Survey Data on Low Birthweight: An Evaluation of Recent International Estimates and Estimation Procedures

Ann Blanc, Blancroft Research International
Tessa Wardlaw, United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)

An infant's weight at birth is an indicator not only of a mother's health but also the newborn's chances for survival, growth, long-term health and psychosocial development. Reduction of the proportion of infants with low birthweight is recommended in the 'A World Fit for Children' goals of the U.N. for the coming decade. Since facility-based estimates of low birthweight are biased for most developing countries, prior work has focused on the feasibility of using survey data based on mother's recall. While a great deal of data have been collected, little has been done to evaluate its quality or the adequacy of estimation procedures. Using data from approximately 60 DHS and MICS surveys we look for systematic patterns in the estimates and quantify the effect of different adjustment procedures. We make recommendations for the improvement of data collection and provide guidelines for the estimation of low birthweight with survey data.