PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Milagros Ruiz
AU  - Peter Goldblatt
AU  - Joana Morrison
AU  - Lubomír Kukla
AU  - Jan Švancara
AU  - Marjo Riitta-Järvelin
AU  - Anja Taanila
AU  - Marie-Josèphe Saurel-Cubizolles
AU  - Sandrine Lioret
AU  - Chryssa Bakoula
AU  - Alexandra Veltsista
AU  - Daniela Porta
AU  - Francesco Forastiere
AU  - Manon van Eijsden
AU  - Tanja G M Vrijkotte
AU  - Merete Eggesbø
AU  - Richard A White
AU  - Henrique Barros
AU  - Sofia Correia
AU  - Martine Vrijheid
AU  - Maties Torrent
AU  - Marisa Rebagliato
AU  - Isabel Larrañaga
AU  - Johnny Ludvigsson
AU  - Åshild Olsen Faresjö
AU  - Daniel Hryhorczuk
AU  - Youriy Antipkin
AU  - Michael Marmot
AU  - Hynek Pikhart
TI  - Mother's education and the risk of preterm and small for gestational age birth: a DRIVERS meta-analysis of 12 European cohorts
AID  - 10.1136/jech-2014-205387
DP  - 2015 Sep 01
TA  - Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
PG  - 826--833
VI  - 69
IP  - 9
4099  - http://jech.bmj.com/content/69/9/826.short
4100  - http://jech.bmj.com/content/69/9/826.full
SO  - J Epidemiol Community Health2015 Sep 01; 69
AB  - Background A healthy start to life is a major priority in efforts to reduce health inequalities across Europe, with important implications for the health of future generations. There is limited combined evidence on inequalities in health among newborns across a range of European countries.Methods Prospective cohort data of 75 296 newborns from 12 European countries were used. Maternal education, preterm and small for gestational age births were determined at baseline along with covariate data. Regression models were estimated within each cohort and meta-analyses were conducted to compare and measure heterogeneity between cohorts.Results Mother's education was linked to an appreciable risk of preterm and small for gestational age (SGA) births across 12 European countries. The excess risk of preterm births associated with low maternal education was 1.48 (1.29 to 1.69) and 1.84 (0.99 to 2.69) in relative and absolute terms (Relative/Slope Index of Inequality, RII/SII) for all cohorts combined. Similar effects were found for SGA births, but absolute inequalities were greater, with an SII score of 3.64 (1.74 to 5.54). Inequalities at birth were strong in the Netherlands, the UK, Sweden and Spain and marginal in other countries studied.Conclusions This study highlights the value of comparative cohort analysis to better understand the relationship between maternal education and markers of fetal growth in different settings across Europe.