Integrated Maternal and Newborn Care Basic Skills Course ...

Reference Manual
CHAPTER 12: Care of the Low Birth Weight Baby,
Including Kangaroo Mother Care
Low birth weight (LBW) babies weigh less than 2500 grams at birth. Babies may be low birth
weight because they:
• are born too early, before 37 completed weeks of gestation (preterm or premature).
• have suffered intrauterine malnutrition or intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), making
them “small for date” or small for gestational age. Such babies may be term, preterm, or
post-term (>42 completed weeks).
Although the basic aspects of essential newborn care for LBW newborns are similar to those for
normal infants, LBW babies, being vulnerable, need additional support, especially for
temperature maintenance, feeding, prevention of infection, and detection and management of
problems and complications. They are also associated with a greater risk for complications and
a higher neonatal mortality. In fact, 60-80 percent of deaths in the neonatal period are among
low birth weight babies, and they continue to have a high mortality during infancy.
Even though LBW babies need extra care, most of them are the “larger” ones, above
1500 grams. They can be managed with some extra care and with methods such as kangaroo
mother care that are simple and low cost. The very small LBW babies needing more costly
intensive care represent a much smaller proportion.
FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH LOW BIRTH WEIGHT
Mothers may have a history of:
• previously having had a LBW baby
• being young (less than 16 years) or older (more than 35 years)
• performing excessive physical work without appropriate rest
• belonging to a low socio-economic group
• having short intervals (less than two years) between pregnancies
• having multiple pregnancies
Mothers may have problems during pregnancy such as:
• malnutrition
• severe anemia
• preeclampsia/eclampsia
• infections during pregnancy such as urinary tract infection, malaria, syphilis,
toxoplasmosis, herpes, CMV, Rubella, HIV/AIDS
The fetus may be abnormal with:
• certain congenital malformations
• intrauterine acquired infection
In 30-50 percent of cases of low birth weight, no obvious cause is found.
PREVENTING LOW BIRTH WEIGHT
Prevention of LBW presents challenges. Some interventions are noted below:
Integrated maternal and newborn care
Basic skills course
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