Disparities in preterm birth following the July 1995 Chicago heat wave

To evaluate if changes in preterm birth (PTB, <37 weeks of gestation) incidence differed between non-Hispanic (NH) Black and NH white births following the July 1995 Chicago heat wave—among the most severe U.S. heat waves since 1950. We used an ecologic study design. We obtained birth data from Ja...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of epidemiology Vol. 87; pp. 31 - 37
Main Authors: Gordon, Milo, Casey, Joan A., McBrien, Heather, Gemmill, Alison, Hernández, Diana, Catalano, Ralph, Chakrabarti, Suman, Bruckner, Tim
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: United States Elsevier Inc 01.11.2023
Subjects:
Black or African American
Chicago
Chicago - epidemiology
Ethnicity
Extreme heat
Female
Health Status Disparities
Hot Temperature
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Pregnancy
Premature birth
Premature Birth - epidemiology
Racial Groups
Racism
Socioeconomic factors
Temperature
White
Chicago
Temperature
Extreme heat
Chicago
Racism
Premature birth
Socioeconomic factors
ISSN:1047-2797, 1873-2585, 1873-2585
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:To evaluate if changes in preterm birth (PTB, <37 weeks of gestation) incidence differed between non-Hispanic (NH) Black and NH white births following the July 1995 Chicago heat wave—among the most severe U.S. heat waves since 1950. We used an ecologic study design. We obtained birth data from January 1990–December 1996 from the National Vital Statistics File to calculate the mean monthly PTB incidence in Chicago’s Cook County, Illinois. Births between July 1995 and February 1996 were potentially exposed to the heat wave in utero. We generated time series models for NH Black and NH white births, which incorporated synthetic controls of Cook County based on unexposed counties. We ran a secondary analysis considering socioeconomic status (SES). From 1990–1996, the mean monthly PTB incidence among NH Black births was 18.6% compared to 7.8% among NH white births. The mean monthly PTB incidence among NH Black births from August 1995–January 1996 was 16.7% higher than expected (three additional PTBs per 100 live births per month [95% confidence interval (CI): 1, 5]). A similar increase occurred among low-SES NH Black births. No increase appeared among NH white births. Severe heat waves may increase racial disparities in PTB incidence.
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ISSN:1047-2797
1873-2585
1873-2585
DOI:10.1016/j.annepidem.2023.08.008