 464 HIV-uninfected and 22 HIV-infected children who received two doses of MV at ages 6 and 9 months. Among HIV-uninfected children, protective levels of antibody were found post sMV in 90–99% through ages 24–36 months and were not affected by MV schedule. Geometric mean concentration levels of measles antibody were significantly increased post-sMV among those HIV-uninfected children previously non-responsive to vaccination. Among HIV-infected children, the proportion seroprotected increased initially but by 9 months post-sMV was no higher than pre-sMV.ConclusionsOur findings support early 2-dose MV to provide measles immunity for young infants without risk of interference with antibody responses to subsequent MV doses administered as part of SIAs.     

Can We Fix This? Parent–Child Repair Processes and Preschoolers' Regulatory Skills

The repair of difficult parent–child interactions is a marker of healthy functioning in infancy, but less is known about repair processes during early childhood. We used dynamic systems methods to investigate dyadic repair in mothers and their 3‐year‐old children (N = 96) and its prediction of children's emotion regulation and behavior problems at a 4‐month follow‐up. Mothers and children completed free play and challenging puzzle tasks. Repair was operationalized as the conditional probability of moving into a dyadic adaptive behavior region after individual or dyadic maladaptive behavior (e.g., child noncompliance, parental criticism). Overall, dyads repaired approximately half their maladaptive behaviors. A greater likelihood of repair during the puzzle task predicted better child emotion regulation and fewer behavior problems in preschool. Results suggest dyadic repair is an important process in early childhood and provide further evidence for the connection between parent–child coregulation and children's developing regulatory capacities. Implications for family‐based interventions are discussed.     

Facteurs associés à l’âge d’initiation de la diversification alimentaire chez des enfants âgés de 6 à 60 mois dans l’est algérien : corrélation à l’état nutritionnel

IntroductionThe practice of food diversification is linked to several factors. In Algeria, we have no study dealing with this problem. Our aim is to identify the factors associated with the age of initiation of food diversification and to establish possible correlations of this period with the nutritional status of children.MethodThis study involved 578 mother-child couples. A questionnaire allowed us to collect information on children and their parents. The data collected included socio-demographic characteristics, information on the age of diversification, the foods introduced and anthropometric parameters.ResultsDiversification before the age of 4 months was found in 13.76% of children, 67.47% had started diversification between 4 and 6 months and 18.86% were diversified at the age of 6 months. The type of breastfeeding, the birth order and the birth weight of children are factors statistically linked to the age of initiation of diversification. The prevalence of stunting is significantly higher in diverse children before 4 months and the prevalence of overweight including obesity is significantly higher in diverse children before 6 months. Diversification before the age of 6 months seems to be associated with malnutrition. In this study, 8.66% of the children were overweight and 9.17% were stunted.ConclusionFood diversification in Algeria is associated with several factors. Our results revealed that early food diversification (before 6 months) is associated to malnutrition.     

Childhood mortality among users and non-users of primary health care in a rural west African community

To evaluate the effectiveness of primary health care (PHC) interventions implemented through the Pahou PHC Project, the utilization of PHC by 74 children aged 4 to 35 months who died in 1986 or 1987 was compared to that of 230 controls who survived and were individually matched by date of birth, sex and place of residence. The crude death rate was 35.9/1000/year. Measles vaccination before the first birthday significantly reduced the risk of mortality (Relative Risk/RR = 0.4). Children with less than 75% weight for age early in 1986 had an increased risk (RR = 4.3). Children who died had had significantly fewer contacts with the village health worker (VHW) in the last six months prior to death (RR = 0.3). A similar association was not observed for periods more than six months prior to death. Children who had more regular contact with the VHW throughout life were better protected than children for whom contact had been less systematic. We conclude that VHWs contribute to a better survival of young children through regular personal contact with the household.     

Does Child Care in the First Year of Life Pose a Risk for Concurrent and Future Ear Infections?

ABSTRACT

Child care centre attendance is associated with an increased risk of concurrent ear infections, but what is less clear is whether there are any positive or negative long-term effects of early child care attendance on the incidence of ear infections in later childhood. This research assessed the impact of early child care attendance on concurrent and long-term risk of ear infections. Complete sets of relevant wave 1–5 data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children were available for 3513 children (1822 boys) who had a median age of 9 months (M?=?8.7, SD?=?2.6) at wave 1, 34 months (M?=?33.8, SD?=?2.9) at wave 2, 57 months (M?=?57.5, SD?=?2.8) at wave 3, 82 months (M?=?81.8, SD?=?3.5) at wave 4, and 107 months (M?=?107.1, SD?=?3.6) at wave 5. At waves 1 and 2, children who attended child care centres had a significantly increased risk of concurrent ear infections than children with exclusive parental care. The longitudinal analyses found no evidence of increased (or decreased) long-term risk of ear infections in subsequent waves associated with attending a child care centre in the first 12 months (or the first 30 months) of life. However, having ear infections at wave 1 was a significant risk factor for ear infections at subsequent waves. Future research is needed to design and investigate appropriate interventions to ameliorate these increased risks.     

Ethnicity and infant health in Southern Brazil. A birth cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Black children present more health problems than white children, but little information is available from less developed countries. Ethnic inequalities may vary according to country, and studies from developing countries are needed to evaluate possible differentials and their magnitude, and identify social and health interventions. METHODS: Birth cohort study in Pelotas, Southern Brazil. Information collected during the perinatal period in hospitals, and at home at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months of age. In all, 5305 children were studied at birth, 96.8% of the sample of 1461 at 6 months, and 93.4% of this sample at 12 months of age. RESULTS: Of the children, 28% were African Brazilian. Socioeconomic position was lower among families of black children, and mothers presented a number of unfavourable characteristics. Black children presented higher prevalences of low birthweight (LBW), preterm and small-for-gestational age (SGA), were less often immunized, had more deficits of weight-for-age and height-for-age, and higher early neonatal and infant mortality. When a number of covariates, including antenatal care, were added to a multiple regression analysis the odds ratios were markedly reduced, but there was still a clear trend towards worse results for black children. Black mothers had some aspects of antenatal care of lower quality and were submitted less frequently to caesarean sections and episiotomies. CONCLUSIONS: Black infants experienced a much worse health status than white infants. Socioeconomic and other variables played a major role in determining inequalities between these ethnic groups. Antenatal care was especially important in explaining differentials in risk between black and white children.     

Psychological well-being of the institutionalized and community-residing oldest old in China: The role of children

Studies have shown that institutionalized older adults have worse psychological health than their community-residing counterparts. However, much less is known about this association in developing countries such as China with a rapidly aging population and a short history of institutional care. This article investigates the role of children in differences in psychological well-being between institutionalized and community-residing oldest-old adults in China. Using national data from the 1998, 2000, and 2002 waves of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey, results show that the institutionalized have significantly better psychological health-measured by positive affect, loneliness, and quality of life-than those living in the community. Furthermore, we find that the associations are moderated by child-related factors (number of children, proximity, and visits) and strengthened for the three measures of psychological well-being after adjustments for socioeconomic factors, social support, health behaviors, and health status. The results underscore the importance of family dynamics for the psychological health of the institutionalized population in a historically family-care oriented society.     

Effect of early life antibiotic use on serologic responses to oral rotavirus vaccine in the MAL-ED birth cohort study

BackgroundOral rotavirus vaccine efficacy is lower in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) than in high-income countries. The degree to which antibiotic use impacts rotavirus vaccine immunogenicity in LMICs is unknown. Using data from a multisite prospective birth cohort study of malnutrition and enteric disease, MAL-ED, we examined the effect of early life antibiotic use on the immune response to rotavirus vaccine.MethodsWe assessed whether antibiotic use from birth up to 7 days following rotavirus vaccine series completion was associated with rotavirus seropositivity at 7 months of age in Brazil, Peru, and South Africa using a modified Poisson regression. We then used parametric g-computation to estimate the impact of hypothetical interventions that treated all children and alternatively prevented inappropriate antibiotic treatments on seropositivity.ResultsOf 537 children, 178 (33%) received at least one antibiotic course during the exposure window. Probability of seropositivity was 40% higher among children who had at least one course of antibiotics compared with those with no antibiotic exposure (PR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.04, 1.89). There was no significant difference by the number of antibiotic courses received or total duration of antibiotics. Treating all children with antibiotics would be associated with a 19% (95% CI: 18%, 21%) absolute increase in seropositivity at 7 months. In contrast, removing inappropriate antibiotics would result in a 4% absolute reduction (95% CI: ?5%, ?2%) in seropositivity.ConclusionsEarly life antibiotic use was associated with increased seropositivity. However, a hypothetical intervention to remove inappropriate antibiotics would have little effect on overall seropositivity. Further investigation into the underlying mechanisms of antibiotic use on the infant gut microbiome and immune response are needed.     

早期干预降低极低出生体重儿脑瘫发生率的临床研究

目的对极低出生体重儿和胎龄32周早产儿进行早期干预,观察能否降低其脑瘫发生率。方法出生于28家医院胎龄32周或/和出生体重1 500g的早产儿857例,除外先天畸形和先天遗传代谢疾病,分为两组:研究开始后出生的早产儿,家长参与早期干预指导的为干预组(452例);研究开始前9~15月内出生的早产儿,家庭常规育儿方式养育者为对照组(405例)。干预组患儿出院后即按早期干预计划(运动、认知、语言、情感、交往能力)等进行干预。运动训练,包括按摩、被动操、主动运动训练等。每月做神经运动检查,若出现异常者做家庭强化训练;对照组只和干预组接受同样的喂养、护理和婴幼儿保健指导。对照组在矫正年龄9、12个月做神经运动检查,继续随访到2岁。结果两组在性别、胎龄、出生体重等差异无统计学意义(P0.05)。围生期情况比较,颅内出血干预组(26.33%)高于对照组(18.43%)(P0.05)。宫内窘迫、生后窒息、缺氧缺血性脑病,高胆红素血症、呼吸窘迫综合症、新生儿感染的发生比例两组比较无统计学意义(P均0.05)。两组患儿诊断脑瘫时间均在1岁以后。干预组脑瘫发生率为22.1‰(10/452),对照组为61.7‰(25/405)。对照组高于干预组2.79倍,差异有高度统计学意义(P0.01)。结论出院后开始早期干预可有效降低早产儿和极低出生体重儿的脑瘫发生率。     

早期发展促进课程对婴幼儿智能发育的影响因素分析

目的 分析参与早期发展促进课程(早期课程)的婴幼儿智能发育的影响因素,为提高早期课程效果、促进婴幼儿智能发育提供对策。方法 对2013-2015年间参加该院早期课程的252个家庭,调查婴幼儿和实际带养者的情况,对婴幼儿进行1次/周的早期课程,并分别于参加早期课程前、6个月后、12个月后测查婴幼儿的发育商(DQ)。结果 婴幼儿参加早期课程12个月DQ值提高了11.48±4.12(t=23.58,P＜0.01)。多重线性回归分析显示,婴幼儿参加早期课程月龄、出生Apgar评分、实际带养者与婴幼儿关系、家庭月收入、课程参加率、课后家庭训练率以及早期发展促进知识得分是参与早期课程的婴幼儿智能发育的影响因素(F=18.649,P＜0.01)。结论 尽早让婴幼儿参加早期课程、加强早期课程管理以及重视对早期发展促进的宣传,能提高早期课程效果,促进婴幼儿智能发育。     

Maternal postpartum health care utilization and the effect of Minnesota early discharge legislation

PURPOSE: To describe maternal postdischarge follow-up and health care utilization in the context of Minnesota's early discharge legislation, which mandates coverage for a home visit for a mother and baby who voluntarily leave the hospital early. METHODS: Claims data from a large managed care organization were used to identify 22,944 women giving birth from January 1995 through February 1999. Study variables included home or clinic visits within 1 week of discharge (early follow-up), readmissions within 1 month of discharge, and urgent care or emergency department visits within 2 months of discharge. RESULTS: After enactment of Minnesota's legislation, the percentage of mothers with short stays decreased from 52% to 16% for vaginal births and from 87% to 63% for cesarean births (P =.001). Overall, 33% of mothers with vaginal births and 40% with cesarean births had early home or clinic follow-up (P =.001). Mothers who stayed 0 or 1 hospital days after vaginal births were more likely to have early follow-up than those with longer stays (37% vs 32%, P =.01). However, mothers who stayed 2 or 3 days after cesarean birth were no more likely to have early follow-up than mothers who stayed 4 or more days (39% vs 42%, P =.08). Rates of early follow-up were significantly higher after enactment of Minnesota's legislation, regardless of length of stay. CONCLUSIONS: Implementation of Minnesota's early discharge legislation corresponded with significantly increased lengths of stay and an increase in the percentage of mothers who received early follow-up visits. However the majority of mothers with short stays continued to lack early follow-up.     

Willingness to vaccinate children against COVID-19 declined during the pandemic

ObjectivesTo document the level of vaccine hesitancy in caregivers’ of children younger than 12 years of age over the course of the pandemic in Pediatric Emergency Departments (ED).Study designOngoing multicenter, cross-sectional survey of caregivers presenting to 19 pediatric EDs in the USA, Canada, Israel, and Switzerland during first months of the pandemic (phase1), when vaccines were approved for adults (phase2) and most recently when vaccines were approved for children (phase3).ResultsWillingness to vaccinate rate declined over the study period (59.7%, 56.1% and 52.1% in the three phases). Caregivers who are fully vaccinated, who have higher education, and those worried their child had COVID-19 upon arrival to the ED, were more likely to plan to vaccinate in all three phases. Mothers were less likely to vaccinate early in the pandemic, but this hesitancy attenuated in later phases. Older caregivers were more willing to vaccinate, and caregivers of older children were less likely to vaccinate their children in phase 3. During the last phase, willingness to vaccinate was lowest in those who had a primary care provider but did not rely on their advice for medical decisions (34%). Those with no primary care provider and those who do and rely on their medical advice, had similar rates of willingness to vaccinate (55.1% and 52.1%, respectively).ConclusionsCOVID-19 vaccine hesitancy is widespread and growing over time, and public health measures should further try to leverage identified factors associated with hesitancy in order to enhance vaccination rates among children.     

Childhood malnutrition within the indigenous Wayuú children of northern Colombia

ABSTRACT

Malnutrition contributes to nearly half of all preventable deaths in children under the age of five. While the burden of disease is heaviest in Sub-Saharan Africa, South, and Southeast Asia, malnutrition in Latin America remains high, especially within indigenous communities. This study evaluates the prevalence of malnutrition and its relationship with access to healthcare resources within 172 indigenous Wayuú communities in La Guajira, Colombia. Healthcare workers administered a health questionnaire and collected anthropometric measurements on all children 6 months to 5 years of age within the Wayuú households. These data were utilised to calculate the prevalence of acute malnutrition, stunting, and underweight. Of all surveyed Wayuú children, 22.9% and 18.3% met criteria for moderate and severe malnutrition, 33.4% and 28.1% met criteria for moderate and severe stunting, and 28.1% and 16.6% were moderately and severely underweight. Across all categories, malnourished children were older, less likely to have had a medical professional present at birth, less likely to have received medical care after birth, and more likely to have been born in a non-medical, community setting. The prevalence of malnutrition is much higher than national levels in Colombia. This population requires urgent assistance to address their disproportionately high rates of malnutrition.     

Factors determining weight and height in children aged 3 months to 6 years enrolled in a public municipal day-care center in Brazil]

OBJECTIVE: To assess factors determining growth in a group of children between 3 months and 6 years old enrolled in a public municipal (i.e., government-supported, not private) day-care center, in comparison to a group of children with similar characteristics but who were not enrolled in the center. METHODS: A quasi-experimental study was designed to observe 444 children aged 3 to 72 months from a low-income neighborhood in the city of Sorocaba, in the state of S?o Paulo, Brazil. Two groups were studied: 164 children enrolled in a local municipal day-care center (intervention group) and 280 not receiving care at the center (nonintervention, comparison group) but instead being cared for at home. Both groups were seen four times over a period of 16 months. At each observation session, the children's weight and height were measured. Information was also collected on the mother's sociodemographic characteristics and the illnesses she had suffered as well as the child's weight and other health characteristics at birth, the child's illnesses in the 15 days before each observation, and any hospitalizations. RESULTS: The children in both groups were from low-income families, with 65% of the families having an average monthly income below US$ 100; 80% of the mothers had received 8 years of schooling or less. Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that at the first observation (just before enrollment in the day-care center), birth weight was the only factor that explained the nutritional differences between the two groups. Subsequent analyses showed that being in day care was the factor that best explained the differences between the groups, especially in terms of the adequacy of weight for age, after controlling for birthweight, sex, age at the beginning of the study, and illnesses in the 15 days before an observation session. The nutritional impact of the intervention was significant as early as 3 months after being enrolled in day care. CONCLUSIONS: The nutritional benefits of the care provided at the center outweighed the negative effects sometimes seen in such centers, such as the greater morbidity that children in day-care centers often experience in comparison to children receiving care at home.     

Comparison of Domiciliary and Institutional Delivery-care Practices in Rural Rajasthan, India

A retrospective cross-sectional survey was conducted to assess key practices and costs relating to home- and institutional delivery care in rural Rajasthan, India. One block from each of two sample districts was covered (estimated population–279,132). Field investigators listed women who had delivered in the past three months and contacted them for structured case interview. In total, 1,947 (96%) of 2,031 listed women were successfully interviewed. An average of 2.4 and 1.7 care providers attended each home- and institutional delivery respectively. While 34% of the women delivered in health facilities, modern care providers attended half of all the deliveries. Intramuscular injections, intravenous drips, and abdominal fundal pressure were widely used for hastening delivery in both homes and facilities while post-delivery injections for active management of the third stage were administered to a minority of women in both the venues. Most women were discharged prematurely after institutional delivery, especially by smaller health facilities. The cost of accessing home-delivery care was Rs 379 (US$ 8) while the mean costs in facilities for elective, difficult vaginal deliveries and for caesarean sections were Rs 1,336 (US$ 30), Rs 2,419 (US$ 54), and Rs 11,146 (US$ 248) respectively. Most families took loans at high interest rates to meet these costs. It is concluded that widespread irrational practices by a range of care providers in both homes and facilities can adversely affect women and newborns while inadequate observance of beneficial practices and high costs are likely to reduce the benefits of institutional delivery, especially for the poor. Government health agencies need to strengthen regulation of delivery care and, especially, monitor perinatal outcomes. Family preference for hastening delivery and early discharge also require educational efforts.Key words: Childbirth, Cross-sectional studies, Emergency care, Fundal pressure, Knowledge, attitudes, and practice, Labour, Obstetric care, Oxytocin, Retrospective studies, Traditional birth attendants, India